Like a Boss #17 | #AskGeoffCHC

HabsTV sat down with Geoff Molson in his office at the Bell Centre as the Canadiens president and CEO took to Twitter to answer fan questions about injuries, transparency, improvements to the in-game experience, and more.

Hi Geoff, will the injuries to Shea Weber, Andrew Shaw, and Paul Byron provide opportunities for young players to stand out and stay in the NHL?
Alex, good question, and I think so.
We know that Weber won't be ready for the start of the season -- but if the other two aren't ready either, then for sure the youngsters will have an opportunity to step up and prove that they're able to play in the NHL.

Why was Weber's injury kept a secret when we were told the team would be transparent? I'm a huge Habs fan and have always been, but these are tough times for us.
Thank you for the question, Gary.
I understand your frustration. It was a difficult season last season, and we're doing everything we can to refresh the team and get it ready for the new season.
As for transparency, you can count on me and you can count on the whole organization to be completely committed to being more informative for our fans, and essentially to tell our fans as much as we possibly can, to keep them as informed as possible.
So that's a commitment we're making, and I can't guarantee we're going to be perfect the whole time, but we sure are going to make the effort to make sure you guys are all informed.
As for the Weber situation, it was one of those situations where the operation was done, and
a lot of discussions had to happen -- and some evaluations had to happen -- before we were ready to announce it and knew how long the recovery period was going to be.
That included discussions with the Weber family, who are also impacted by this.
So it took us time, and then the Draft came along, and then free agency came along, and we determined that it was probably best for us to announce after the free agency period.

Will Dominique Ducharme be behind the bench, despite the hiring of Luke Richardson? From your point of view, how do you see the addition of Richardson? Thank you!
I think that firstly, yes, Dominique Ducharme will be behind the bench. We'll have four coaches behind the bench, and he'll play a strategic role on multiple levels; with defensemen, with forwards, and he'll assist Claude Julien with his work, too.
Luke Richardson, specifically, will be coaching the defensemen, and we're really excited to see both of them behind the bench. They're going to give us a breath of fresh air, and hopefully some new ideas to better perform on the ice.

Do you think there could be changes to player presentations next season, to provide a better experience for fans in the building, and do you believe that energy could be beneficial to the team during games?
Thank you for the question.
Obviously at the end of last season, I shared a message that we would work tirelessly on our player presentations, as well as our game presentation in general.
And our fans who will come to the Bell Centre next season will see a difference.
We're also hoping to introduce a new event that will help our team perform better on the ice, so yes; a lot of changes are coming, including to player presentations, and a variety of other important elements to maintain a high standard at the Bell Centre.
Question from @Patrick_Fadel on Twitter:
How do you deal with all the negativity you get on social media?
Thank you for the question, Patrick. I think it's important to take everything in stride.
We have the most passionate fans in the world -- the best hockey fans in the world -- and when they want to express themselves, they're not afraid to do so on social media.
I have to accept that it's the passion that's talking, rather than the anger that's talking.
And at the end of the day... our fans love the Montreal Canadiens just as much as I do, and they're expressing their frustrations through social media. So it's perfectly understandable.
Have a question for Geoff? Tweet it to @CanadiensMTL using hashtag #AskGeoffCHC, or click here to send it our way, and the boss could answer you next!