Montreal Canadiens: The Victor Mete Checkpoint

Victor Mete has been a pleasant surprise for the Montreal Canadiens but that contract impacting 10th game of the season is approaching.

There are only two players from the 2016 NHL Entry Draft playing in the NHL right now. Jesper Bratt, who was a 6th round pick by the New Jersey Devils, and Victor Mete who the Montreal Canadiens took 100th overall in the 4th round. Not to belittle what Bratt has done so far (three goals and three assists), but it’s easier to start out in the NHL on the wing. For Mete to make the team as a 19-year-old defenceman and play on the top pair every night of the season so far is incredible.

Young players always step out at training camp, especially when it’s their first. However, it was good on Claude Julien and the rest of the coaching staff to acknowledge Mete’s ability and give him a legitimate shot to play for the Habs.

His two points of the season have both come from the power play. The first was a primary assist off of Brendan Gallagher‘s goal in the Anaheim game. The other was in the same category, but from Shea Weber against San Jose.

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After Tuesday night’s win, the Woodbridge native has nine NHL games under his belt. Mete’s possible 10th game of the season could be on Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings. If that happens, a year will officially be burned off his entry-level-contract making him a year closer to reaching restricted free agent status.

What will the Habs do? Will they let him play that 10th game, or send him back down to — okay I’m sorry I couldn’t finish the sentence. Of course the Montreal Canadiens won’t send Mete back down, he’s arguably been their best defencemen all season. Even when things were looking bad for the team early on, Mete was consistently a force on the blueline.

He’s displayed a certain level of maturity and poise to his game which has gone from being an utter and complete shock to something Habs fans expect every night. An NHL club might send a prospect back to their junior teams to avoid the risk of rushing them to the big leagues. Mete has proven every game that he deserves to be here.

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Additionally, sending him down at this point would do more harm than good. He won’t learn anything new from playing with the London Knights. If players drafted out of the CHL could play in the AHL before their 20, Laval would be a better option than junior, but even still, he belongs on the Montreal Canadiens.

An argument that I’ve seen in favour of sending him down was more prominent when the Habs were playing horribly. If the slump was going to continue, would it be worth it to keep Mete around and be surrounded with so much negativity? I can understand that point. You want to protect your future as best as you can, and having them around a losing team isn’t ideal.

They won their game against the Florida Panthers in true offensive fashion, but if there’s a chance that things go south again, should they send him down? I don’t think so. Win or loss, Victor Mete should stay on this team for the same reasons mentioned above. He’s an NHL defenceman, and even if the Habs lose their way again, it will be better for his development to continue to be a top defenceman.

The future of the Montreal Canadiens blueline is in good hands. Not only with Mete, but Brett Lernout, Noah Juulsen, and Jakub Jerabek will be here soon. It’s a miracle really when you think about it. The Habs don’t know how to draft, remember?

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Are you on board with Mete staying? Is there any reason as to why he shouldn’t? Let us know your thoughts down below.