MONTREAL -- Despite three consecutive victories and a .500 record to show for their efforts, Montreal Canadiens head coach Jacques Martin isn't letting it go to his head.
There's no pause for reflection when asked if his team is where he wanted it 10 games into the season -- he answers immediately.
"No. A record of .500 doesn't get us to the playoffs," said Martin.
"Last year, the Canadiens got 93 points and ended up in eight place. It's important to get wins. We might need 12 games above .500 to get to the playoffs."
Of course, that doesn't mean Martin won't be savouring Saturday's victory over the New York Rangers, the toughest club his players have come up against so far, he says.
"It's a win that lets us show our team's character," he explained. "We battled adversity to come up from behind and didn't give up. We fought to stay in the game. In the third period, when it was close, we played well defensively. It shows our players' commitment."
Even though he's obviously happy with the hat-trick by Michael Cammalleri, the Habs' coach maintained he wasn't at all worried about his forward's performance so far this season.
"After the first five games, Mike was our leader in scoring chances. With a player with his talent, eventually you know he'll find the net. It would be worrying if he didn't get any chances to score, but that's not the case," he said, adding he liked his "positive attitude" while he struggled to turn his game around.
It took Cammalleri seven games before getting his first goal as a member of the Canadiens. He now leads his team with 11 points, including five goals.
