Montreal Canadiens: Protecting Alex Galchenyuk

Alex Galchenyuk arguably gets the most attention on the Montreal Canadiens, and it would be in the team’s best interest if they protected him from that.

The expectations around the Montreal Canadiens are high. After winning the Atlantic Division the year before, but falling in the first round, and the new additions to the team, many believe that it’s the team’s time to kick things up to a new level.

Obviously with expectations comes pressure. TSN had an article out a few weeks ago about who will be facing the most pressure to perform this season. The article had both Jonathan Drouin and Marc Bergevin on it. Those are two easy choices to make, but there is one name they may have forgotten to add: Alex Galchenyuk.

You’d think that all the hype and attention surrounding him would diminish a little. Right now, there are other players on the team who for once stick out more than he does. That hasn’t changed though, despite the Canadiens best efforts.

Related Story: Galchenyuk's Future

Every season, we all ask and inquire about whether Galchenyuk can play center or not. He even made a joke about it at the golf tournament that it wouldn’t be close to the season without him hearing that question. Then management sticking to what they said at the end of last year in that they don’t see the 23-year-old as a center made things worse. Again, that went against what the team wanted.

In playing Galchenyuk on the wing, he would be free to play his game without having to worry about defence too much. The NHL is as much a mental game as it is physical, and the Habs believed that playing him there would give him the best chance to succeed. When you play better, you feel better, and that cycles back to one’s on-ice performances.

But what are we all doing now? We have the microscope on 100x power right over Galchenyuk. It’s to the point where no matter what he does, he’ll always be scrutinized.

Helping Galchenyuk Get Better

Claude Julien did something very admirable on Friday. During the media scrums, he shut down any questions involving Galchenyuk.

Habs fans have had polarizing responses to this comment. This move by Julien can’t be anything else than a good one.

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This isn’t to say that Galchenyuk has played his best yet lately. However, it’s the preseason, and there is still time to improve. It’ll be hard for him to improve if everything is about him, because it’s not. He’s even talked about more than Drouin and Max Pacioretty, and they’re on the top line!

It’s like some are waiting for him to fail. Julien stepping in front of this and protecting him was one of the best things he’s done as coach of the Montreal Canadiens. This is about the team, not just one player. Additionally, removing that focus from Galchenyuk will help him get better in the long run, will help him when he does make mistakes, and allow him to learn from them.

Hopefully this is something the Montreal Canadiens do more. We’ve seen what the 2013 1st round pick can do when he’s on his game. Knowing that management and the team supports him will definitely help get him back to that.

Next: Losing Players on Waivers

What did you think of Julien’s move? Was it the right one? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.