HC Marty St. Louis sends a clear message to $34,800,000 Montreal Canadiens forward after increasing his TOI in recent games

Montreal Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis had glowing remarks for Patrik Laine after increasing his time on the ice in recent games. Laine's ice time with the Canadiens had been limited, averaging around 13:59 overall.

Initially, he averaged 15:29 over his first 21 games, but in February he only exceeded 12:44 once, with an average of 11:58. However, on Tuesday, during the crucial 6-3 victory over the Ottawa Senators, Laine played for 15:23 and took 16 shifts.

When addressing Laine's performance, particularly at five-on-five, St. Louis acknowledged an uptick in engagement.

"As a coach, you're always selling," St. Louis said post-game. "You have to convince your players—that's what I'm doing. And you're right, the last two games he's played more, and I want to play him more because he can be a very dangerous player. He's earned those extra minutes."

Over the last couple of games, the coach has been very pleased with the Finnish winger's contributions.

"Yeah, we need him to play more for sure, but he's got to do things that are non-negotiable to me for him to keep playing more. And in the last two games, I've been very, very happy with him, and he's helped us," the coach added.

Despite limited ice time, Patrik Laine, who's signed to a four-year, $34.8 million contract, has managed to score 16 goals, 13 of which have come through power plays.

How Montreal Canadiens downed Ottawa Senators

The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Ottawa Senators 6-3 at the Centre Bell Arena on Tuesday.

With the loss, the Senators' impressive six-game winning streak came to an end, but they remain four points clear atop the wild-card standings in the Eastern Conference.

Christian Dvorak opened the scoring for the home team at 2:07 into the first period. At 16:42, Drake Batherson tied it for the Senators.

Michael Amadio put the Senators ahead at 12:38. This was the lone score in the second period.

The Montreal Canadiens made a strong comeback and scored four goals in the final period. Lane Hutson tied it for the Habs at 3:38. However, the Sens' lead was quickly restored as Travis Hamonic struck at 6:13. The Canadiens dominated the remainder of the game.

Josh Anderson's goal at 10:22 tied it for the home team. At 15:23, Nick Suzuki put them ahead 4-3 before the Canadiens scored two empty-net goals for the win, thanks to Anderson and Brendan Gallagher.

Dvorak accumulated four points, and Gallagher racked up three points. Anderson and Jake Evans contributed two points apiece on the night. Meanwhile, Sam Montembeault made 22 saves and posted a .880 save percentage.

The Montreal Canadiens improved their playoff odds after the win, moving into the second wild-card spot with 73 points.