Montreal Canadiens Season Preview: Matthew Peca

Each day in August, we are taking a closer look at a Montreal Canadiens player and previewing their 2019-20 season. Today, we take a deeper dive into Matthew Peca and what next season has in store for him.

The Montreal Canadiens signed Matthew Peca to a two-year deal on July 1, 2018. It was a bit of a surprising signing, as the Habs entered the free agent frenzy with lots of cap space and a desperate need at centre. Habs fans expected something big and Marc Bergevin‘s solution turned out to be Michael Chaput, Tomas Plekanec and Peca.

It left the team with a huge hole at centre behind Phillip Danault heading into their 2018 training camp. Plekanec was clearly over the hill but looked like the only option to play second line centre at this time a year ago, even though he had just 26 points in 77 games in 2017-18.

That lack of depth down the middle gave Peca a huge opportunity to steal a big role to begin last season. He had barely proven himself to be an NHL regular with the Tampa Bay Lightning, but the two-year deal worth $1.3 million per year suggested he was in the Canadiens plans. Plus, Bergevin literally said he thought Peca would play in Montreal, not Laval after he signed the Petawawa native.

This was a bit of a head-scratching move. Peca had played the past two seasons in the Lightning organization and though they are a deep team, he made almost no impact at the NHL level. He had played a total of 20 NHL games over the previous two seasons, but had just seven points in that time.

Peca is an undersized centre at 5’9″ but had shown an offensive ability at the AHL level. He was good for the Syracuse Crunch, but not so good that he looked like he could play an offensive role at the NHL level. He had played 204 career AHL games, scored just 34 goals and had 100 assists. His goal totals weren’t that impressive but he clearly had some ability to setup teammates. I guess Bergevin thought, maybe he could be another David Desharnais?

Many fans remember Desharnais in an overly negative tone, but he was an underdog who turned in a 60 point season for the Habs. He also had 52 and 48 point campaigns, though he was playing first line minutes and a top power play role at that time. He wasn’t an Art Ross Trophy candidate, but he had some offensive instincts and could find open teammates with pinpoint passes.

Bergevin must have been hoping for the same from Peca. He was 25 years old when the deal was signed and had barely played in the NHL. If he could play the way Desharnais did, but do it on the third line, that would have filled a void down the middle on the roster.

As it turned out, there were a couple of surprising centres in the lineup on opening night and it basically rendered Peca redundant. First of all, newcomer Max Domi showed during training camp that he could handle a centre role and was given a spot down the middle instead of on left wing. Secondly, third overall pick Jesperi Kotkaniemi had a great camp as well and made the team as an 18 year old which was unexpected.

With that, Peca was pushed to a fourth line role, which is not ideal for a slender, playmaking centre not known for his defensive game. Peca hung around on the NHL roster all season, never being sent to the Laval Rocket. However, a little added depth throughout the season in Jordan Weal and Nate Thompson forced Peca to the press box for all but one game after the trade deadline.

Peca was held scoreless in his last 15 games, and finished the season with ten points in 39 games. Weal played less than half that many games with the Habs and had the same number of points. He replaced Peca in the line-up after being acquired in early February.

Peca is a good skater and has some offensive skills. He is a decent stickhandler and passer and can distribute the puck well to his linemates. However, he doesn’t have a great shot, struggles in battles for the puck and isn’t the best defensive forward.

2019-20 Role

Peca heads into next season with one year left on his contract. He is making $1.3 million which means most of his contract can be buried in the minors if he clears waivers. He would still eat up about $250,000 in Canadiens cap space, even if he is playing for the Laval Rocket.

He is going to be in a battle at camp to keep an NHL job. Even if he is successful, that job may be similar to the one he had in March and April last season – practicing with the team but getting extra skating sessions afterwards and watching the games from the press box.

Anything more than a fourth line role is out of his reach at this point. Peca will be fighting with Ryan Poehling, Nick Cousins, Jordan Weal, Nate Thompson, Dale Weise, Michael McCarron and Charles Hudon for a fourth line role next season.

That is eight players battling for three roster spots. There are also two “extra forward” positions available which was Peca’s role down the stretch last season. Peca was outplayed last season by Weal and Thompson and was less effective than Cousins was for the Arizona Coyotes. Poehling played just one pro game and scored a hat trick so I’d put him ahead of Peca at this point as well.

That means if Peca wants to avoid the waiver wire and returning to the AHL next season, he will have to beat out Weise, McCarron and Hudon for the final roster spot. It is not a flashy role, but I like Peca’s chances of winning that spot. His versatility means he can play centre or the wing and his speed and ability to pass the puck would allow him to fill in on a third line in a pinch if necessary.

He is in the last year of his deal and is older than Hudon and McCarron. I’d like to see McCarron and Hudon play at the minor league level rather than sit in the Habs press box. That leaves Peca as the best option to be on the sidelines but available to chip in when an injury pops up close to game time and someone with experience needs to fill void.