Montreal Canadiens: Highlights from the Marc Bergevin Press Conference
By Omar L
Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin met with media before the team’s game against Vancouver and it looks like he hasn’t given up on the season yet.
We were all waiting to hear this one. Some Montreal Canadiens fans thought that Marc Bergevin will drop some hot takes or honesty on how the season has gone so far. Others believed that it would just be the same generic answers that most general managers give to the media. Ironically, it was somewhere in the middle.
Bergevin started one of his questions by mentioning that the team’s main issue has been consistency. Save for the pair of winning streaks they had against weak teams – save for the Columbus Blue Jackets – the Habs haven’t been able to get a nice rhythm going for them.
A lot of players who management and the fans had high hopes for, haven’t produced the way they hoped. Front and center at this is Karl Alzner who the Habs signed specifically for his shutdown abilities. However, he has been on the wrong end of turnovers, missed assignments, and ultimately goals against.
There were other things that Bergevin said that weren’t necessarily new like how it wasn’t in the team’s interest to have so much cap-space and that he doesn’t want to make long-term risks to fix the team and that there are no short-term solutions out there right now. In a nutshell, the answer is still in the room Habs fans.
What may or may not be surprising was how Bergevin expressed his reluctance to give up on the season.
"I believe making the playoffs is possibile, but a lot of things need to change. There are times where I’ve seen them capable of doing it."
No one was expecting him to come out and say, “You know what, the season is done, we’re wrapping things up, let’s all get in our tanks and drive off into the sunset”. However, to express such confidence in a Habs team who currently sits 28th in the league is ridiculous.
Bergevin did mention that there are no garauntees in the NHL, which could include winning the draft lottery bringing up where the New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, and Dallas Stars were when they won their respective lotteries. Nevertheless, being in the closest possible position to draft a top prospect can’t be something that they overlook can it?
The final highlight of the press conference came at the end when Bergevin was asked about Jonathan Drouin. He noted that he has had moments of inconsistency as well as the whole team and that the chemistry he hoped Drouin would have with Max Pacioretty was never there.
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Bergevin also said that if the team had a true number one center already, that Drouin would most likely be playing on the wing. He quickly back-tracked bringing up the 22-year-old’s offensive skills and capabilities to play the position, but what he said before had more weight.
So we have a Habs team in the bottom five in the standings with the hope that they can still make the playoffs, and players still possibly being slotted in the wrong positions.
For the fans who hoped that the team would tank and get as close to the bottom of the standings as possible, you’ll have to place your crossed fingers. Who knows, the Habs could still continue to lose games, however, with Carey Price in net, anything is possible.
It’ll be an interesting second half of the season for the Montreal Canadiens and the fan base. Get your popcorn ready.