2016-2017 Montreal Canadiens:
Pacioretty/ Galchenyuk/ Gallagher Hudon / Desharnais/ Sherbak De la Rose/ Eller/ Smith-Pelly Bournival /McCarron/ Weise
Beaulieu/ Subban Tinordi/ Petry Markov/ Pateryn
Price
Notes:
This would be a very young team. The torch would be passed from Plekanec and Markov to the new young veterans including Subban, Pacioretty, Gallagher and Galchenyuk. The Habs would be blessed with speed, skill and a solid defense. They would have Carey Price still performing at an elite level. But I still think they will be in a position where they could struggle to score goals.
This line up does not include Plekanec or Emelin. Guessing at what they could bring in right now is impossible, but the hope is that a trade involving one or both would provide an upgrade in the top 6.
I believe Hudon will be a top 9 player in the NHL for sure and has the potential to be top 6. He provides much of what Desharnais already brings, but is younger cheaper and has perhaps a higher upside. He may steal #51's spot and fit in nicely behind Galchenyuk in the future. Hudon has scored and played key roles at every level from the Subway Series in Junior to the AHL. Perhaps a trade with Emelin and Plekanec would bring in a top 6 winger and push Desharnais further down the line up. I would expect Hudon to split 2015/16 between hamilton and Montreal.
It will be a big jump for Sherbak to step right into the top 6. He will have a season in Hamilton to adjust to the pro game. Much of 2015/16 will dictate whether he is ready for a top 6 role the following season. He is the type of guy, drafted 26th overall, that the Habs need to turn into something special. When you are not getting top 5 picks, you need a guy picked in the 20's to become a real player to continue to compete. Detroit (Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Tatar, Nyquist) Philadelphia (Gagne, Giroux, Mike Richards) and New Jersey (Zach Parise) seem to be able to do this consistently.
Will Bournival be on the Habs? He was excellent in the '14 playoffs in a checking role. He can skate, has a winning pedigree and can be a useful player on a good team. He had a lost season in '15. Do his Coach and the management team believe in his game? I like his tenacity and hope he gets a chance to bounce back.
Desharnais will be on the final year of his contract with Hudon ready to assume his role. He could provide a veteran influence on this team and will still be capable of scoring 45-50 points. Will Lars Eller be able to take his minutes? Eller will have a chance with Plekanec moving on, to assume a greater role with this team. De la Rose could certainly handle a 3rd line checking role. Can Eller produce to play in the top 6? Will he get a chance? Does he have the vision and instincts to make plays? Teamed with players like Hudon and potentially Sherbak would give him a better chance to put up points. Regardless, there is a role for him going forward as he is a big centre who can skate, cycle and play in the rough going.
It was a great Memorial Cup for Mike McCarron. I still see him topping out as a Brian Boyle type (Boyle by the way had 30 goals and 60 points in '08 in the AHL, as well as 21 goals in '11 in the NHL). McCarron would be a 4th line centre capable of scoring 10-15 goals a year and provide some real size on a Habs team that has lacked that element since probably 1989. Turner Stevenson would be another comparable. McCarron has a future role on Montreal. It will be a key one particularly if he can continue to be a dominant presence in the faceoff circle. He may be more likely to be on the Habs full time in 2017-18.
I love what Jacob De la Rose brings to the table. He can skate and hit and plays a very solid defensive game especially for a 19 year old. I do not believe he will ever score enough to play in the top 6, but he will be an effective element on the Habs 3rd line for the next 10 years.
I may be beating a dead horse here, but the key to the Habs future is Galchenyuk's continued development. He has accomplished a lot already in his short pro career, but for the Canadiens to become a true contender, he must continue to evolve. Drafted 3rd overall, the same position as Toews, Galchenyuk needs to become an elite centre. If he makes the move in 2015/16 he will have another year before he would be expected to carry the load. He has been sheltered nicely to this point in the NHL. He was challenged by his GM after the playoffs. He needs to rip the top line scoring duties out of #14 and #51's hands and assert himself as a force in this league.
I see Smith-Pelly as a banger who contribute minutes up and down the line up on the right side. He had an effective playoff run this year and brings a heavy element that Montreal lacks. Can he score 20? perhaps with right centre in the right year, but again, he can be a valuable contributor.
On the back end, we see Markov as the lone veteran mainstay. This will be Subban's group. Markov will be asked to play 16-18 minutes in more sheltered situations. His game has always had a very cerebral nature and this will help him age gracefully provided Tinordi and Beaulieu can continue to evolve and lessen his load.
I like the makeup of this team. If they can get enough scoring and Price is still at the top of his game, the Habs have a lot of elements of a championship team. Sherbak and McCarron could still be a year away at this point, which would mean that Bergevin would be looking at vets for one or two top 6 roles (depending on Hudon's ceiling) and for the 4th line centre spot. I could see the potential in this line up for 240 plus goals.