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Canadiens 2018-19 Season Preview + Kotkaniemi Makes The Cut |
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Canadiens Appear To Be Set For 18-19 Season
The Montreal Canadiens are an important team in the NHL. They are part of the founding fathers of the league we all love (most of the time) so much. They have legendary players in their history and own the most championships of any team in the big 4 North American sports leagues.
When the Canadiens are struggling it’s not great for anyone involved. Opponents typically can charge more for tickets when the Canadiens come to town because there’s likely going to be enough local fans of the team to help sell seats. This doesn’t happen in every market but most of the time the Habs are a big draw everywhere they play.
The league is probably quite happy when the Habs are in the mix for playoffs…
This years version of the Canadiens will have to put in the extra work to make some noise this year with the top 3 in the Atlantic looking like a lock with Tampa Bay, Boston, and Florida or Toronto. The Habs will have to have a 45 win season MINIMUM to have a chance to get a ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs….
Tough order for a team that’s moved away from “Cup Window” to “Reset” but it nothing is impossible in the NHL. Teams that were historically bad move on the next year to make the playoffs (Colorado) and an expansion team cobbled together with 2nd and 3rd liners can play a north south grind game right to the finals with some stellar goaltending.
Huge news is the name of this offseason and it's spilling over into the regular season already as well with 3rd overall pick Jesperi Kotkaniemi officially earning a spot on the opening night roster. The fresh faced Center put up 1 goal and 2 assists complimented by a +5 rating this preseason and, if my facts are correct, wasn’t on the ice for one 5v5 goal against. The first name that popped into my head when writing that was Bergeron but I don’t want to get ahead of myself.
I was one of the few who were a bit skeptical of Kotkaniemi’s pick at #3 as I have a fondness for Tkachuk’s but I also wasn’t one who hated it. I just want his development to be handled correctly so that he has the best opportunity to not only grow and develop his game, but to do so with high confidence. That’s what I view as most important. With all the talk of this players potential I simply want him on the best path to success and if that is with the Montreal Canadiens, like Mete last year, then so be it.
If it isn’t the right time he can always head to the minors and get a leading role at the World Juniors.
The Habs have a young roster with quite a few high character, high potential players on it. A above average, or hockey God willing hot, start could give this group the extra wind in the sails to surprise some teams. The hockey world has written them off already so the pressure as the Montreal Canadiens should be as low as it can be. All they have to do is go out there and play the right way and take everything to the net.
Julien and some players already alluded to the system change that will take place this season. Teams are going after the Vegas style of north south, constantly pushing the puck up with speed. This will at least have them playing with the current NHL trends and should allow them to read and react better to opponents as many teams will be playing this style.
The top 6 centered by Domi and Danault should be able to play well at both ends but more importantly they will be defensively responsible. They will be complemented by solid players in Drouin, Gallagher, Tatar and Lehkonen.
This should allow Montreal to remain in games and compete.
Kotkaniemi and Plekanec will likely center the bottom two lines flanked by the likes of Byron, Hudon, DLR, Armia, and Peca. In all honesty, this doesn’t look at all bad for a team that most talking heads mused would be hard pressed to score at all after unloading Galchenyuk and Pacioretty. The Habs biggest issue was on display against the Leafs, preparedness and shift after a goal. It was the same issue that dogged them last season and if there are any hopes of playing good hockey it must be corrected.
The defense is probably the biggest question mark, as it was last year as well, with Weber being on the shelf. The Canadiens will rely heavily on Jeff Petry again and will hope for a more consistent defensive season to go along with last years career best year on offense. After that the team appears to have officially moved into a new era that will be built around Mete, Juulsen, and Reilly. These three should be the future of the team around veterans Weber, Petry, and Alzner and that seems like a group with solid potential to me. Add to that UFA signee, and preseason standout, and Ouellet and this Habs crew just might surprise.
So with that I won’t write the Habs off at all to start the year. I’ll roll with cautious optimism as long as the numbers seem reasonable to start the year and we should know where the Habs stand by the time the World Juniors roll around. The break is where we will be able to watch Poehling, Suzuki, Olafsson, and possibly Kotkaniemi battle it out for Gold in what should be the most watched tournament in years amongst Habs fans. It’s where we will be quietly cheering for other nations under our breath just to see our prospects gain valuable experience.
Until then I’ll cheer wildly for this version of the Canadiens. They seem to have more going for them heading into the season and the teams leader isn’t there asking for a trade anymore. The team can move on and take on the NHL with a chip on it’s shoulder.
A good thing for them to remember is that there’s a lot of us Habs fans around the world that want them to succeed and I’m sure we will all let them know as soon as the puck drops and they see us in every opponents rinks.
Can’t wait.
Go Habs Go!
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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