On Thursday afternoon, Montreal Canadiens General Manager Marc Bergevin announced that Jordie Benn is likely to test the free agent market on July 1st. Benn was acquired back in the 2016-17 season from the Dallas Stars in return for defenseman Greg Pateryn.
Although he would have very much would have liked to stay with the Montreal Canadiens, Marc Bergevin and company have different plans for their defensive core next season. With young players such as Noah Juulsen competing for a roster spot next season and recent signing Christian Folin earning new contracts, it should come as no surprise that Jordie Benn is not returning next season considering the fact that they would have to give him a raise. Although he did serve his purpose for the most part with the Habs, he is still an expendable player.
Jordie Benn is coming off of a career-year, tallying 5 goals and 17 assists for a 22-point season and will have a chance to earn a raise from his $1.1 million a year wherever his new home may be. Benn will no doubt have options available as he could sign with a contending team looking round out their third pairing or a young team looking to bring in a veteran presence.
Did the Habs Make the Right Move?
Jordie Benn spent three seasons with the Montreal Canadiens and while some of it did not go well, there were plenty of positives in his game. When he was acquired at the 2017 Trade Deadline, he was a very effective player for the remainder of the season and the first round of the playoffs against the New York Rangers, shutting down some any chances the opposing teams had in the Canadiens zone earning the trust of head coach Claude Julien.
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It was easy to see Benn returning for the following season. Things got more complicated during the disastrous 2017-18 season where almost no one on the team looked good. Jordie Benn, in particular, struggled almost every game to keep up with both his teammates and the opposition. Many fans were clamoring for Benn to be moved at the deadline or during the off-season.
Fortunately, Jordie Benn seemed revitalized during the 2018-19 season where he played some of the best hockey in his career and time with the Montreal Canadiens. Although some of his deployment by Claude Julien was questionable at times with Benn sometimes playing top-pairing minutes with Shea Weber during Victor Mete‘s stint with the Laval Rocket, Benn played his best hockey to date, with a few off nights every now and then.
Benn cannot be blamed for being overused as player deployment falls onto the coaching staff. There were times when Benn struggled on the top-pairing due to going against players who were way above his calibre, and this led to defensive woes that affected both himself and his teammates. Excluding these issues, Benn continued to impress throughout the season and even reaching a new career in goals (5) and matching his career high in assists (17).
While Benn certainly earned a new contract with higher pay, the Habs made the right call in letting him sign elsewhere. With a high likelihood of the salary cap going down for 2019-20, the Montreal Canadiens should be cautious with what they spend their cap on as Marc Bergevin has even stated himself:
"I have to be careful as manager, and with the salary cap maybe not increasing much, with young players like Kotkaniemi and Domi to sign later, I have to be careful."
— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) June 20, 2019
The Habs should steer clear of resigning expendable players that may take up both the cap that can be used on their better players looking for extensions as well as the spots of younger, more talented players. The cap space should also be used for any high-end players looking to come over from free agency such as Matt Duchene, for example.
Jordie’s Future Home
Any team looking to bring on Jordie Benn should avoid keeping him in a top-4 position for extended periods of time as it appears to drain him both physically and from a hockey IQ standpoint. Giving him a consistent third pairing role with PK minutes allows him to play to his strengths without taking on too much.