For most athletes, playing against your former team in an arena you once called home is bound to bring up a mix of emotions. But in the case of former Montreal Canadiens forward Jonathan Drouin, there is only excitement.
The 28-year-old, who joined the Colorado Avalanche this summer after six years with the Canadiens, caught up with Jean-Charles Lajoie of TVA Sports on Thursday. Throughout their chat, Drouin made it clear that he’s had the January 15 matchup circled on his calendar for a while.
“I can’t wait to come back and have dinner with some Canadiens players. And my family will come watch the game. It’s going to be special,” he said in French. “You tell yourself that it’s a match like any other but that’s not the case. I’ve been looking at the date since November.”
Drouin was also asked about his tumultuous time in Montreal, which included multiple disappointing seasons, a slew of injuries, and a long mental health break. In reflection, the Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts said overthinking things was a large part of what went wrong in his Habs tenure.
“It’s hard to put just one thing down, but there was a time when I was afraid of making mistakes. I wasn’t comfortable with my game and I was thinking about too many things. In my first match, I thought I was ready but that wasn’t the case,” Drouin explained. “It took me years to understand [the pressure]. But I think in the last two years, Martin St-Louis helped me a lot with all that, to just play hockey and not think about what people thought of me.”
Nevertheless, Drouin is hitting his stride now, finding chemistry with former Junior linemate Nathan MacKinnon, who played a major role in his signing with Colorado. And despite a slow start, he has 14 points in his last 14 games, bringing him up to nine goals and 13 assists at the season’s midway point.
Still, he credits his last few seasons with the rebuilding Canadiens for turning him into the productive player he is today.
“I loved my six seasons in Montreal. There were ups and downs, it was a great place for me,” he added. “I believe the last two years have helped me develop my game today.”