Montreal Canadiens Drive for 25: Eller is Stellar

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Apr 2, 2015; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens forward

Lars Eller

(81) reacts with teammates after scoring a goal against the Washington Capitals during the second period at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

Montreal Canadiens Drive for 25: Eller is Playoff Stellar

Born: 8th of May, 1989 in Rodovre, Denmark (27 years old)
Height/Weight: 6’2″ / 215 lbs
Drafted in the 1st rd, 13th overall, of the 2007 draft by the St-Louis Blues
Had 55 pts in 39 games for Frolunda of the under-20 Elite Swedish League
Acquired by MTL in trade with St-Louis along with Ian Schultz for Jaroslav Halak
Scored 14 of his 15 goals in 2014-15 even strength, something indicative of his power play (PP) time, not his PP abilities
Meanwhile, in the 2013-14 playoffs, scored 4 PP goals in only 17 games, which shows his PP potential
Was one of the few Habs to finish the season with a negative +/- rating (-6)
Finished the 2013-14 playoffs with a +6 rating
Currently salary $2,500,00 with a cap hit of $3,500,000
Twitter handle @Eller_89

It’s hard to believe Lars Eller already has 5 full NHL seasons under his belt and is still only 25 years old. Although his regular season high in points is only 30 in 2012-13, it came in a short season of only 46 games, giving him an impressive 0.65 PPG (adjusted for full season would be a 56 pts season). He has the potential to replicate that over a full 82 game season, but has yet to make good on that promise.

REGULAR SEASON

More from A Winning Habit

Before we get into the playoff performance that is Lars Eller, I’d like to touch on how misused he has been in the regular season. Make no mistake, Lars Eller has the ability, size, and determination to be a top 6 forward on any NHL team, let alone one that has so much trouble scoring goals. In 2014-15, Lars Eller received very little time on the top 2 lines or on the power play, something that mystifies the mind when you consider how incredible he was on the PP during the 2013-14 playoffs. He had a 21.8% shooting percentage, scored 4 PP goals in only 17 games, and scored 13 points in 17 games. In my humble opinion, he had earned the right to start the 2014-15 season on the second line, even if it had to be on the wing.

There are a few interesting items to note reference his playing time and more in the regular season. Here they are:

In 2014-15, his avg ice time was 2 minutes lower in games the Habs lost (14:03) than it games they won (16:03)
Jeff Petry assisted on 3 of his last 4 regular season goals

Clearly, the Habs were a better team when he received more ice time. For some reason, the majority of his low ice time games were against Western Conference teams, when he received just over 13 minutes per game. It’s also evident that he and Jeff Petry have been able to build some chemistry over their short time together. It begs the question – why are they not on the same PP unit?

Want to see his offensive talents? Look at this 5 pts night (note how many times they are goals created by turnovers):

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