Montreal Canadiens head coach St-Louis taking indefinite leave for family reasons

Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis stands behind his bench during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh, Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. (Gene J. Puskar/The Associated Press)

Montreal Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis is taking an indefinite leave for family reasons.

Assistant coach Trevor Letowski will run the team while St. Louis is away, the Canadiens said Saturday.

Montreal had lost three of four going into Saturday night's game at Calgary. The matchup with the Flames was the opener of a five-game trip.

The 48-year-old St. Louis was hired as interim coach after the Canadiens fired Dominique Ducharme in February 2022. He signed a three-year contract extension in June 2022.

Before coaching, St. Louis enjoyed a stellar playing career, collecting 1,033 points (391 goals, 642 assists) in 1,134 regular-season games with the Flames, Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers. He won the Stanley Cup and the Hart Trophy as the league MVP with the Lightning in 2004 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018.

This report by The Associated Press was first published March 16, 2024.