Yesterday I was reading an article on RDS which showed Laine playing with some young kids, having a ball and talking about how he would love to stay in Montreal long term. I'm really happy he's re-discovered his love for hockey as it seems he had a rough go in Winnipeg and Columbus. Now looking at the roster going forward, is this a move the Habs should make? Well this well depend on several factors and some are out of Laine's control.
The number one factor for me is his health.
Last year he missed about two months at the outset of the season with injury. When he came back, he was terrific on the power play and gave the habs a deadly shooting option that simply cannot be denied when the space is there. He finished the season with 20 goals in 52 which is not too shabby. 15 of those goals came on the PP. That's a bit of a problem. However, I do really believe that Laine was less than 100% for pretty much the whole season and ended the playoffs missing the final games with injury.
Furthermore, the last few seasons he's had injury issues which have bled into his summer training, with Laine himself saying that the 2025 summer was the first time in a while where he's had the chance to have a full summer training program. So with all of that behind him, he needs to have a 2025-2026 season where injuries are not a huge issue.
Hopefully having a full summer of training will have him playing with a little more pep, because at times last year he would try and make one on one plays at the blue line, where he looked like he would beat a guy, but would just come up short. He has the skill and the IQ to pull these off, but his touch looked just a little off. I think a healthy and energized Laine will change that, as I find he has the most natural talent on the team along with Demidov and Hutson.
The second factor is the salary cap and young players pushing for a spot.
Signing Laine will cost a good deal of money. Obviously less than the 8.7 he's currently making, but not cheap either. Honestly I really don't know what a contract will look like for Laine given his up and down carreer. 5? 6? 7? I really don't know. Also Hutson is set to make a lot of money after next year so that complicates things immensely.
And like I said, there are a lot of players pushing for a spot with Hage, Kapenen, Roy, Beck are all coming up at one point, so having Laine there makes it difficult for them to have a chance. Not to mention, they will be on cheaper entry level contracts.
The last factor which is in Laine's control to a certain degree is his play on the ice.
Going with the assumption he dresses for 70-82 games, he needs to be slotted on the second line with Demidov. Now Laine is a puck possession guy playing on a team playing a puck retrieval speed game and he's not fast.
For him to do well, he needs a centre that will complement this. Right now this is a question mark. Dach? Newhook? I don't know. Demidov will absolutely be a benefit, but they need a true number two centre who will be able to adapt to how Laine plays. He has tremendous vision and sometimes attempts to make plays at the offensive blue line rather than dumping it in. Now, this is not terrible, but if he's playing with a centre who will only compliment the puck retrival game, it will be a struggle.
Laine needs two other guys, not just Demidov, who will be able to understand how Laine thinks and play off of that effectively. This will make that line a deadly 5-5 threat, but as it stands now it's a huge question mark. Laine needs to be on the second or first line. If that's not the case, his talent is wasted.
The other side of the coin is Laine would need to change his style and dump it in more, but I feel that would be a waste of his talent to a certain degree. I find this clip perfectly summarizes Patrik Laine, hence my love for him.
So would I like to have Laine on this team long term? Yes, absolutely. Great shot, I really love his offbeat personality and I have a soft spot in my heart for strays. But the Habs need to find him a centre. If they ice a second line of...lets say Laine-McTavish-Demidov, watch out.