As the All-Star break has come to an end, here is a new edition of 24 Cups = 24 Thoughts!
1) Before the 2016-2017 NHL season began, many season previews had the Montreal Canadiens finishing second or third in the Atlantic division while others had them battling for a wild card position. For them to be in first place in their division with 65 points, 7 ahead of the Ottawa Senators who hold three games in hand, is somewhat surprising to say the least. Incredibly, the Canadiens got off to yet another hot start going 9-0-1 in their first ten games of the season. Those early points in the bank have come in handy as the team has had to face adversity, losing key players such as Alex Galchenyuk, Andrei Markov, Brendan Gallagher and Andrew Shaw to injuries. They have been able to afford going only 4-5-1 in their last ten games but the brunt of it should be over as Carey Price has seemingly regained his form and Andrei Markov appears to be ready to return to action in the next week or so.
2) Is the Atlantic division that bad this year or are the Canadiens that good? Perhaps the answer is a little bit of both. No one expected the Tampa Bay Lightning to fall so far from grace even with Steven Stamkos injured. The Senators and Boston Bruins have occupied the second and third spots in the division for much of the season, save recently for an occasional appearance by the surging Toronto Maple Leafs. The Canadiens have remained consistent throughout the year as whenever they have started to struggle for a few games, the team has been able to right the ship. When a player went down with injury another one stepped up to fill the void. It might not be the greatest year for the Atlantic division as a whole since likely only the top three teams will make the postseason, but the Canadiens have clearly been the best of the bunch and are fifth overall in the NHL standings.
3) Unfortunately, the Canadiens likely reward for being first in the Atlantic would be a first round matchup with the fourth place team in the Metropolitan division. On any given day that could be the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Columbus Blue Jackets or Washington Capitals. At some point they have all occupied that fourth spot. While it would make for an exciting first round playoff series, it is not exactly a reward for finishing first…
4) Neither Carey Price or Shea Weber made the NHL top 100 players list announced at the NHL All-Star celebrations. Have they been snubbed or justifiably left off? Whether you agree with them or not, it seems as though that the voters have weighed Stanley Cup Championships to be more important than individual statistics or success. It is hard to judge current players who are still writing their own history. Time will tell if they eventually earn their way onto that list.
5) 24 players who have played for the Canadiens were honored and made the top 100 list. Nice symmetry with the Canadiens having won 24 Stanley Cups. Here are the former Canadiens to have made the list:
George Vézina Howie Morenz Bill Durnan Toe Blake Elmer Lach Maurice Richard Doug Harvey Jean Béliveau Bernard Geoffrion Dickie Moore Jacques Plante Henri Richard Yvan Cournoyer Serge Savard Tony Esposito Jacques Lemaire Ken Dryden Guy Lafleur Frank Mahovlich Larry Robinson Bob Gainey Chris Chelios Patrick Roy Denis Savard
6) Aside from current players, defensemen Guy Lapointe of the Big Three from the 1970’s Canadiens dynasty and Emile Butch Bouchard from the 1940’s are conspicuously absent from the list. Was Toe Blake named solely for his statistics as a player or did his success as a coach play a part of the voting process? Perhaps the inclusion of Denis Savard is the most surprising of former Canadiens to be named as he never won any individual trophies and took home the Stanley Cup in 1992-93 as a player/coach when he was past his prime. Savard did surpass 1,300 career points and had five seasons with over 100 points.
7) If the Canadiens get back to full strength, what will their lines look like? If head coach Michel Therrien goes with a balanced attack then perhaps this would be ideal for the top nine:
Artturi Lehkonen- Alex Galchenyuk - Alexander Radulov Max Pacioretty- Phillip Danault- Brendan Gallagher Paul Byron - Tomas Plekanec - Andrew Shaw
That would leave any combination of Torrey Mitchell centering Brian Flynn, David Desharnais, Daniel Carr, Sven Andrighetto, Jacob De La Rose or even Michael McCarron. There seemingly is no longer any room for Desharnais on the Canadiens roster. Phillip Danault has outplayed both Tomas Plekanec and Desharnais this season and have bumped them down the depth chart. Perhaps Desharnais plays on the left wing next to Mitchell to start but it is hard to find a full-time position for him on the Montreal Canadiens should they eventually stay healthy.
8) If Therrien wants to load up on offense than Pacioretty gets bumped back up to the top line and Lehkonen plays on the second line with Danault and Gallagher. Or Therrien could reunite Pacioretty-Galchenyuk-Gallagher in hopes that they can recapture their previous chemistry and have Danault center Lehkonen and Radulov. Any which way about it, if the Canadiens can get healthy again this is the strongest top six that the team has had in years.
9) The play of Danault this season has perhaps alleviated the need to acquire a second line center to replace Tomas Plekanec. In Galchenyuk’s absence it was Danault who played the unsuspecting hero as he centered the number one line for much of the time. Even with Galchenyuk’s return to play before he re-injured his knee, Danault was promoted back to the top line as Galchenyuk struggled to regain his timing and game shape. While Plekanec has played better as of late, he is still too inconsistent to be the number two center. A third line of him with Paul Byron and Andrew Shaw would be very, very solid.
9) Martin Hanzal, Matt Duchene, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Gabriel Landeskog are names that have all been thrown around and associated with the Canadiens. By now most have heard from Sportsnets Elliotte Friedman that the Arizona Coyotes initial asking price for Hanzal was Michael McCarron, a first round draft pick and a conditional pick. That is called shooting for the moon, especially considering that Hanzal’s career high in points is 40 (which he accomplished twice) and this year has just 19 points in 40 games played. I fail to see how Hanzal is an improvement over the younger Danault or even Plekanec.
10) As for the others, any of Duchene, Landeskog, Eberle and Nugent-Hopkins would certainly look good in a Canadiens jersey but that kind of a deal would likely happen after the season, before either the Las Vegas expansion draft or the NHL draft in June. This is not a big year for upcoming unrestricted free agents and so the likelihood is that fewer impact players will be made available at the trade deadline, especially with so much parity in the league and how close the standings are. As of now there are only two true sellers, the Coyotes and Avalanche. A few more should join them come the end of February but the picking will be slimmer compared to years past.
11) When Andrei Markov returns to the lineup he will likely take back his spot on the second defensive unit next to Jeff Petry. Regardless of how well Nathan Beaulieu may have played (for the most part) while Markov was out of the lineup, the veteran deserves a chance to reclaim his spot as he was playing excellent hockey before he hurt his groin in December. However, his minutes should be limited in order to keep him fresh for the playoffs. On special teams, Markov should play on the second powerplay unit while he should not play on the penalty kill at all unless another defenseman leaves them shorthanded. Beaulieu actually has been on the ice for the fewest amount of goals while on the penalty kill and averages 3.2 GA60 (goals allowed per sixty minutes as per puckalytics.com) while on the powerplay he leads all Canadiens defensemen with an 11.08 GF60 (goals for scored per sixty minutes as per puckalytics.com). By limiting Markov’s special team units and elevating Beaulieu’s, they will each still get 18-22 minutes a game on any given night.
12) Bergevin already acquired defenseman Nikita Nesterov from the Tampa Bay Lightning as he wanted to add a puck moving left handed defenseman. However, I would not be surprised if he tries to add another defenseman, perhaps a veteran such as Francois Beauchemin who could come in handy should Markov re-injures himself or another defenseman goes down. With the acquisition of Nesterov, I believe Mark Barberio has become expendable as Nathan Beaulieu has become too valuable for the Canadiens to trade in-season, unless they are getting another top young defenseman in return.
13) There have been a few pleasant surprises for the Canadiens this season but the biggest has to go to Danault. When Lars Eller was traded Bergevin said the acquisition and play of Danault made the former expendable. The ceiling for Danault was thought to be as a third line center but his strong play while centering the Canadiens top line has raised eyebrows. He has been far more consistent this season than Plekanec and has more than earned his ice time.
14) While optimists praised the Alexander Radulov signing, no one could have predicted just how well he would fit in on the Canadiens and the positive impact that he would make on the entire team on and off the ice. His enthusiasm, passion and dedication for the game of hockey is contagious and has rubbed off in a positive way. His skill level is simply off the chart. He still manages to surprise with jaw dropping plays and has quickly become a fan favorite.
15) The strong play of rookie Artturi Lehkonen is perhaps only surprising to those who were unfamiliar with the young Finnish forward. He was always known as a strong two way forward who liked to score goals. With eleven already on the season, Lehkonen has impressed with his forechecking ability as well as his excellent hockey sense. He knows where to be on the ice in all situations and rarely gets caught out of position. Lately, he has been rewarded with additional powerplay time as he has seen his ice time slowly tick up. The additions of Lehkonen and Radulov have really solidified the Canadiens top six this season. Just imagine where they would be without them?
16) There have been a few unpleasant surprises thus far. Plekanec’s dramatic drop in production was unforeseen. Brendan Gallagher’s longest goal drought of his career was somewhat astounding as he went 15 games without a goal and only had six in 39 games played before he fractured his hand once again. His shooting percentage has dropped pretty much in half, from 11% a year ago to 5.4%. Hopefully when he returns to the lineup he will play like the Gallagher of old as he got away from his game a number of times this year.
17) While Carey Price had a difficult December and January for the most part, he has seemingly regained his form with strong performances in his last three games before the All-Star break. It is not too surprising though to think that Price would hit a wall at some point this season considering the long recovery he had to get healthy and playing in the World Cup for Team Canada this past September. While he struggled, Price began to show more emotion than in the past which showed that his mental game was not as strong as it usually is. When Price is at his best, not only is he sound technically but he is cool, calm and collected at all times. It is better that he went through this now than later in the season when the points get that much harder to earn.
18) The improvement of the Canadiens powerplay is not at all surprising. Kirk Muller was brought in to work miracles and he has done just that the team has climbed all the way up to second in the NHL with a power play efficiency rate of 23.5% . On paper the team always had the personnel to succeed with the man advantage but what happened on ice was a different story. To start the season, the Eastern Conference was not used to Shea Weber’s blast from the point and the Canadiens were able to take advantage of that by constantly setting up the rearguard. As the opposition adjusted, Muller was forced to adapt as well. He is constantly looking at ways to improve the powerplay and is not afraid to try new things. While the four forward look has not worked for the Canadiens, the Mighty Ducks flying V actually did:
Habs did do the Flying V last night, not once, but *three* times in a row. Failed the first, got an entry, third one worked! pic.twitter.com/j1Zvu0Y2eY
— Olivier Bouchard (@oli_bou) January 25, 2017
19) After experiencing a difficult rookie season as captain of the Montreal Canadiens, Max Pacioretty looks to be much more comfortable in his role than a year ago. He has had more support from his teammates on and off the ice and he appears as though a burden has been lifted off of his shoulder. Pacioretty has also been much more consistent this season, especially once he fully healed from the small fracture in his foot. He has gone without a point in three consecutive games only twice this season as his consistently has improved. Nor is he dependant on Galchenyuk to feed him the puck as Pacioretty has been able to succeed with Danault as well.
20) Will Therrien get nominated for the prestigious Jack Adams award this season? Perhaps his improvement behind the bench is the greatest reason for the Canadiens success this season. The addition of Muller to the coaching staff has certainly aided him but it is still his team. He calls all the shots. His in game adjustments have improved tremendously as has his ability to choose which player will step on any given night. Therrien’s temperament is almost always even kneel, sometimes bordering on jovial in the press room. His communication with the players has also seemed to have improved for the most part. Since his return for his second stint with the Canadiens, Therrien continues to evolve and improve as a coach. Few expected him to last the season but credit must be given when it is due.
21) Were the Canadiens hasty in giving up on goaltender Mike Condon? He was thrown into an impossible situation in his rookie year and while he started strong, there was only so much he could do as Carey Price’s full-time replacement. The team in front of him did little to help him as they struggled through December until the end of the season. The Canadiens needed to sign veteran Al Montoya to help stabilize the goal situation and they let the goaltenders including prospect Charlie Lindberg battle it out in training camp. Even then Condon struggled and it was clear that he would not be starting the season with the Canadiens. Placed on waivers, Condon was picked up by the Pittsburgh Penguins and then dealt to the Ottawa Senators once his services were no longer needed. While he keeps Craig Anderson’s place warm, Condon is once again opening eyes with his four shutouts and 14 wins.
22) On the flip side, Motoya has come and done exactly what was expected of him. He came out of the gate flying as he suddenly the de facto number for the first three games of the season as Price was out with a virus. While he went 2-0-1 he struggled from the end of October until and the end of December as the team did not perform as well in front of him as they did with Price in net. They have seemingly all gotten back on the same page as Montoya has won his last four starts in a row and the team’s own play has quite improved with him in net. Price has yet to play a back to back game this season and it is doubtful he will unless they are forced to do so come playoff time.
23) What are the Canadiens expectations for the rest of the season? According to sportsclubstats.com the team has a 99.6% chance of making the postseason. The team would have to come down crashing hard in order to miss the playoffs for the second consecutive year. In early February they will begin a stretch when they play seven games in eleven nights but after that the Canadiens will finally enjoy their bye week and then do not have to play four games in a week until the week of March 19th. With the way that the team has battled through injuries and adversity, there is little reason to doubt that the Canadiens will keep plugging away as players continue to step up.
24) At the All-Star game, Therrien gave an update on the Canadiens infirmary:
Michel Therrien is hopeful Andrei Markov and/or David Desharnais could be ready to return out of the break. Had no news on Alex Galchenyuk.
— Ðrpon Basu (@ArponBasu) January 29, 2017
Michel Therrien a confirmé que Markov, Desharnais et Pateryn étaient près d'un retour au jeu. Galchenyuk, on verra! #CH #NHLAllStar
— Francois Gagnon (@GagnonFrancois) January 29, 2017
If those four players are able to return within the next week or so, Bergevin will have some interesting decisions to make regarding who stays and goes. Daniel Carr and Jacob De La Rose are able to be sent down to the St. John’s Ice Caps of the AHL without having to clear waivers while perhaps Sven Andrighetto would finally get claimed as his play has improved in his latest stint with the big club. It is unlikely that Desharnais gets moved just yet but he certainly could be more serviceable to another team.
Bonus 25:
25) Was there anything cuter at the NHL All-Star festivities than Carey Price and his interaction with kids?
Not the roar of the crowd.
— John Smith (@HabsCorner) January 29, 2017
Not the flashbulbs going off.
In this moment she was free.
Safe in her father's arms.
Nothing else mattered. 💯 31 pic.twitter.com/xq96cAsCi5
Little Kessler on price. It's the little things in life that probably made him feel like the happiest kid on earth. pic.twitter.com/2ZbTV6jDfE
— The Hockey Hangout (@HockeyHangout) January 29, 2017
-- The Montreal Canadiens waived defenseman Mark Redmond today:
Redmond (MON) on waivers today
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) January 30, 2017
The Canadiens had to make a roster move to accommodate the arrival of the newly acquired Nikita Nesterov and the impending return to health of Greg Pateryn. Mark Barberio has been the more consistent player of the two so it comes as no surprise that Redmond has been placed on waivers with the intent to send him to St. John's.
Cheers and follow along! Follow @Jenbcutler