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Canadiens’ St-Louis Says He Did His Job Following Optional Skate On Friday

Once upon a time in the NHL, when an opponent destroyed you, there was a risk that practice the next day would be tough, that there would be some bag skating, that the coach may very well raise his voice, but this is not today’s NHL. After his Montreal Canadiens were beaten 7-0 by the Dallas Stars, coach Martin St-Louis decided that the on-ice practice would be optional.

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That decision surprised some, and when the bench boss was asked what his players did in Brossard on Friday morning, he replied that there was a mandatory video session. Ask to describe what that was like. He said there was a TV showing some clips, and they talked about a few things. Further pressed by a journalist to know what the tone of the meeting was like, the pilot said:

Listen, I’m not going to tell you what my tone was like, alright? I did my job today.
- St-Louis didn't like being questioned about his handling of Friday's practice

While he didn’t say it, St-Louis didn’t appreciate the fact that the way he handled the group following such a beating was put into question. While fans and media alike wondered whether it was the best time for an optional skate, they are not in the coaches’ shoes or have the beat of the room that the coach does.

The coach stated that the team had been on the ice for four consecutive days and that two games were coming up quick against the Boston Bruins on Saturday and the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday and that the players knew what they had to do whether it was to skate like Oliver Kapananenm, Lane Hutson, Ivan Demidov and Zachary Bolduc decided to do, jump on the ice earlier with skills coach Adam Nicholas like Brendan Gallagher and Jake Evans chose to do or by just sticking to off-ice training like all the others.

As for the other burning question, he confirmed that Samuel Montembeault would be in the net against the Bruins, meaning he’s sticking with the “if you lose, you give up the net” formula.

While the coach didn’t have a full update on Alex Newhook, he did acknowledge that the forward would miss some time and that he would need to make some lineup changes. A couple of hours later, the verdict was handed down. Newhook suffered a broken ankle, had surgery and will be out for four months. Because bad news never comes alone, the Canadiens also announced that Kaiden Guhle had surgery on a partially torn adductor muscle and would miss from eight to 10 weeks—awful news for the Canadiens that comes at the worst possible time.

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Victor Wembanyama explains why he got in Draymond Green's face after poster dunk

Victor Wembanyama explains why he got in Draymond Green's face after poster dunk originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Victor Wembanyama‘s poster dunk over Draymond Green, and the theatrics that ensued, came from bottled-up emotions.

After the Warriors’ thrilling 109-108 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night, the young Spurs phenom explained to reporters why he got in Green’s face after the monstrous slam.

“It’s not trying to prove anything to anybody,” Wembanyama said (h/t Mike Finger). “It’s just, at some point, somebody speaks to you a certain way, you have to respond a certain way.”

After the dunk, which didn’t actually count because officials ruled Green fouled Wembanyama before the slam, the 7-foot-4 Wembanyama hunched over Green as the two began to exchange words.

The Spurs bench — and the entire Frost Bank Center crowd — got out of their seats in awe of what they just witnessed. Then, as Wembanyama and Green continued to go at it, Spurs fourth-year forward Jeremy Sochan got in between the two and shoved Green away from his teammate.

Eventually, players on both sides got involved as they tried to de-escalate the situation.

Wembanyama finished with 26 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, one steal and three blocks in 38 minutes.

Ultimately, though, Green, in 33 minutes, finished with six points, eight rebounds, eight assists, three blocks, the win and the last laugh in San Antonio.

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Steph Curry explains Under Armour split, next moves in sneaker free agency

Steph Curry explains Under Armour split, next moves in sneaker free agency originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN ANTONIO – Steph Curry, for the second straight game in the Warriors’ second consecutive road win, scored more than 40 points Friday night in a 109-108 victory against the San Antonio Spurs. 

But there was something different about Curry’s pregame look Friday night at Frost Bank Center. Much different.

It was announced Thursday that Curry and Under Armour were parting ways in a move that shocked the basketball and sneaker world. Curry always has all eyes on his famous pregame warmup routine. On Friday, all eyes were on his feet. 

Curry wore black and white Mambacita Kobe 6 Nike shoes before his first game as a sneaker free agent since 2013.

“I’m a free agent out here. New beginnings,” Curry said after the win. “I was blessed to have an unbelievable experience, take a chance on something that meant a lot to me over the last 13 years and I’m extremely proud of myself, my team, everybody that was able to touch that business for that long. We all should be proud of what we were able to accomplish in taking a basketball brand and category that wasn’t really a thing to where we did. But I’m excited about the future.” 

Originally a Nike athlete, Curry made the move to Under Armour in 2013, where he became the face of their basketball brand. 

He then launched Curry Brand through Under Armour in 2020. The assumption was that the Warriors superstar would be locked in with Under Armour for life. That isn’t so anymore. 

The Curry Brand will move forward independently. Under Armour still will release the Curry 13 shoes in February 2026. After that, their marriage is over. Starting now, he is a sneaker free agent, explaining that a change right now is best for all.

“Just in the best interest of both parties,” Curry said. “The sneaker industry is difficult, and like I said, things change over time, and to the point of you give your best effort to create something sustainable.

“A little disappointing, though, knowing how it turned out, based on where Curry Brand has been the last five years and the announcement we had two years ago. But I think it’s the right thing for everybody. For me to take the opportunity with Curry Brand and what we’ve done in the community, what we’ve done standing for something. ‘Change The Game For Good’ is our tagline and hopefully having something to show for it down the road, I’m excited for that.” 

Curry always has spoken highly about the late Kobe Bryant, and how he paved a path for women athletes in basketball. His Curry Camp now hosts the same amount of girls prep starts as boys. Wearing the specific pair of Kobes he did in San Antonio was intentional.

Even knowing how odd it looked to see him wear different shoes for the first time in more than a decade.

“I know it’s just weird seeing me in anything else other than my own shoes,” Curry acknowledged. “But just the idea of what he meant. I’ve talked about Kobe a lot. And that specific pair, I think it speaks for itself and what it means. Other than that, it’s just something that I wanted to take advantage of that moment and pay tribute. 

“I think it gave me some good energy tonight.” 

Once the game started, Curry was back to wearing a white colorway of his current Curry Brand Under Armour shoes. There was then a switch. Curry in the second quarter put on a pair of his Curry Series 7 shoes that feature blue, red and yellow colors. 

Keep your eyes peeled to what shoes Curry has on his feet as this continues and he seeks new partnership deals. Curry will keep wearing other brands, possibly trying multiple versions from different companies. 

“The good thing about this situation is, I love my own shoes when I’m out there hooping. That’s why I put those back on, and why I’ve designed the kicks that I have for as long as I have,” Curry said. “But yeah, I’m going to have some fun with this in terms of whatever opportunities are the right fit. 

“I’ll try everything out.”

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