Montreal Canadiens Roundtable: The state and future of the defence

In this week’s Montreal Canadiens roundtable, we discuss Shea Weber and his return, as well as the futures of Karl Alzner, David Schlemko, and Jordie Benn.

There’s been a lot going on with the Montreal Canadiens this week. Shea Weber returned after missing nearly a month of action, Karl Alzner and Victor Mete were placed on waivers, and more moves could come as the likes of Paul Byron and company begin to return.

How did Weber play? What can fans expect to see from Alzner in the AHL with the Laval Rocket? And will David Schlemko or Jordie Benn find themselves on waivers as the roster crunch on the Montreal Canadiens continues? Check out what the writers at A Winning Habit had to say about it in the latest edition of the Roundtable.

1) What did you make of Shea Weber’s first game?

Zack Cook: It was the exact same Shea Weber that fans across the National Hockey League have grown accustomed to seeing. Steady, solid in transition and a physical force of nature on the back-end. There just seems to be a different feeling of safety when Weber is on the ice, and the whole team seemed to play more comfortable because of it. It was interesting to see how the powerplay adjusted with Weber back on the first unit. Additionally, it was evident that there were more open opportunities down low for Jesperi Kotkaniemi as the focus shifted to defenders trying to cover Weber’s point shot.

Mark Darling: If I had to give a report card grade on Weber’s return debut, I’d give him an A+ on his performance. The fact that Montreal lost has no effect on my grade, nor was Weber in any way responsible for the outcome. In fact, it could have been worse without him in the lineup, as Weber had a hand in Montreal’s only tally of the night, earning an assist on Phillip Danault‘s goal in the third period.

Although there were occasional signs of rust, I thought he looked great, considering the lengthy layoff. He made some nice plays with the puck, lowered the boom on a few helpless Hurricanes and let everyone know that the howitzer is out of storage and back on the firing range. Incoming!

All in all, I thought he delivered on everything that was promised, and maybe even a little more.
The ice time and the stats are one thing, but what I noticed was how hard everyone else was trying. Perhaps it was the desperate play of a team in a slump, but to me, it appeared the rest of the team was playing hard to impress their new captain, like kids seeking the approval of their father. The glow on Gallagher and Kotkaniemi’s faces during the post-game scrum said it all. Dad’s home!

Too bad Curtis McElhinney‘s heroics ruined what could have been a great family reunion for the Habs.