Montreal Canadiens Should Have 5 Players at the All Star Game

Examining what potential Montreal Canadiens Players should represent the Habs at this years all star game.

The Montreal Canadiens play this season has been amazing, and they have gotten great effort from all on the roster. Currently, the Canadiens sit atop the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference. The Habs, however, owe a ton a of credit to a few key players for their great performances and these players should be voted to the All Star Game.

Last Season’s All Stars

The Canadiens had two players represent the team at the All Star Game last season. They were Defensemen P.K. Subban and Defencemen John Scott. Both of these players are no longer with the Canadiens as the team parted ways with them in the off-season.

John Scott will be forever remembered for his All Star game appearance. He was voted in by the Fans even though he was playing in the minors as a part of the Arizona Coyotes organization before the Habs traded for him. The Fans were obviously mocking the NHL All Star Game and made John Scott the mascot.

Scott ended up playing in the game and winning the game’s MVP award and scored a couple of goals. John was later returned to the Montreal’s affiliate roster the St John’s Ice Caps after the game. This definitely made the higher ups in the NHL upset and they made a new rule, the “John Scott Rule”, not allowing anyone from the minors to be voted in.

NHL Fan Voting Begins

The NHL begins it’s annual NHL All Star fan voting period on December first. Fans will have one month to vote for one captain from each division.

Since voting opened, the NHL.com staff projected what the Atlantic Division All Star roster would look like. Shockingly, the Habs only had two players make the 11 man roster.

In fact, Forward James Van Reimsdyk of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Defensemen Rasmus Ristolainen of the Buffalo Sabres made the team. These are good players and are important to their teams, but they don’t compare to the Canadiens players left off the list.

Here are the five Canadiens who should be on this years All Star team:

Examining why Defensemen Andrei Markov deserves to be selected to the NHL All Star Game.

Many thought that Andrei Markov was on the decline because of his age and performance last season. Andrei looked as if he couldn’t keep up with the pace of today’s fast game and looked as if he had worn out. Markov played  big minutes last season especially down the stretch as the Habs were struggling to score.

However, Montreal Canadiens Head Coach Michel Therrien and the rest of the Coaching Staff decided to reduce Markov’s minutes this season. The change has worked wonders for Markov as he looks so much more fresh than last season.

Good Chemistry

The Canadiens also moved on from Markov’s Defense partner, P.K. Subban, in the off-season. Subban was also Markov’s partner on the Habs Power Play last season. Andrei would have quite the task of trying to build chemistry with new players both five on five, and the Power Play unit.

Markov has definitely formed great chemistry with Jeff Petry and Shea Weber. Andrei plays most of his even strength ice time with Petry and this duo has been a real key to the Canadiens balanced scoring. Markov has always lacked foot speed, but Petry is a quick smooth skating defender who really complements Markov’s style.

Andrei has also complemented Shea Weber on the Power Play. Markov uses his terrific passing ability to set Weber up for his howitzer slap shot. This duo has been one of the main reasons for the Canadiens Power Play resurgence.

Markov vs Atlantic Division Defensemen

Here’s how Markov’s stats look compared to the rest of the Defensemen in the Atlantic:

Player                           Team            GP              G               A              P             +/-               TOI

Andrei Markov              MTL            23              2             15            17             4               22:05

Erik Karlsson                 OTT             24              4             15           19             4               27:14

Victor Hedman             TB                25               5            13           18             3               24:35

Mike Green                    DET             24               4             9             13             0               24:20

Keith Yandle                  FLA              24               1            11           12             4               22:27

Rasmus Ristolainen    BUF             23               0            12           12           -5               26:18

Morgan Rielly                TOR             23               1            12           13           -6               22:54

Markov’s numbers are clearly among the best in the Atlantic. Andrei has also been able to produce almost the same amount of points as Karlsson, and Hedman, but playing less time. Markov has also played less games than Hedman and one less game than Karlsson.

Another interesting fact, is that all the players that appear above have an average age of 26. Markov is 37 years old, and he will turn 38 on December 20th of this month. He clearly is still one of the league’s top defenders and deserves to be named to the Atlantic All Star team.

Examining why Forward Alexander Radulov deserves to be selected to the NHL All Star Game.

When Alex Radulov decided to leave the KHL and come back to the NHL many teams were scared away by Radulov’s past history. He was red flagged or viewed as a player who would be a bad influence. However, it’s clear now the Radulov has been the best Free Agent signing this past off-season.

Radulov started the first few games of the season on a line with Tomas Plekanec, but that didn’t work out well. Than Radulov was moved to play with Alex Galchenyuk and ever since both players have point per game scorers. Both players obviously have formed great chemistry with each other and both posses great play making ability.

Radulov was more known for his goal scoring ability before coming to Montreal. He was known as a physical player and someone who would drive hard to the net. Alex still does these things (as seen below with his incredible goal) but he is able to do so much more.

Radulov is probably the Montreal Canadiens best puck handler as he uses his big frame to shield the puck. As he does this he is always looking to set up other Habs players for scoring opportunities.

Alex also plays every game with a ton of passion and energy. Radulov has developed into one of the Canadiens leaders very quickly.

Radulov’s Stats vs the Atlantic Division

When the NHL.com staff chose it’s Forwards they picked a few players who didn’t seem as productive as Radulov. They were Detroit Red Wings Forward Gustav Nyquist, and Toronto Maple Leafs Forwards James van Reimsdyk and Auston Matthews. Here’s how they compare:

Player                                   GP              G                 A                  P                 +/-              TOI

Alex Radulov                       21              4                14                18                  6               15:59

Auston Matthews              23             10                8                 18                -3               17:20

James van Reimsdyk         23              10               9                 19                -3               15:41

Gustav Nyquist                   24               4                10               14                 2                16:45

All of these players are putting up very similar numbers but Radulov has played the fewest games. Radulov’s Point production also matches Matthews even though Radulov gets less ice time per game. In fact, since Matthews first game when he scored 4 goals, his play has been very inconsistent, unlike Radulov.

Nyquist’s points per game doesn’t even compare to Radulov. Gustav’s has scored 0.58 points per game, while Radulov is scoring at a rate of 0.86 points per game. Clearly, Radulov is the more productive player.

Radulov’s production has been one of the biggest surprises of the season. He has clearly earned the recognition of a trip to the All Star Game.

Examining why Defensemen Shea Weber deserves to be selected to the NHL All Star Game.

Shea Weber was acquired by the Habs in one of the biggest trades in Franchise history. Obviously, there was going to be a ton of pressure on the Weber to replace Subban. However, Weber has proven himself as the NHL’s top defender and the pressure hasn’t even effected him.

Weber has established himself as one of the Montreal Canadiens core group of leaders. His physical presence often sets the tone for the Habs.  Shea is currently second on the Canadiens in hits with 55 and they all an extreme impact.

Weber has also been one of the Montreal Canadiens go to guys when the team needs scoring. Weber is second on the team in goals and tied for the team lead in game winning goals with three. Shea is not only Mr. Dependable but he’s also been Mr. Clutch.

Weber vs the Atlantic Division

Player                            GP              G              A              P             +/-               TOI

Shea Weber                 23              8             10           18            18                25:47

Erik Karlsson                24              4             15           19              4                 27:14

Victor Hedman            25              5             13           18              3                 24:35

Mike Green                   24              4              9             13              0                 24:20

Shea Weber is the best all round defender in the group, but also in the league. The total scoring numbers are close between Weber, Karlsson and Hedman. However, what stands out is Weber’s awesome plus minus and it is head and shoulders above the other players.

The NHL.com staff got this one right and Shea Weber should be at the NHL All Star game.

Examining why Goaltender Carey Price deserves to be selected to the NHL All Star Game.

Carey Price is the Montreal Canadiens player and he’s also the NHL’s best player. No other player means more to his teams success than Carey Price and that’s why he is the early favorite to win the NHL’s Hart Trophy.

Carey’s numbers have been awesome again this season. He currently boasts a ridiculous .947 save percentage and a 1.68 goals against average. Also in his 16 starts, Price has won 13 of those games and has two shutouts as well.

When things start to break down for the Habs, Carey is always their to bail his team out. Here is an example of this in a recent game against the Detroit Red Wings:

What’s amazing is Carey gives this same kind of effort, night in, and night out. He should win win both the Vezina Trophy and Hart Trophy is he keeps up his current pace.

Next: Montreal Canadiens Carey Price Dominating as Always

The NHL.com staff also got this pick right as Price deserves to be at the NHL All Star Game.

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