Montreal Canadiens: Big Opportunity for Habs Young Defenders
The Montreal Canadiens could be without Defensemen Andrei Markov for the next few games, because of a lower body injury. This leaves a void on the Habs blue line, but a pair of young defenders can prove that they belong.
The Montreal Canadiens announced yesterday that Andrei Markov will be getting some treatment for an injury, and is day to day. The injury happened during the Habs 2-1 win Saturday night, vs the Washington Capitals. Andrei Markov is having a terrific season, and is showing that at 38 years of age, he still has a lot of Hockey in front of him.
Markov’s injury does provide a chance for two young defenders to step up, and fill Markov’s spot on the second pairing. Both Nathan Beaulieu and Mark Barberio, may both get an opportunity to play with Jeff Petry. Beaulieu and Barberio have been inconsistent, but they have shown flashes of their potential.
Beaulieu
Nathan Beaulieu had an awesome training camp, and started the season with Shea Weber on the Habs top Defense pairing. However, just a few games into the season Beaulieu was demoted to the bottom pairing. Since then Beaulieu has been solid, but hasn’t been consistent enough in creating offense from the back end.
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In 25 games this season, Beaulieu has scored one goal and six assists. Beaulieu is also a plus 12, and this is tied for second best on the team. The numbers don’t look bad for a bottom pairing Defensemen, but he has just been so up and down.
During the game vs Washington, Beaulieu took a penalty that was a “debatable call.” However, instead of letting it go, he continued to let the referees know how he felt about it. Nathan came out of the box, kept chirping, beating his stick on the ice, and than got a 10 minute penalty.
This is the kind of play that holds Nathan back from getting more ice time. He has all the speed and intelligence to be a top defender, but he chooses to make immature decisions. With Markov hurt, Beaulieu may wind up taking his spot and needs to show that he can be focused for an entire game.
Barberio
Mark Barberio may also have an opportunity to replace Markov’s spot on the depth chart. Barberio is a very similar player to Beaulieu, as they both are talented skaters and have good offensive ability.
Mark has spent this season between the Canadiens, and the St Johns Ice Caps. Barberio has one point in seven game with the Montreal Canadiens and is a plus two. With St Johns, Mark has scored 18 points in 20 games and has shown that he clearly belongs in the NHL.
However, Barberio has a tendency to be way over aggressive in his positioning. At times Barberio slides out of his coverage area, to try and pressure opposing puck carriers. When he does this, he leaves open areas right in front the Habs net, which is like playing with fire.
Like Beaulieu, Barberio has a ton of upside, but his inconsistency is getting in the way of a rise up the depth chart. Barberio may also see some shifts with Petry on the second pairing if Markov misses a few games.
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Final Thoughts
These games could be a foreshadowing of the Montreal Canadiens future Defense corps, as Markov’s contract will end after the season. Both Beaulieu and Barberio need to show that they can step up to take the reigns, or they both could be replaced during the next off season.