Core Signed in 2009 Remains Same, Reinforcements Have Changed
Back in the summer of 2009, when Bob Gainey reformatted his "five year plan" by completing the largest roster overhaul in franchise history, the Montreal Canadiens not only got fresh new faces but took on a whole new outlook on life.
In redesigning the offensive core of the Canadiens, Gainey added Scott Gomez, Brian Gionta and Michael Cammalleri to the already signed group of "top six" forwards in Tomas Plekanec, Andrei Kostitsyn and Guillaume Latendresse.
The thought process at the time was that the three newcomers would be complimented by the young core of developing offensive players Montreal already had, yet, once again, it would be a failed mission on the Canadiens part.
After an exhaustive search to find and unlock the talents of Guillaume Latendresse, the Canadiens were forced to swap projects with the Wild, taking on Minnesota's Benoit Pouliot mid-season only to watch Latendresse light it up in Minny while Pouliot's talents hid behind near-invisible confidence.
While the Latendresse/Pouliot projects were taking place, Montreal was also finally coming to terms with the fact that of the original three complimentary pieces with the team when Gomez, Gionta and Cammalleri arrived, only Tomas Plekanec has proven to be a quality top six player.
In realizing that Plekanec was worth the wait in terms of his development, the Habs were also forced to take a step back in regards to their expectations with Andrei Kostitsyn. Though a relatively decent producer(three 20 goal seasons as a Hab), Kostitsyn has never cracked the consistency barrier. Thanks to lengthy stretches of sub-par play and his penchant to lay back when everyone expects him to step it up, the former first round pick has never truly been capable of solidifying his place on the team's top six.
The divide in confidence is easy to see as Plekanec's value to the team was reflected in the length of term he received in his most recent contract(5 years) while management only saw fit to renew AK's services on a one year basis.
Proving that Kostitsyn's role with the team was not ever necessarily in the top six was Max Pacioretty. Though the turmoil surrounding the former first round pick who was acquired from San Jose along with Josh Gorges was no different than many other high level Habs prospects, Pacioretty beat the odds by emerging as a viable power forward last season, supplanting Kostitsyn as the more consistent option in the top six.
Despite the untimely injury that put an end to Pacioretty's season last March, the hope remains that he will be able to fulfill the promise and potential he demonstrated alongside Gomez and Gionta when the new season begins. Although many questions still remain about what the future holds for #67, the truth is that he is the most enticing and quality prospect on offense to come out of the team's system since Plekanec, and, unlike Latendresse, has given both fans and management legitimate reason to believe he can and will be the top six player they believe him to be.
Pushing beyond the fact that Pacioretty has proven to be a better option than not only Kostitsyn but Latendresse and Pouliot as well, Montreal's current GM, Pierre Gauthier, may have finally succeeded where Gainey tried and failed so many times.
In signing Erik Cole to a 4 year deal, the Habs finally added the proven, veteran power forward they long sought for their top six. His addition symbolizes all of the effort that has gone into finding the right linemates for the "core of four" in Plekanec, Cammalleri, Gomez and Gionta since the summer of 2009.
It's been a difficult struggle as inter-mixing four top-six players onto the top two lines has been a regular struggle, but with the addition of Cole, a player who can certainly be considered more "core" than "complimentary," the Canadiens now have five legtimate top-six players with the benefit of having Max Pacioretty and Andrei Kostitsyn capable of making up the difference.
The big picture shows that the Canadiens have always needed to add to their "core of four."
While the talents of Cammalleri, Plekanec, Gionta and Gomez are worthy of Montreal's top two lines, the truth is that they have never been strong enough to carry the offensive load on their own. There has always been a need for insulation.
And with the added insulation that has come with Pacioretty's emergence, Kostitsyn's demotion and Cole's addition, there just might be reason to believe that Montreal's top six will have enough confidence to let through their true potential shine through.
Time will tell how this current group will fare together, yet the one thing I can say with certainty is that this is easily the best top six Montreal has put together since the roster overhaul in 2009. Better than any of the other options Jacques Martin has had at his disposal over the last two seasons, and with Lars Eller, David Desharnais and an extra $5.1 million left in the bank, there's no telling just how good this top six can truly be.
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