Everyone’s on the Montreal Canadiens bandwagon these days. The NHL even featured a story about them called, “Hab-by To Be Here,” about the surge the team has made since the Four Nations break. The Canadiens are pushing towards the playoffs, where coming out of the break, they were mired in mediocrity.
Apparently, luminaries from Yvan Cournoyer to Serge Savard witnessed the team’s comeback OT loss to Colorado onSaturday. This capped a week where they had three comebacks, one to win and twice to salvage points. Just imagine how good they would be had they been buyers at the trade deadline! Not so fast. They weren’t buyers, and they weren’t sellers. And there were good reasons, not matter which way you think about it.
Why weren’t they sellers? Because their prime merch, Joel Armia, was going to go for a high price or no price at all, according to GM Kent Hughes. As much as anything, this was a strategy move by Hughes, who is busy burnishing his reputation as someone who won’t give last-minute bargains on player assets, something he was probably using to set up future successful negotiations for players.
So if they didn’t buy either, what was their purpose? After all, at the break, they looked terrible, not mature. Not able to deal with adversity. Hughes said the no-buy was a matter of thinking ahead. Just because they weren’t ready now wouldn’t mean that they would have to rebuild. They’ve half done that already. So why start the process over? In fact, most people who analyze the Montreal lineup think they’re close. One glaring need is a second-line center, but the Habs’ gaps don’t go much beyond that.
What do they have? For one thing, a first-line center in Nick Suzuki, who is both bigger than you imagine him to be (207 lbs.) and more skillful. He’s a true first-line center. One problem is that he’s over-demanded on both ends of the ice. They want him to score, and they expect him to defend the other sides’ best offensive centers. Give him some help in the defense department, and he will ironically look like his game is more well-rounded.
In fact, in all three phases of the lineup, forwards, defensemen, and goaltenders, the Habs are stocked up with their own draftees. It might take a little longer for a team to show maturity than in a free-agency strategy, but the Habs are right there, almost. A second-line center would put them over the top. That person would center fall-season newcomer Ivan Demidov and Juraj Slafkovsky, who played most of this year with punch after a slow start.
So who is that hoped-for second center? Some have asked how Mason McTavish would do in that slot, but what incentive would the Ducks have to do that? One media insider I talked to also mentioned Nazem Kadri. Present second-line center Alex Newhook then could drop down to third-line center. Suzuki would remain to center Caufield and Patrik Laine, while the newbie would center Demidov and Slafkovsky. Notable forwards not already mentioned include heart-and-soul guy Brendan Gallagher.
On defense there are three pairings, each with one notable player. What’s more to be said about Lane Hutson than that he is a serious Calder candidate? Funny that a quick, relatively small (5’9” 162 lbs.) D-man can headline on a team that has had the likes of Serge Savard, Larry Robinson, and, more recently, Shea Weber as their defensive stalwarts.
The second defensive pairing sees standout Mike Matheson, 6-23-29 in points production so far this year. And the third has Arber Xhekaj, big and mean. If you have any doubt, he fought monster Keeton Middleton playing Colorado last week with no hesitation.And then there’s nets. Rogie Vachon. Ken Dryden. Patric Roy. Carey Price. I leave out many, I know. But the fact is that the Habs have always had an eye for a good net-minding prospect. Right now, they are doing what they’re doing with an almost-1A netminder as the main guy and a decent prospect as his backup. They are Sam Montembeault and Jakub Dobes, respectively. Dobes was drafted by Montreal. Montembeault was snagged by Florida and got into scant action with the Panthers early on. He came to Montreal off waivers in 2021. Now there’s a scouting staff win for you.
Montembeault surprised in his early days but had a slow start with some injuries this year, but he has rounded into shape. He’s still not a guy who will seize the net for 60 games every year, but last year, he played 41 games, and this year he’s already at 52, so come to think of it, he might make 60 yet.
The Habs came out of the break guns blazing, with not only the comeback wins already cited, but a 5-1-4 record over their ten games coming into this week. However, on Tuesday, they dropped a game versus a solid Blues team, never really being close to taking over play. Early in period three, down 4-1, Montreal had netted only 19 pucks, to the Blues 27. The end result had the score at 6-1.
Montreal has no easy schedule now, in this the fourth phase of their season (up-and-down first 20, terrible next 15, resurgent post-break 10, and now). They play Philly, Carolina, and Florida on their present road trip, then return to Montreal for three games in five days.
There are many stories to follow, in the short and medium term. These include what the team will do with their need for that additional center, how Demidov will adjust to life in the NHL, and what other moves an emboldened Hughes will make, assuming the Canadiens make the playoffs and are thus viable as a contender heading into next year.Whether they do that or not, Hughes, Coach Marty St. Louis, and the Montreal brain trust are assuming an upward trajectory for the team with 24 Stanley Cups, but none since 1993.
