As the Pittsburgh Penguins are one game away from hoisting the Stanley Cup, many are debating whether or not their style of play will set the new standard for copycatting. Their depth and speed have made it tough for their competition night in and night out. They have the luxury of playing Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel on three separate lines. One line will always burn the opposition due to weaker matchups. Krist Letang has been spectacular and their depth on defense impressive. Marc-Andre Fleury injured? No problem, Matt Murray has stepped right in and provided some very solid goaltending, so much so that he made it impossible for Fleury to reclaim his #1 position.
This Pittsburgh model and style of play is very close to what the Montreal Canadiens and Head Coach Michel Therrien were trying to achieve at the beginning of the 2015-2016 season. Through their 9 game undefeated streak to start the year, the Canadiens had 3 lines that could score, depth on defense and the #1 goalie in hockey, Carey Price. Even the 4th line was fast and contributing offensively. Besides missing Carey Price due to injury, the Canadiens biggest problem when playing Western conference teams is that they would physically wear down from going up against the bigger bodies. They were not out skating their opponents or playing up to their potential. The size and physicality of most Western teams got into their head.
The Penguins have no problem with the Sharks size and are thriving by sticking to their game plan. It of course helps to have superstars and a rejuvenated Kessel. However, when you compare the Penguins and the Canadiens, it seems that Montreal is perhaps not far behind. Montreal has Price, an all-star and Norris trophy winning defenseman P.K. Subban, Max Pacioretty who is one of the top goal scoring Left Wingers over the last 5 years, the tenacious Brendan Gallagher, potential star Alex Galchenyuk and dependable (though not always in the playoffs) Tomas Plekanec. Pittsburgh boasts arguably the best player in the game with Crosby and 1B Malkin. Kris Letang is having a terrific playoffs and Kessel is being considered a potential Conn Smythe winner. Possibly health has been one of the greatest factors as injuries have plagued Crosby & Malkin over the years and now they are both healthy at the same time. They have suffered injuries to their depth players and Fleury but have overcome them.
Before these playoffs, few were familiar with Conor Sheary and Bryan Rust. These two Penguins depth players had spent 3+ seasons in the AHL and were not intimidated as they found themselves playing alongside Crosby and Malkin respectively. Sheary at 5’9… is perhaps comparable to the Canadiens Charles Hudon, another small forward who also plays LW. Perhaps the 2016-2017 season will be the one that Hudon breaks through and earns ice time in the NHL after playing so successfully in the AHL. The Canadiens other depth young players such as Daniel Carr and Sven Andrighetto will also be able to support the Canadiens top 9 through their experiences in the minor league which gave them a chance to improve their all around game. Add in the potential of young Michael McCarron and Nikita Scherbak and perhaps the Canadiens are in better shape than most thought. However, there is still a glowing hole or two in the top six and it is debatable how quickly Canadiens General Manager Marc Bergevin will be able to fix it.
Throughout the playoffs, the Penguins are throwing out a balanced attack and their star players are bringing out the best in their linemates. It turns out that Crosby didn't need Kessel for each of them to prosper. Crosby automatically makes his linemates (see Colby Armstrong) better. For the Canadiens, it seems as though Gallagher and Galchenyuk are the only forwards with the potential to elevate their linemates. While the line of Pacioretty-Galchenyuk-Gallagher looked dynamite to end the season, perhaps it would be best if Gallagher were to play with Plekanec to elevate the Canadiens second line. This would offer a more balanced approach. Of course the greatest possibility of balance comes if Bergevin manages to convince Steven Stamkos to sign in Montreal but the likelihood of that is small…
One thing that Kessel’s play in Pittsburgh has shown is that one cannot simply give up on goal scorers. Toronto is not any closer to the playoffs because of the trade. They lacked goals this season and no one that came in the trade comes close to replacing Kessel’s output. With all of the trade talk in Montreal, the Canadiens cannot afford to trade a Galchenyuk, Gallagher, Pacioretty and especially not Subban unless they are absolutely getting someone better in return. The Canadiens window for winning is now, while their core players are in their prime. They need to compliment these players and provide them with proper support.
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