Who should be on the Montreal Canadiens taxi squad?
By Omar L
When looking at what the Montreal Canadiens have, who should be on this taxi squad? Keep in mind I’m not asking who will, instead who should. Claude Julien and the rest of the coaching staff have the final say, though there are certain criteria they should keep in mind:
- NHL experience
- Familiarity with the system
- Adaptability/versatility
Experience is experience and you need to be confident whoever you’re throwing into the lineup as a replacement is comfortable with the speed and nuances of the game. Familiarity with the system is crucial, especially for the Montreal Canadiens who benefit greatly from playing to it.
And then there’s adaptability/versatility. Absences from a lineup are random and unpredictable and it’s rare if it’ll be at an “ideal” position. Having players who are comfortable with playing multiple positions will be key. Not only will it be better for the player to fill in, but the overall production of their play should be better.
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Each team’s taxi squad needs to have a goaltender if they are not included on their 23-man roster. The Montreal Canadiens will likely make use of one of these spots for an extra netminder as their opening night roster could look something like this:
Forwards (13)
- Brendan Gallagher
- Tomas Tatar
- Phillip Danault
- Nick Suzuki
- Tyler Toffoli
- Josh Anderson
- Jesperi Kotkaniemi
- Joel Armia
- Jonathan Drouin
- Paul Byron
- Artturi Lehkonen
- Jake Evans
- Ryan Poehling
Defence (8)
- Shea Weber
- Jeff Petry
- Ben Chiarot
- Joel Edmundson
- Brett Kulak
- Victor Mete
- Alexander Romanov
- Cale Fleury
Goaltenders (2)
Keeping the three points of criteria in mind, this is a possible model for the taxi squad:
Montreal Canadiens Taxi Squad
- Vasili Demchenko
- Jordan Weal
- Alex Belzile
- Otto Leskinen
- Noah Juulsen
- Xavier Ouellet