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Montreal Canadiens: Five Free Agents They Were Right To Avoid

By Ken MacMillan

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 07: Ryan Dzingel #18 of the Ottawa Senators, Matt Duchene #95, and Colin White #36 talk during the second period against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on April 7, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 07: Ryan Dzingel #18 of the Ottawa Senators, Matt Duchene #95, and Colin White #36 talk during the second period against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden on April 7, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /
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CALGARY, AB – APRIL 06: Edmonton Oilers Right Wing Alex Chiasson (39) (Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CALGARY, AB – APRIL 06: Edmonton Oilers Right Wing Alex Chiasson (39) (Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Alex Chiasson: GP: 73, G: 22, A: 16, P: 38

The Montreal Canadiens biggest need is definitely on left defence. No one will dispute that if they have any knowledge of the Habs roster. They could also use another right winger, though that need is not as imperative to fill as the one on the blue line.

The Canadiens could have used a right winger even before they traded Andrew Shaw to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night. He often filled a role in the top six alongside Max Domi and Jonathan Drouin down the stretch of the season. Trading Shaw turned a small need into a much larger hole that must be filled.

Acquiring a goal scoring right winger should be the second thing on Marc Bergevin’s to-do list. There are some offensive wingers available and one of the leading goal scorers among free agent right wingers was Alex Chiasson.

Chiasson scored 22 goals last season in 73 games. That’s an impressive 25 goal pace over a full season. The 28 year old set career highs in goals and points and was not asking for the moon in contract talks. So why were the Canadiens so wise to let the Montreal native re-sign in Edmonton and not offer him more than the $2.15 million for each of the next two seasons?

Well, if you break down Chiasson’s season, it appears he caught some sort of magic in the first half of the season and then fell back down to earth. Chiasson scored 17 goals in the first 34 games of the season and then finished with just five goals in his last 39 games played.

The trouble is, his five goals in half a season is closer to his career norm than the 17 he scored in the first 34 games. Chiasson scored nine times in 61 games for the Washington Capitals a year ago. The season before that he was given prime ice time with Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau and finished with 12 goals in 81 games.

Chiasson is far more likely to drop back to 12 goals than he is to ever reach the 20 goal plateau again. His contract is a manageable one, but he would be a fourth line winger in Montreal and just wouldn’t fill the offensive role that is open in the Canadiens top six.

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