Karl Alzner has a special second chance with the Montreal Canadiens
Karl Alzner is back up with the Montreal Canadiens, and if he plays well, this recall could be more than an injury replacement.
Who was really surprised the Montreal Canadiens recalled Karl Alzner? David Schlemko‘s upper-body injury will see him out of the lineup and on injured reserve, and there isn’t a clear cut date as to when he’ll return.
Second chances aren’t easy to come by, especially in professional sports, but Alzner has an opportunity to clear up any doubt from those who assumed he was done with the organization. Given the magnitude of his contract, the Montreal Canadiens would benefit from the 30-year-old improving his play and getting back into the starting lineup on a nightly basis.
Alzner is likely in the same department as Brett Kulak and Victor Mete (to an extent). Claude Julien has been running a defensive carousel for the last few weeks where the only players who are safe from it are Shea Weber and Jeff Petry. But what can the coaching staff expect of a determined Karl Alzner?
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His skating really stood out negatively at the beginning of the season when it was apparent the coaching staff wanted their defencemen to be more aggressive in the offensive zone. That style worked for Petry, Mete, and Mike Reilly but exposed Alzner. It also didn’t help that his timing and awareness didn’t help the Habs prevent scoring chances, something that you’d expect of Alzner given his track record and player archetype.
The best thing for Alzner to do, assuming he draws in right away, is to tighten up defensively. A defensive pair of himself and Mete could allow the young defenceman to play higher from the blueline and join the rush more often. However, there has to be an established trust that Alzner will be there to cover him in case something goes wrong.
The same thing will occur if Julien scratches Reilly for Alzner which wouldn’t be surprising at all. Alzner had Petry as a partner 54.91% of the time at even strength last season in a year where the latter put up a career-high in points. That’s not enough justification to take Reilly out of the lineup. Especially given the Habs went into the break winning their last two games.
Thursday’s practice pairs should give a good indication of where Alzner will fit, and we can further evaluate from there.
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Alzner has a chance to make this recall more than an injury fill-in, and it’ll be interesting to see what he does with it.