The Montreal Canadiens continue to deal with their roster logjam sending young defenceman Victor Mete down to the Laval Rocket.
The Montreal Canadiens sending Victor Mete down to the AHL will be a move that is both frustrating but easy to understand. The 20-year-old has played a total of 23 games so far this season putting up four assists while still struggling to find the back of the net for the first time in his NHL career.
Mete had a strong start to the year dating back to training camp. The pairing of himself along with 2015 first-round pick Noah Juulsen looked to be a very dangerous one filled with exceptional scoring and cycling activation off of the point. However, once the season progressed, Mete found himself on the bottom pair juggling between having David Schlemko or Jordie Benn as a partner.
It’s nearly a carbon copy of last year. Although Mete had his handful of nights that saw him play north of 17 minutes, the majority of them have hovered around 14, and even lower at 10. It never made sense for a player of his age and potential to play so little in the lineup which makes the team’s decision to demote him to the Laval Rocket, an understandable one.
Mete will reunite with former teammate Karl Alzner, who started his stint in the AHL strong scoring the opening goal against the Belleville Senators, and have the opportunity to play a key role along the blueline.
Then there’s the downside of all of this. Does it make sense for the Montreal Canadiens to play the likes of Schlemko and Benn ahead of Mete? On the surface, no. But this isn’t only a move to better the young defencemen’s game. It also leaves an empty spot for Mike Reilly or Xavier Ouellet to see some time on the ice.
Perhaps later on in the season Marc Bergevin finds a way to move one of the older defencemen, allowing Mete to return. Or it’s possible management chooses to leave him in the minors for the reset of the season. Mete is still a developing player and spending time with the likes of Joel Bouchard could do some good for him.