Montreal Canadiens head coach, Martin St-Louis, held a press conference earlier today where he addressed the Justin Barron trade.

At the start of the press conference, two elements stood out.

First, his comments on Justin Barron, and second, a question he politely refused to answer.

They were referring to the fact that Canadiens management, including Kent Hughes, Vincent Lecavalier, and Nick Bobrov, traveled to meet Ivan Demidov’s coach and watch their prospect play with his KHL team.

This happened at the very beginning of Martin St-Louis’ press conference:

Martin St-Louis also comments on Justin Barron’s departure

I was curious to hear what MSL truly thought of Barron, and clearly, he held him in high regard.

When asked about the trade, even before talking about Alexandre Carrier, Martin St-Louis focused on the disappointment of losing a young player like Barron.

He worked with JB extensively and seemed genuinely disappointed to see him leave.

“It’s one part of the job that’s not fun.. When you have a player leave, a player you’ve spent time with.

JB, I enjoyed working with him, he’s a good young player, but it’s part of the job.”

Martin St-Louis

It’s worth noting that the initial question wasn’t even about Justin Barron, but rather about the excitement of adding reinforcements.

Martin immediately redirected it to Barron, showing just how much he appreciated him.

Justin Barron, 23 years old, played 17 games this season with the Montreal Canadiens.

Also as announced earlier today, St-Louis revealed that newly acquired defensemen Alex Carrier will make his debut tomorrow against the Red Wings.

We wish him the best of luck in Nashville!