Montreal Canadiens Line Predictions For Opening Night
With a few scrimmages, a Red vs White game (which was just a scrimmage) and one exhibition game featuring few NHL level players, it is far too early to predict the Montreal Canadiens lineup for opening night.
However, we are fans, so that is exactly what we are going to do right now.
Line combinations can and will be shuffled over the next two weeks, but a lot can be read into the units that have been put together thus far. Like I said, these lines could change, but they also were not picked at random. The management and coaching staff put a lot of thought into the lines they put together, and obviously want to see how these combinations work before changing them.
Using the lineup for tonight’s game, and the lines used against the Boston Bruins in the preseason opener, the Habs have trotted out lines something like this:
Pacioretty – Desharnais – Parenteau
Scherbak – Galchenyuk – Gallagher
De La Rose – Plekanec – Sekac
Prust – Malhotra – Weise
Moen – Hudon – Bournival
On top of these players, there is the inured Lars Eller who has a roster spot locked up, Sven Andrighetto and Christian Thomas who are in the mix, and Rene Bourque who played with Charles Hudon and Nikita Scherbak, but both youngsters move to different lines for tonight’s game.
Keeping those four in mind, we have to make four lines out of this cluster:
Pacioretty – Desharnais – Parenteau
Scherbak – Galchenyuk – Gallagher
De La Rose – Plekanec – Sekac
Prust – Malhotra – Weise
Moen – Hudon – Bournival
Andrighetto – Eller – Bourque – Thomas
I think the only line that is absolutely set in stone is the Prust – Malhotra – Weise line as the fourth unit. The Pacioretty – Desharnais – Parenteau line also looks like it will stay together for the foreseeable future. That means we have a first and fourth line, and need to build two middle lines.
May 27, 2014; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens center Alex Galchenyuk (27) celebrates his goal against New York Rangers with teammates during the first period in the game five of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports
We know that Galchenyuk, Gallagher, Plekanec and Eller will fill four of those middle-six slots, but where they play and with who remain up in the air. My guess is that the Habs brass go with what they are comfortable with, which means Galchenyuk moves to the left side, leaving Plekanec and Eller in the middle.
That also means that Bourque gets to start the season on Eller’s line, leaving Scherbak, Sekac, De La Rose, Moen, Hudon and Bournival fighting for the last spot on the third line.
Sekac has been attached to Plekanec since before he arrived in Montreal, and I think the Habs will try to build a solid two way line out of the pair of Kladno natives and Gallagher. That leaves Eller centering Galchenyuk and Bourque.
Pacioretty – Desharnais – Parenteau
Sekac – Plekanec – Gallagher
Galchenyuk – Eller – Bourque
Prust – Malhotra – Weise
On defence, the Canadiens started camp with the same pairing I think they will start the season with.
Emelin – Subban
Markov – Gilbert
Beaulieu – Weaver
I can’t read minds, but judging by the combinations we have seen this far, I think those are the lines we will see when the season begins on October 8th.
This is in stark contrast to what I would do if I were to make decision. First off all, I would have Scherbak start the year on a purely offensive line with Galchenyuk and Gallagher, and send Bourque packing.
My lines for the first nine games would be:
Pacioretty – Desharnais – Parenteau
Scherbak – Galchenyuk – Gallagher
Eller – Plekanec – Sekac
Prust – Malhotra – Weise
Then I would send Scherbak back to Junior after he had a taste of the NHL, move Galchenyuk back to the wing, Eller to center and bring in Bournival.
Pacioretty – Desharnais – Parenteau
Galchenyuk – Eller – Gallagher
Bournival – Plekanec – Sekac
Prust – Malhotra – Weise
I would also try Markov on the top pairing with Subban, and bump Emelin down to the second set with Gilbert.
Markov – Subban
Emelin – Gilbert
Beaulieu – Weaver
Of course we are only one game into the preseason and a lot can change between now and the start of the NHL’s regular season. But as of today, that’s where I see the Habs going with this roster, and also what I would do differently.