How many times have we heard from members of the media that playing for the Montreal Canadiens and in a city like Montreal was too hard and that was the main reason why no star players wanted to be traded or sign here via the free agent market? Way too many times would you say and you would be absolutely right. During years, star players in the National Hockey League didn't want to know anything about coming to play for the Canadiens and in a city where the majority of the population speaks French. Who doesn't remember when Daniel Brière who was a free agent in July 2007 choose the Philadelphia Flyers instead of Montreal? There are many examples like this one and I could have made another article only about these players who refused to come to Montreal during the prime of their career.

In June 2018, the Montreal Canadiens acquired Max Domi in a trade with the Arizona Coyotes for Alex Galchenyuk. This trade made a big noise in Montreal and fans were not really happy to see a former 30 goals scorer leave for a player who scored only 9 goals in 82 games during the 2017-2018 season. The 2018-2018 NHL season is just old of about a month and already people in Montreal have changed their mind about Max Domi. He quickly became a fan favorite and one of the best players on the team. His 21 points in only 17 games give him the best start to the season in over 20 years for a Montreal Canadiens player. Shayne Corson and Mark Recchi got 22 and 19 points respectively during the 1997-1998 season and no Canadiens players did better than this before Max Domi this season.

Not only is Max Domi having a fantastic start so far, but he his also quickly destroying all the myths about the pressure of playing for the Canadiens and in Montreal. Max Domi is not afraid of the pressure and of critics. In fact, it seems that he becomes even better when the pressure is high. When he was playing in Arizona, Max Domi was not the best player of the Coyotes, but there was no pressure in Phoenix... The team is playing in an empty arena all season long and it almost seems like Max Domi was not really happy there. At least, his motivation was not the same at all. When he got traded to the Canadiens everything changed for him. He then arrived in a market where hockey is king, an environment that Max Domi was already knowing a little bit in fact. His father Tie Domi played many years in Toronto for the Maple Leafs when Max was young. We can say that the transition in Montreal was easy for Max Domi so far. He loves playing for the Habs and he his also really involved in the community. He interacts with fans a lot and gives them a lot of his time outside the rink to signed autographs and jerseys.

Nobody can say today with how many points and goals Max Domi will finish at the end of the season. A thing that is sure, though, is that Max Domi will probably change all perception about playing in Montreal. We will not be able to say anymore that playing for the Canadiens is too hard. Sure, it won't always be easy and some players are better at dealing with the pressure than others, but look at Max Domi. He his only 23 years old and about to become one of the best players in the NHL. Oh! And he his playing for the Montreal Canadiens by the way...