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Montreal Canadiens: Expectations for Max Domi, breakout candidates, and cap space

By Omar L

MONTREAL, QC - NOVEMBER 16: Look on Arizona Coyotes Left Wing Max Domi (16) and Montreal Canadiens Left Wing Max Pacioretty (67) during the Arizona Coyotes versus the Montreal Canadiens game on November 16, 2017, at Bell Centre in Montreal, QC (Photo by David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - NOVEMBER 16: Look on Arizona Coyotes Left Wing Max Domi (16) and Montreal Canadiens Left Wing Max Pacioretty (67) during the Arizona Coyotes versus the Montreal Canadiens game on November 16, 2017, at Bell Centre in Montreal, QC (Photo by David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 24: (Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Kamal Rehman: I think Domi will have a positive effect on the team. He will bring his “never take a shift off” style of play, and that is always infectious on a hockey team. I’m thinking this is the attitude Bergevin wants for his club.

Domi’s vision, puck handling skills, and passing ability should help create plays and offense. The question is who will Domi be setting up? Drouin is a pass first guy, Galchenyuk is obviously no longer there, Pacioretty could be gone, and Weber is injured for the first 30 plus games of the year. There aren’t many shooters to pass to. With the lack of offensive weapons on the club, Domi will be one of the players the opposition will be able to focus on, making it more difficult for him to produce.

He’ll get the minutes and the opportunities, but I just think it is asking too much to expect a great amount of production from him. We all know he is coming off two nine goal seasons and last year four of those nine were empty netters. If I have to give numbers, I’m going to say 16 goals and 35 assists for Domi. A 51 point season…yes, the same number of points Galchenyuk produced last year.

light. Must Read. The Things That Make Domi a Good Playmaker

Omar White: There’s no doubt that Domi is going to help the Montreal Canadiens moving forward. Although he hasn’t been able to reach the goal total he had in his rookie season, his abilities as a playmaker has improved over the last two years. However, Domi will be as good as his deployment and usage dictate.

A lot of fans expect Domi to play on a line with Jonathan Drouin and given their playing styles, that doesn’t make too much sense. Players who like to shoot the puck like Brendan Gallagher and Artturi Lehkonen are the best fit there. His impact will also be felt on the power play providing both units with a skilled puck distributor along the wall.

I think a fair guess as far as offensive production would perhaps be 12 goals and 35 assists. Another thing that I’m interested to see is whether Domi shifts to centre at any point in the year. The Montreal Canadiens for all intents and purposes have their four guys, but injuries could see the 23-year-old move to the middle.

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