5. David Desharnais- Desharnais is a “David” in a Goliath position (do do chhh). At 5’7, 177 pounds, he is in no way a big player by anyone’s standards. With Tomas Plekanec, Scott Gomez and Lars Eller, playing on the top 3 lines will be a difficult task. Desharnais is a talented offensive forward who excelled with the Hamilton Bulldogs. At 24 years old, he is nearing his prime, so it is about time for him to make a difference in the NHL. The only problem is, he isn’t a physical player by any means, and lacks strength, which causes problems when battling for pucks against bigger NHL opponents. He is a fast skater who can place pucks in the net, so if Gomez continues to fail, he can be a good replacement on the second line.
4. Pk Subban- Subban is a future star in the NHL, but when will his star power start to shine? I Don’t believe that will be this season, with Gill, Gorges and Markov, but nevertheless he is the most talented defense on the squad. There are not many forwards, let alone defenceman, that you will find with more skill then Subban. He has outstanding stickhandiling skills and can go end to end while your team picks their nose. He has tremendous skating ability and can outrace most oncoming forecheckers and still go to Japan, eat a sandwhich, play some golf, walk back to get to the puck first. Ok, maybe its just a tiny exaggeration, but nobody has tried doing that during the game, so who knows? One of the things Subban was known for last year was his crushing body checks, and he made his presence known while you were sucking your thumb and crying like a baby Along with Weber and Markov, the powerplay is in good hands. Is his sophomore season something to be excited for
3. Erik Cole- Cole was brought in to add toughness and scoring to the Habs. Playing with Eric Staal in Carolina, Cole had a decent year with the Hurricanes in 2010-2011. He had 26 goals and 26 points in 82 games. The stat that really got Montreal’s interest is his 9 Game winning goals last year, 4th in the NHL. He is a consistent 50-60 point player. He brings an offensive ability and size the Habs have lacked for years. Cole has a great skating ability. Oh ya, he likes hitting people. Cole had 250 hits last season, not bad for a player plagued with injuries. Cole’s broken vertebrate in the 2005-2006 proved to be costly for his career, and hasn’t been the same since he had 61 points in 2006-2007. Some experts think he is on a decline in production, but for the sake of Montreal fans, lets hope this is not the case.
2. Can Scary Carey continue the success from last season? He was tied for first in Wins with Roberto Luongo, with 38. He clearly played great under pressure, and there was a lot considering Montreal traded their playoff savior Jarolsav Halak to the St. Louis Blues. He is very calm in net, and while he is not flashy, he can make saves that can just blow your mind.If you ask any experts about Price, they would tell you that Price is one of the most talented goalies in the league. He has a big frame (6’3), which allows him to cover much of the net. Even though this has costed him in the past, he has magnificent puck playing ability, and gets a lot of assists due to this. He is a proven winner, with winning a Calder Cup, AHL playoff MVP and World Junior championship all in the same year. He has consistency issues, but if he plays like last year, it shouldn’t be a problem.
1. Scott Gomez- Gomez has a lot of skill and has the ability to score. With good linemates, he could really thrive in any situation. He had his best years with Gionta and Patrik Elias, but Gionta and Gomez have not clicked just the way Montreal hoped. He has always been a play making center, and he has shown that by having 20 or more goals only once in his career, with a 33 goal campaign in 2005-2006, which also had him produce his top point total with 84 points. He is one of the fastest skaters in the league, and is able to get the puck to the net, where he can use his talented stick handling ability to shove in the puck. Gomez has been buffing up this summer, and is in better shape then he has been in in recent years. With his salary decreasing every season until 2013-2014 (the last year in his contract), he may not be pressured to perform with a lower salary, and can relax and go back to his game. Maybe, just maybe, we can see a revival. If not, he has a NTC, which allows him to choose 3 teams he would accept a trade too.
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