Blais excited for homecoming in Montreal

MONTREAL - Alex Kovalev.
Saku Koivu.
Cristobal Huet.
Those are a few former Canadiens that Blues forward Sammy Blais knows quite well.

Not personally, of course, but as a native of nearby Montmagny, Quebec, Blais grew up idolizing those players as he watched every Montreal Canadiens game on television. Occasionally, he would join his family and friends on the three-hour drive to Bell Centre to watch a game live, where he became a fan of current Canadiens stars like Carey Price and Max Pacioretty.
On Tuesday, Blais will go head-to-head against some of his favorite Canadiens for the first time as a professional hockey player, and it goes without saying that it will be a highlight of his young NHL career.
"I grew up watching the Canadiens play all the time," Blais said after his first hockey practice at Bell Centre on Monday. "I'm going to play against these guys that I've been watching all my life. It's going to be a great experience in front of my family and friends… and I'm going to remember it all my life."

Blais expects to share the moment with more than 30 of his friends and family, who will be making the trip from Montmagny for the game. His parents, Sebastien and Marie-Josée, his brother, Etienne and sister, Florence, will also be making the trip, along with childhood friends and former teammates - many of which he hasn't seen in over four months as he worked to pursue his career in the NHL.
"We should all be excited for him," Blues Head Coach Mike Yeo said. "For a young guy who's growing up watching this team, (the Canadiens are) such a huge part of the culture here. The only thing he could ever do when he was young was dream about this moment. I'm happy to share it with him."
Blais made his NHL debut on Oct. 14 in Tampa Bay and played in four games with the Blues before being assigned to the AHL's San Antonio Wolves. On Nov. 23, the 21-year-old forward was recalled to St. Louis, where he has played in the last three consecutive games and scored his first career NHL goal last week.
His ice time has been limited recently - he played just 9:08 on Nov. 29 vs. Anaheim and only 7:17 seconds on Saturday against the Wild - but for Blais, that's only taught him to be more productive with the ice time he gets.
"It's my rookie year, so it's a learning process," Blais said. "(There's) less ice time (here) than I have in the AHL. When I'm on the ice, I have to have a good shift, and even if I don't, I can't think about it. Just get ready for the next one. That's the biggest part for me. It's the best league in the world and I'm a rookie. I'm just learning with all these great players and they're helping me a lot."
"He had one mistake last game that led to a couple scoring chances against, but on the same token, he got back out there and made a great play to (Robert Bortuzzo) in the offensive zone that could have resulted in a game-winning goal," Yeo said. "It's hard to be perfect in this game. The biggest thing for us with these young guys is make sure we find those teaching moments, but also give them the opportunity to get out there and show what they can do."
Blais will likely get another opportunity to get out there on Tuesday, and with so many friends and family in attendance to cheer him on, he intends on making it count.