Montreal Canadiens: Off-Season Moves Improve The Team

May 9, 2015; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens players celebrate their win against Tampa Bay Lightning in game five of the second round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports

The Montreal Canadiens have made some off-season moves that have improved the team. Let’s look at how.

The off-season, though it happened way too early, started off on a good note when defenseman Jeff Petry was signed. At the beginning of June, Petry was signed to a six-year contract.

Petry came into Montreal at the trade deadline, leaving behind a beleaguered Edmonton Oilers, and making his mark almost immediately. His enthusiasm about being in Montreal – not just excited about being on a winning team, assured of playoffs, but truly loving the city and the Habs – translated to beautiful performances on the ice, night after night.

In his first full season with the Canadiens, there is no doubt he will pick up from where he left off, shining every night, and making a difference on the blue line. Locking him in for 6 years was another coup for general manager Marc Bergevin.

The next move, mid-June, was to sign Nathan Beaulieu to a two-year extension. Beaulieu showed his warrior colors in 64 regular-season games with the Habs, but moreso when he suffered a fractured sternum in Round 1 of the playoffs, missing 7 games and still coming back for the last 2 games of Round 2.

Beaulieu is tough, has talented hands, and skates like a fiend. With only one goal in his NHL career so far, he will start the regular season playing his 100th game, and no doubt ready to make the case to be on the top four defensive pairings.

Ready to hit the ice, he had this to say when asked what he’s thinking regarding the next season’s performance:

"With the new contract, the team has more obligation with me and they expect bigger things from me. I know I’m going to have a bigger role and I know that with the success I had last year, I can’t take my foot off the gas now."

He’s an exciting player to watch.

Days after Beaulieu’s contract was announced, the team signed forward Torrey Mitchell to a 3-year contract. The fourth-liner came from the Buffalo Sabres at the trade deadline, and showed a passionate style that helped the goal-starved Habs in both rounds of playoffs. No doubt he’s also ready to make the case for proving his worth.

Next, as June came to a close, the Habs signed Mitchell’s former teammate, Brian Flynn, to a two-year contract. Flynn brought depth to the lineup, and when he scored the game-winning goal against the Ottawa Senators in Round 1 of playoffs, he won the heart of every Habs fan. I believe he will jump right back into things come September, and when the regular season begins, will be ready to make his mark on the roster.

As free-agent frenzy began on the 1st of July, the Habs went to their own camp and signed tough-guy defenseman Greg Pateryn. Pateryn was one of my favorite prospects all season, as he continued to prove his case for being a full-fledged member of the team.

I listed my reasons for wanting Pateryn in the line-up, and a few weeks later, the Habs signed him. He was already coming into a one-year, one-way left on his contract, but now he will be with Montreal for 3 full years.

Pateryn is a tough, physical player who exhibits solid defense every time he’s on the ice. Fighting for top spots in defensive pairings, he is going to have to show his strengths in order to break through the populated blue line, but I’m sure that won’t be a problem for Greg Pateryn, who’s made himself noticed every game.

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