Montreal Canadiens Season Preview: Ryan Poehling

The Montreal Canadiens season is fast approaching. Before it arrives, we are taking a deeper look at what role each player is going to take on next season. Today, we preview Ryan Poehling’s season.

The Montreal Canadiens wisely ignored Ryan Poehling’s overall statistics in 2017 and made him a first round draft pick. The Lakeville, Minnesota native had played his first year of College hockey before the draft, and scored just seven goals and 13 points in 31 games for the St. Cloud State Huskies.

He had shown plenty of two-way promise before that season, and was the youngest player in the NCAA circuit that season. Though his offensive totals were not eye popping, his hockey sense and defensive ability showed the potential of a strong two-way forward. Also, it is worth keeping in mind that Poehling graduated high school a year early and played more than half his first college season as a 17 year old.

The Canadiens held the 25th overall selection in that year’s draft, and used it on Poehling. They were clearly impressed with his two-way game at such a young age in college hockey and his strong play at the World Under-18 Championships where he scored three goals and five points in seven games.

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Any worry about Poehling’s ability to develop his offensive game was washed away very quickly. During his second college season, Poehling scored 14 goals and 31 points for the Huskies, and was used in every situation for one of the top ranked teams in the country. He repeated this performance last season, scoring eight goals and 31 points in 36 games.

The only question left after he signed his entry-level contract at the end of the season was, could he score goals at the NHL level after having just eight during his third college campaign?

Well, he answered those questions pretty quickly. He played one NHL game last season against the Toronto Maple Leafs and not only did he score, he scored a hat trick and then added the game winner in the shootout.

So what’s next for the first round pick? Is he going to hop right over the American Hockey League, or does he need a stint in the minors to start his first full pro season?

I think Poehling’s combination of smarts, size, offensive and defensive ability will make him too valuable to the Canadiens to have him spend any time in the AHL. He has proven during his time with St. Cloud State that he can be trusted to play in all situations on one of the best hockey teams in NCAA.

We have seen many players jump right from college to the NHL and make an impact and though Poehling is younger than most players that are done at the college level, his game is mature enough to guarantee he can make a positive impact on the Canadiens next season.

As a center, finding a role inside the top three lines is going to be difficult for the rookie. The Canadiens have Max Domi, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Phillip Danault down the middle of the ice. That means if Poehling wants to play center, chances are he ends up starting the season on the fourth line.

I will admit it is not ideal to have a rookie playing on the fourth line. You could easily make the argument that he would be better off playing first line center with the Laval Rocket while taking on a huge penalty killing role and playing on the power play as well.

However, the days of fourth line players playing six minutes per night are over in the NHL. The game is just too fast and too skilled to have players playing tired by rolling three lines and benching your fourth for an extended period. Claude Julien tends to play all four lines and most nights, all 18 Habs skaters play at least ten minutes.

Add in the fact that Poehling would surely be the second most used center on the penalty kill after Danault, and he could easily average 12 minutes per night from the fourth line. Sooner rather than later, Kotkaniemi is going to force his way up the lineup from the third line into the top six. When he does, Domi will be pushed back to the wing and the third line center spot will be wide open for Poehling.

Would Poehling be better prepared for that role if he starts the year in the minors or if he is playing regular minutes with the Canadiens early in the season? I think the best apprenticeship happens in Montreal, with great leaders like Shea Weber, Brendan Gallagher and Carey Price offering advice and support every single day.

That’s why I think Poehling makes the Montreal Canadiens out of training camp. He will start the season on the fourth line, but when he proves he is ready for more ice time and Kotkaniemi does the same, we will see the kids take over big roles, and Domi will move to the wing alongside one of them.