2. Lineup changes
Josh Anderson has swiftly become an integral part of this team. His absence in the past week has shown how greatly the Canadiens rely on his unique combination of speed, strength and scoring touch. He will hopefully return to the lineup as soon as tonight, though we may need to wait until Monday to see him barrelling down the right-wing once again. When he does return, one player currently in the Habs’ forward corps will need to be extracted; who might that be?
Corey Perry seemed to be the de facto 13th forward to start the season, so he could be a candidate. However, the second powerplay unit has scored three goals in the past two games with him acting as the screen. Furthermore, he scored the tying goal against Winnipeg on Thursday, it would be difficult to justify taking him out of the formation at this point in time. He has also registered 8 points in 15 games, an identical tally to Joel Armia, so he’s producing at a higher level than expected.
Armia is another candidate. He has all the tools necessary to be a force in this league. He has a wicked wrister, great strength, phenomenal ability in puck battles and is solid defensively. And yet, he is mired with inconsistency. Some nights he plays like a top-tier power forward, but on most, he seems slow and disengaged. Given the fact that this team is still playing a dump-and-chase system for some reason, he will likely remain in the lineup as he is invaluable on the forecheck, but scratching him for a few games as a wake-up call should be considered.
While some might consider Artturi Lehkonen as the healthy scratch going forward, I am quite averse to that idea. He most definitely has his faults, finishing being the most obvious one, but his constant work-ethic, penalty-killing prowess and speed make him an ideal fourth liner in my books. Jake Evans should also stay in the lineup for similar reasons, but his faceoff ability should cement his spot. He is one of two centres on this team that does not have a faceoff percentage below 50% (he’s at exactly 50%). Given that there are only 4 natural centres on the team at the moment, they should all stay in the lineup.
That leaves us with Paul Byron, who is stuck in a real rut. Discounting his solid play in the bubble, Byron has really struggled since the concussion he received in a fight against Mackenzie Weegar in the spring of 2019. His speed has not been creating scoring chances and he has been the most invisible member of the fourth line this season. He would be my pick for being bumped out of the lineup when Josh Anderson returns, but who knows, maybe another injury will make Dominic Ducharme’s decision for him.