Habs GM Kent Hughes keeping both feet on the ground despite recent successes

Montreal Canadiens General Manager Kent Hughes gives his mid-season update at a press conference in Brossard, Que., Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (Ryan Remiorz / The Canadian Press)

Kent Hughes reminded fans that the Montreal Canadiens have yet to accomplish anything this season, even though his team is in the mix for a playoff spot at the halfway point of the campaign.

The Habs general manager didn't seem any more upbeat than necessary during his mid-season review on Wednesday at the CN Sports Complex even though his team has won eight of their last 10 games and are just one point out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference heading into today's games.

Instead, Hughes reflected on what has been a difficult start to the season, with the Habs experiencing their first real storm since the start of the new regime some three years ago.

“We still have a lot to learn,” said Hughes. “I'm glad we're playing better than we did at the start of the season, but we've played 40 games and we're one game over the .500 mark. We're not celebrating for nothing. We haven't achieved anything yet.”

Hughes said he would use the 22 games before the trade deadline to continue to assess his squad and prepare his plan for the final segment of the season.

However, he acknowledged that the addition of veteran defenceman Alexandre Carrier on December 18 had had a major impact on his squad.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Jan. 8, 2025.