BOSTON -- Phillip Danault's eyes lit up at the prospect.
Snow.
His wife and two kids had already made the trip from Los Angeles to Montreal, where they would be met with a sight rarely glimpsed in their former California home. There would be snow on the ground, with more likely coming. It was an enticing prospect.
"Oh yeah," he said. "Skate outside. Everything. Just like I used to."
Danault will join his family soon, after taking the ice for the Montreal Canadiens against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; NESN, TSN2, RDS) for his first game with Montreal after he was traded from the Los Angeles Kings on Friday. And, as he injected in English into an answer in French, "Nothing better than TD Garden."
Suffice it to say, Danault is thrilled.
"I feel like chaos right now," Danault said. "I am moving my kids, my wife, we have a house there, selling the house, everything. So a big change, for Christmas especially. But I feel good. It was obviously tough towards the end in L.A., and did not feel well at all.
"So a good start, a good, fresh start for me. I'm really happy to be here. Went from the oldest group to the youngest in the NHL. It's kind of a weird stat, but it's true and I'm happy to be one of the mature guys here."
Danault, 32, is now the Canadiens' second oldest player behind Brendan Gallagher (33) after he was traded back to the team for whom he played from 2016-21, with the Kings getting a second-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. Danault, who is from Victoriaville, Quebec, two hours northeast of Montreal, signed a six-year, $33 million contract ($5.5 million average annual value) with the Kings on July 28, 2021, and has one more year remaining after this season.
Coach Martin St. Louis met with Danault at the team's hotel in Boston on Monday, an off-day for the Canadiens, a meeting that he termed "great," noting Danault's excitement to be with the team.
He feels like not only will his skills as a defensive center -- he skated with Alexandre Texier and Josh Anderson during the team's morning skate on Tuesday -- help the Canadiens, but that their prowess might unlock some of his lagging offensive. Montreal is eighth in the NHL with 3.19 goals per game, compared to the No. 30 Kings at 2.51 per game.
In his six seasons in Montreal, Danault had 194 points (54 goals, 140 assists) in 360 games. He had 195 points (70 goals, 125 assists) in his first four seasons in Los Angeles over 319 games. But this season has marked a downturn in his offensive production, with zero goals and five assists in 30 games.
"Yeah, for sure," St. Louis said. "I think historically he's proven that he can provide offense, but I don't think he's a player that's ever done that just at the price of not doing the job defensively. I think he's a guy that, especially on the road, you feel very comfortable in terms of matchups, like whoever's on the ice against [he's fine].
"We know he has an offensive game and he's proven that. I think the more he gets comfortable with how we play collectively, I think he's going to have the opportunity to produce."
Danault sees the same.
"One hundred percent," he said. "And the system and the way they play, their activity, everything. I don't want to talk too fast, but I'm confident. I want to be confident. There's no point to be discouraged or anything."
Still, his bread-and-butter will be his defensive prowess and how that can help this Montreal team, which enters Tuesday tied for second in the Atlantic Division, two points behind the Detroit Red Wings.
Danault, as a veteran of 741 NHL games in the regular season and 62 more in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including a run to the Cup Final with the Canadiens in 2021, knows that it's that reliability that will come up big in exactly the places that Montreal wants to go.
"Super offense, they have the tendency to try too many cute plays at some point in the game, which most of the time they have the lead and good teams can take advantage of those mistakes, especially in playoffs," Danault said. "I think that's the maturity I will bring. Third period, details, like when you have to chip it in, you have to because you can't be too risky at all times.
"Because they have amazing skill, like pure skill, probably one of the best in the League, so that's the whole point. Have to be better, like pack it in defensively, tighten it up."
So that's where the Canadiens will start, where Danault will start, with hopes that the other side of his game picks up as well.
"Obviously he's a veteran and he's a guy that's very reliable at 5-on-5, kill penalties," St. Louis said. "I see him playing his game, his role that he's always played throughout his career. I think it's something that we need and especially having a guy like that that's been doing it for a long time, I think it's going to help our young group."
