The wraparound panel discusses whether Montreal Canadiens' coach Martin St-Louis could be in the hot seat... Jayden Struble is a valuable defenseman for the Montreal Canadiens. He’s not short, but he’s not a big man. He is 6’0”, over 200 pounds and he plays much bigger. He is physical and every hockey team needs a few physical defensemen. Struble sticks up for his teammates too. At Minnesota Duluth, Struble had a lot of success. It helped build his foundation before he turned professional. Then he was off to Laval. He finished out 2022-23 there and then the next year, he only played in 13 games. He had seven points and 29 PIMS. The rest of his time was spent with the Montreal Canadiens. He played in 56 games, had 10 points and he was fitting in. Remember having spent four years in college got him prepared physically for the NHL. Aside from a slight injury, he’s had a good season thus far. He’s averaging 15:03 time on the ice, almost two hits per game, 10 takeaways and he’s averaging 1.09 blocks per game, the team leader is David Savard on the team who blocked 2.57 per game. At 23, his five points in 22 games is fine. I don’t think he’s going to put up more than 20 points in a season. His shot is fine but his release is a bit slow. Struble [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/canadiens-ready-for-a-fight] skates well and he will add to his physicality and can be counted on for just under 20 minutes a game in the future. He’s that kind of defenseman. All teams need a few.
