The Montreal Canadiens still do not know who or what they are
The Montreal Canadiens have been going through an identity crisis in this retool, and it’s clear they still aren’t sure about the team’s makeup.
‘Culture’ is a polarizing word when it comes to the Montreal Canadiens. ‘Culture’ was seen as the culprit for their shortcomings by management, and it later turned into ‘Attitude.’ The transition to improving that saw players such as Max Pacioretty, P.K. Subban and Alex Galchenyuk while Jonathan Drouin, Shea Weber and Max Domi were brought in their stead. However, things didn’t change.
We learned via an Eric Engels mailbag that owner Geoff Molson and Marc Bergevin agreed to start a retool after the 2017-18 season that saw them finish fourth-last in the league. That resulted in Jesperi Kotkaniemi being taken third overall via a lottery win while Alexander Romanov was taken in the second round. The Habs were also able to add Nick Suzuki via the Pacioretty deal, further improving their prospect cupboards.
Since then, the Habs have had Kotkaniemi play a full season in the NHL while Suzuki established himself as a top-six centre this year. The team also had glimpses of 2017 first-round pick Ryan Poehling, a breakout training camp from 2017 third-round pick Cale Fleury and saw 2017 seventh-round pick Cayden Primeau start two games.
That’s what you want to see from a retool. You want to see those draft picks, turn prospect be giving an opportunity and slowly added into the lineup to replace the veterans who have already hit their season. At the same time, it lets those prospects know that they are part of the future.
Which brings us to the Montreal Canadiens apparent lineup for the Stanley Cup Qualifier. TSN’s John Lu tweeted on Saturday what he feels to be the team’s game-day lineup for at least their match against the Toronto Maple Leafs:
#Habs game roster, for the moment, looks like:
— John Lu (@JohnLuTSNWpg) July 25, 2020
Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Drouin - Suzuki - Armia
Lehkonen - Kotkaniemi - Byron
Weal - Domi - Weise
Chiarot - Weber
Kulak - Petry
Ouellet - Mete
Price
Lindgren
The first two lines make sense. They’ve been together all of camp and have created some synergy. Kotkaniemi’s line also makes sense to be left alone for similar reasons. Artturi Lehkonen and Paul Byron have successful experience playing with Kotkaniemi will be able to read off of him, given the kinds of plays he makes in the offensive zone.
Must Read. Covering Sidney Crosby. light
Things get a little murky when you look at the “fourth line.” I put quotations around it as Claude Julien doesn’t want us to perceive Domi’s line as being a traditional fourth line. According to the coach, the 25-year-old will have a combination of skill and grit along the wall.
#Habs Julien on line composition: “We have some balance and experience on the lines because we are a young team.”
— John Lu (@JohnLuTSNWpg) July 25, 2020
I understand that the Montreal Canadiens are in difficult circumstances. They’re about to play for an opportunity to qualify for the playoffs after virtually giving up on the season and selling at the Trade Deadline. Julien is trying his best to win despite fans believing the tank is in, and it’s clear he’s going with responsible players he trusts.
At the same time, is the point of a retool not to start adding those players you feel are important to the future in high-pace situations and see how they respond? Many believe Jake Evans is going to make the team and take shift duty between centre and right-wing next season for the Habs. Why not have Evans in the lineup over Weise, who is a pending UFA?
Evans is an RFA, and this play-in could add some clarity as to what he could get. Weal has one more year left on his deal, but if Montreal is leaning on developing Poehling as a left-winger, this could’ve been a good opportunity to do so.
The same question marks arise on the blueline. It looked as if Noah Juulsen or Cale Fleury would be getting the final spot on defence with Victor Mete. However, it’s Mete on the right with Xavier Ouellet on the left.
Ouellet spent the majority of the season in the AHL as captain of the Laval Rocket and was called up when the injuries on defence were running rampant. Juulsen and Fleury are young defencemen who were having a good camp, and they still can’t get into the lineup.
We won’t know for sure what the final decisions are going to be until games begin, but some of these aren’t telling of a retool. Those young players should be getting opportunities to show their worth in the lineup instead of relying on the same veterans who you hope those young players supersede one day. It’s not as if it’s year one of the retool, the Montreal Canadiens were heading into year three.
Are they are an older experienced team who are willing to part ways with young players for improvements, or are they a growing team continuously putting young players in for ageing ones to fill roles? Who knows at this point as there still isn’t a clear answer.
Next. Habs who are likely to be selected by Seattle. dark
Each of these four players has had their shortcomings. Poehling was sent down after an underwhelming showing, Fleury was sent down when it looked like he was starting to get overwhelmed, while Juulsen hasn’t played that many games in the last calendar year.
That said, they need a chance to prove they are part of the solution. That’s an aspect of development that is irreplaceable.