Montreal Canadiens: Al Montoya Needs to Be Better

Although goal scoring is what has been ailing the Montreal Canadiens the most in the preseason, Al Montoya needs to be better moving forward.

It’s been five preseason games and we’ve mostly payed attention to how many goals the Montreal Canadiens have been able to score. That’s been the issue dating back to last season, and will continue to be the issue until they start to score more. What hasn’t been discussed as much is how many and what kind of goals the Habs have been giving up.

This is where Al Montoya comes in. Obviously he won’t be expected to make 60 or starts next season or finish top 10 in the league in Sv%. What the team will ask of him is to give them .500 hockey.

Some of the goals that Montoya has let in so far in the preseason have been concerning, especially in his more recent game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was out of position a lot and just didn’t seem comfortable. It could be between the ears or perhaps he’s dealing with something, but he doesn’t look himself.

It looks like the Montreal Canadiens are going to give him some time to recuperate after recalling Zachary Fucale from Laval to back up Carey Price in their next game. There’s no way that Claude Julien has given up on Montoya so soon, but this could be a possible window for Charlie Lindgren.

He has been dealing with an injury as well, but if he’s able to recover, maybe Julien gives him a legitimate chance to be the Habs’ backup. We’ll have to wait and see how all of this plays out. Montoya could very well be going through some kind of slump and return to form next week.

The Habs are trying to limit how many games Price plays last year so he’s as ready as he can be for the playoffs. Therefore, whoever the backup is may have an increased workload. If these are signs of Montoya having a bad year, then it would be best for the coaching staff to deal with it now before it possibly gets worse.

Next: Playing Galchenyuk With Drouin

What have you thought of Montoya so far? Is there a chance Lindgren can push for the backup spot now? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.