Montreal Canadiens: What’s the plan for Daniel Carr?
By Omar L
Daniel Carr went from being the Montreal Canadiens hottest forward to a regular in the press box, and it makes you think what they have in store for him.
Remember how productive Daniel Carr was when he was first called up from the Laval Rocket? The 26-year-old was killing it in the AHL scoring 19 points in 20 games and was well in need of a promotion. He joined the Montreal Canadiens and made his impact fairly quickly assisting on Brendan Gallagher‘s power-play goal against Detroit.
The points continued to come for Carr as he would have one in each of his next four games. It was more than what showed up on the scoreboard though, he along with Nicolas Deslaurier and Byron Froese were an effective unit for the Habs on a nightly basis. Then top nine didn’t have it, they did, and Carr was a big part of sparking that group.
However, things have changed. Carr has been made a healthy scratch six times, and it looks like it’ll be seven in the team’s next game against Carolina. At the moment, Logan Shaw has Carr’s spot. He hasn’t played too much on the penalty kill, but he’s been a good addition to that unit all the same. L. Shaw came close to scoring his first goal with the Habs in the Bruins game; besides that, he’s been steady.
On the other hand, Carr has made an impact on the ice in all situations he’s played in. It’s a toss-up here. Claude Julien won’t be willing to mess with the lineup after how well they played on Tuesday, but having Carr sit out so much isn’t good for his game either.
So what are they doing with him? The simple answer is that management has a couple of moves in mind that involve a winger moving on. If that’s the case, then there’s your spot for Carr in the lineup. There’s also the chance that he could get packaged in a deal or be the sole player involved if another team liked what they saw from him when playing.
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Waivers are out of the question in my opinion unless the Habs strategically send him down at a time when no other teams would pick him up. It’s very risky, and I’d bet there’s a better chance he’s claimed, but it could work.
It must be frustrating for Laval seeing as how they could use Carr back on their team right now as they continue to fight for a playoff spot. Another thing to keep in mind is that Carr is another player in the Habs’ system set to become a restricted free agent. I don’t doubt that there will be a qualifying offer waiting for him in the summer.
Given his age, the Alberta native isn’t a prospect or a kid anymore, but there is a lot of value there. Whatever the Habs have in mind for Carr, hopefully, it involves him getting back on the ice soon.
What do you think the Habs will do with Carr? Let us know down in the comments.