The Montreal Canadiens have been on a terrible run as of late, and head coach Martin St-Louis has seen enough and put his players through a punishment at practice. Today, head coach Martin St-Louis brought a different style: grueling, no-nonsense practice. It's one of those defining moments for some who've been waiting to see him finally take matters into his own hands. As for others who doubted whether he had it in him to be firm, this display will change some opinions, for sure. The latter, often criticized this season for being too lenient, proved he's ready to set straighter expectations, whenever necessary. Too often, critics have mentioned St-Louis' approach to coaching lacks the required sternness at least after some lackluster performances. Some said he was too soft; he never disciplined them enough. But today, <a href='https://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/rare_scene_at_practice_as_martin_st_louis_loses_patience_and_the_players_pay_the_price/s1_17452_41160029' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>the rigorous skating session</a> sent a clear message: complacency is no longer tolerated. In Washington, St-Louis spared nothing as he threw his team through one of those grueling, puckless on-ice practices. Just an old-school kind of session; a reminder that, in the end, it comes down to accountability and hard work. <div align='center'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/ArponBasu/status/1852380493456552282'> </a></blockquote></div> The images taken by in-house journalists give a little sense of just how hard the exercise was, where the players were skating hard and dripping from sweat. It was a no-excuse-left-behind practice, with even the team's youngest defenseman, Lane Hutson, appreciated for leading the way, which speaks to his level of work and commitment. Quite nice to see the younger core setting the bar high in this adverse moment. As the Canadiens stay in Washington, they're already preparing to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins tomorrow night. With the Montreal Canadiens currently at 25th in NHL standings, a current record of four wins, six losses, and one overtime loss has them a long way from any playoff zone. It seems St-Louis and the management want to send a message to their team that hard work and resiliency are things that will not be compromised if they want to start a climb up the standings. It also appears the team was without David Savard, so we will have to wait and see if it is anything serious. <div align='center'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/CanadiensMTL/status/1852371043463110673'> </a></blockquote></div> Today's intense practice offers new hope that the Canadiens can finally shift gears and rise to the occasion. Whether this marks the moment of the turnaround, well, it should soon become clear. The team's response to that challenge will be the source of a lot of anxiety for both fans and analysts tomorrow night. Will this finally be that push they need to start scratching their way back into playoff contention? Time will tell, but one thing is for sure: Martin St-Louis has put his players on notice.