Montreal Canadiens GM says team struggling with 'lack of engagement'

Montreal -

Montreal Canadiens General Manager Marc Bergevin is keeping his lips tight with regards to contract negotiations.

After nine and a half years with the franchise, Bergevin may retire from the team if he and Canadiens owner Geoff Molson can’t strike a deal for next season.

Facing questions from TSN’s Mitch Gallo and Dan Robertson on Saturday, Bergevin says he’s still hungry for the job.

“You can ask our own players if I’m passionate,” he said. “I think you can see in the playoffs how I felt.”

Click here to listen to the full interview on TSN 690.

Still, he said, a lot has changed in since the Habs had the cup within reach.

“As high as I was in the playoffs is as low as I can get now,” he told TSN, in response to questions on the team’s difficulty this season.

“There are games where we did compete,” he recounted. I thought we played hard in Detroit, in Boston.”

On the other hand, the team has lost 15 of its 20 season games. Bergevin says the team has been struggling with a lack of consistency.

“It’s just the effort, the lack of engagement I see night after night ... It’s hard to explain,” he said, adding that the Habs’ drop in performance has made him emotional.

“It’s hard,” he said. But, “I don’t lose my patience. I don’t lose my cool.”

“I tell the players I like every one of them, but there are nights that I don’t like their performance.”