A Winning Habit
Fansided

Montreal Canadiens: Can They Afford To Keep Danault Line Long Term?

By Ken MacMillan

MONTREAL, QC - OCTOBER 17: Brendan Gallagher #11, Phillip Danault #24 and Tomas Tatar #90 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrate after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the NHL game at the Bell Centre on October 17, 2018 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Francois Lacasse/NHLI via Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - OCTOBER 17: Brendan Gallagher #11, Phillip Danault #24 and Tomas Tatar #90 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrate after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the NHL game at the Bell Centre on October 17, 2018 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Francois Lacasse/NHLI via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 5
Next

The Montreal Canadiens had one of the most effective two-way lines in the NHL last season. They are all signed for two more years before being eligible to be UFAs when they will get pricy new contracts.

The Montreal Canadiens put together one of the best two-way lines in the league last season. The trio of Tomas Tatar, Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher contributed plenty of offence for the Habs, but was also their most trusted defensive unit.

The trio were put together early in the season and were one of the few lines that stayed together throughout the season. There is no sense in trying to fix something that isn’t broken, so head coach Claude Julien had no reason to split up the effective line.

The three Habs forwards combined for 70 goals and 163 points on the season. What makes the line so dangerous is that most of their offence came at even strength. They scored 62 of their 70 goals at even strength, making them nearly impossible to shutdown.

More from Analysis

They proved over and over again that they could be trusted against any opposition, can take defensive zone draws, play against the other team’s top line, be trusted when the Canadiens need a goal, or when they needed to protect a late lead.

If you take a quick look at the advanced stats, the Tatar, Danault and Gallagher trio is near the top of any list of possession statistics. They controlled nearly 61% of shot attempts while they were on the ice which is the best of any line that regularly played together last season.

They also doubled their opponent in goals scored while together, a 66.7% of goals for while on the ice which was the second best goals percentage in the league next to the Dallas Stars star-studded trio of Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin and former Montreal Canadiens winger Alex Radulov.

The three Habs forwards also happen to be on team-friendly contracts at the moment, but that will not last forever. Each one of them has a deal that expires in 2021 so it is not time to panic on new contracts, but they will be eligible for extensions next July 1. Will the Canadiens be able to afford to keep all three of them? What will it cost to re-sign them?

Let’s take a closer look at just how expensive this excellent trifecta is going to get in 2021.

Home/Analysis