As a devoted fan of the Montreal Canadiens living in Ohio, I’ve always navigated a peculiar space when it comes to hockey. That came up again recently during the 4 Nations Face-Off.

It’s fair to say that Patrik Laine’s return to Columbus before the holiday break was an eventful one, even though he only made it through one period before being pulled from the game.

The Canadiens 9-2 dismantling by the Penguins last week may very well be the low-point of their rebuild. It should only get better from here and early indications from the team suggest that it will.