Which 31 players should the Montreal Canadiens bring to Phase 4?
By Omar L
Forwards:
The first 13 forwards are a no-brainer as it’ll encompass the main names who were on the Montreal Canadiens this season. Unfortunately, Max Domi is going to get an asterisk here.
Marc Bergevin made it clear that Domi will only play if the team doctors deem it safe for him to. The recent news from the NHL’s RTP includes a clause that says players who are identified to be at serious risk from exposure to the disease could be deemed unfit to play and will not be able to take part in Phases 3 or 4. There hasn’t been any official word from this, but that clause could keep Domi off the Montreal Canadiens.
Other players with asterisks are Alex Belzile and Joel Teasdale. The latter required shoulder surgery before the beginning of the season and hasn’t played a game since. He has been skating, which could be a good sign and perhaps the Habs entertain the idea of bringing him on.
Belzile hasn’t played since undergoing pectoral surgery. He has yet to play any games with the Habs, but he could be a good energy option for the fourth line with Evans, who he played with on the Laval Rocket.
Defence:
Similar to the forwards, the main defence corps is already set. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like Alexander Romanov will be able included in that.
With the usual qualifier of nothing is certain until the agreement is ratified — stamp that on every one of my tweets this week — it’s my understanding recently signed players Romanov (MTL), Kaprizov (MIN), Sorokin (NYI) will not be eligible for 2019-20 RTP.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) July 1, 2020
Bergevin isn’t sure whether or not Mete will be ready for training camp, so he gets an asterisk. Another player who I would’ve given the symbol to is Alzner, but I’d make it a half-asterisk if I could.
Alzner isn’t injured, but he is a buyout candidate if the league hands out compliance buyouts in the fall. A player can’t be bought out if they’re injured, which would give the Montreal Canadiens another reason to keep him out of a starting lineup. However, he only played this season on an emergency basis, so that may not be too much of a worry.
Juulsen is healthy and ready to compete, and the Habs could be given an opportunity to play over, say Folin, who is a pending UFA. However, Fleury has the edge as he made the team out of camp, seeing 41 games averaging 14:21. There could easily end up being competition at training camp for the entire bottom pair if Mete isn’t ready to go.