A Winning Habit
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Montreal Canadiens: 7 Talking Points

By Sebastian High

MONTREAL, QC - MARCH 02: Goaltender Carey Price #31 (L) and Nick Suzuki #14 of the Montreal Canadiens (R) stand during the national anthem prior to the game against the Ottawa Senators at the Bell Centre on March 2, 2021 in Montreal, Canada. The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Ottawa Senators 3-1. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - MARCH 02: Goaltender Carey Price #31 (L) and Nick Suzuki #14 of the Montreal Canadiens (R) stand during the national anthem prior to the game against the Ottawa Senators at the Bell Centre on March 2, 2021 in Montreal, Canada. The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Ottawa Senators 3-1. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /
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MONTREAL, QC – JANUARY 30: Jeff Petry Montreal Canadiens (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – JANUARY 30: Jeff Petry Montreal Canadiens (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

5. Jeff Petry

Last week I wrote of Joel Edmundson and his defensive prowess, this week is Jeff Petry’s turn, with a focus on his offensive abilities. The term “ages like a fine wine” and Jeff Petry’s name have been used in the same sentence on countless occasions over the past three years, and never has it been more apt than this season. Petry leads all NHL defencemen with 10 goals, and his 24 points are tied for second, behind only Victor Hedman’s 25.

+/- is a flawed statistic, but I have always found the two extremes to be meaningful indicators of a player’s overall performance. Having a terrible differential likely points toward a player struggling on a bad team, while the best indicate that the player is thriving on a good team. Petry sits second among defencemen with a +15 differential, which is still 11 short of the league-leader Joel Edmundson, who just so happens to be his defensive partner.

The duo has far-and-away been the Canadiens’ best pairing both offensively and defensively. With the injury to Ben Chiarot, they will likely be forced to play even bigger roles, especially in defensive situations. Don’t be surprised if Petry’s offensive numbers take a dip as a result, as he will be facing more elite competition and start more shifts in the d-zone.

Still, near the halfway point of the season, Petry has been nearly a point per game player throughout and has scored many of his goals off the rush, his skating certainly hasn’t deteriorated just yet, which is a marvel for a 33-year-old. I am also quite glad that Marc Bergevin locked Petry up for four seasons beyond this one at $6.25 million, had that contract been negotiated now or at the end of this season, Petry would almost certainly have gotten a deal north of $7 million.

As important as Shea Weber is to this team, it no longer remains a question who the team’s #1 defenceman is. Petry outplays Weber in just about every facet of the game with the exception of slot defence, a task that Joel Edmundson has taken up this season. Petry has finally gotten his perfect defensive partner; it remains to be seen if Alex Romanov can grow into Weber’s perfect partner.

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