Montreal Canadiens: AWH Awards – Who’s the Best Forward?

With the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs officially underway following the Montreal Canadiens surprisingly getting a Game 1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday, it’s time to continue handing out the A Winning Habit awards for the 2020-21 season.

With myself and my colleagues, Patrick Lortie and Maria Bouabdo, having already decided Best Defenceman, Team MVP, and Rookie of the Year respectively, let’s take a look at the three finalists for this year’s Best Forward but first, here are some honourable mentions.

Montreal Canadiens: Honourable Mentions

Tomas Tatar

Admittedly, this season wasn’t Tatar’s best, a shame considering it was a contract year no less. After his insane, near-point per game pace in 2019-20, posting 22-39-61 totals over 68 games, the Slovakian native took a step back, to say the least. Along with missing six games due to injury, Tatar’s 10-20-30 totals over 50 games just didn’t reflect the usual consistency he brings to the table.

With his contract, as stated, set to expire at the end of this season, it would be surprising to see Montreal re-sign Tatar given their current salary cap issues, but hey, stranger things have happened. In spite of these missteps, however, Tatar still put together a few decent stretches this season, and overall was able to be an effective part of the Canadiens’ offence more often than not.

Philip Danault

Along with his 25-game goal drought to start the season, Danault found himself continually snake-bitten by a lack of general offence, with 5-19-24 totals overall. Like Tatar, Danault looks to be headed for free agency following the conclusion of a three-year deal worth $9.250 million signed back in 2018.

In spite of this, however, Danault still managed to be a defensive stalwart in his own end, posting a solid, if off-pace for him, +9 rating. He’s a major reason superstars like Connor McDavid were, for the most part, ineffective when facing the Canadiens. Like Tatar, he put together a few solid offensive stretches here and there.

While it would be a shame to see Danault leave Montreal, what could be his final season in the Bleu Blanc et Rouge was solid overall, in spite of some early hiccups and droughts.

Brendan Gallagher

Now, admittedly, Gallagher was a non-factor for the Canadiens for the majority of this season due to injuries. Regardless, he was his usual effective, consistent self when healthy, and is still the heart of this Canadiens team, and an absolute competitive force for them, night in and night out. With 14-9-23 totals over 35 games, Gallagher played at his usual 20-25-goal pace and found chemistry with players all across the lineup. As has been the norm over these past few seasons, his hard nose style of play around the net makes him an absolute weapon in front, and someone who should look to be a key contributor as the Canadiens round one series against the Maple Leafs drags on.

Corey Perry

Bit of a strange selection, I know, but I simply couldn’t at least put Perry as an honourable mention, considering the expectations placed upon him when he arrived in Montreal, and the role he ultimately wound up playing. Thing is, I was pleased to see Perry join the Canadiens, and thought that the immense experience he brought would be extremely useful to some of Montreal’s top prospects.

However, Perry wound up doing that and a whole lot more, equalling his totals from last season with the Dallas Stars in eight fewer games. With 9-12-21 totals over 49 games, Perry did his best to fill the hole in the Habs lineup when Gallagher was out and was a force to be reckoned with on the powerplay and off the rush with his great hands, which, as opposed to his skating, have not aged one bit. Despite playing on a one-year deal at league minimum, I believe Perry is fully deserving of an extension, and went from being on the waiver wire and the taxi squad to an integral and central part of the Canadiens lineup this season.

Montreal Canadiens: MVP Finalists

Tyler Toffoli

It’s been quite a long time since the Canadiens have had a Tyler Toffoli. Now, I know that Montreal has had top scorers over these past few seasons, like Max Domi’s 72 points in 2018-19, and Tatar’s previously mentioned 60-point campaign. However, few have been able to produce at a pace quite like Toffoli, one that is reminiscent of the lethal consistency of former stars like Max Pacioretty and Tomas Plekanec.

Toffoli was a complete and total shock regarding his performance this season, with the former consistent middle-six scorer posting 28-16-44 totals over 52 games, finishing eighth in the NHL in goals behind Brad Marchand. In spite of a less than ideal start, Montreal’s offensive clinic over the course of their season series against the Vancouver Canucks showcased just how deadly Toffoli can be, possessing surprisingly deft hands and a vast array of lethal shots from near any angle. One look at his toe-drag goal against the Vancouver Canucks, and it’s easy to see why Toffoli was one of the Habs’ best players this season.

Josh Anderson

In spite of some inconsistent stretches, I feel as though Anderson either met or eclipsed most people’s expectations this season. Many Canadiens fans were displeased to see already mentioned fan-favourite Max Domi go, with the restricted free agent having been dealt to the Columbus Blue Jackets, along with a third-round pick, in exchange for Anderson. Now, whilst Domi and Anderson had the same point totals this season, one look at the absolute dumpster fire of a season the Blue Jackets endured this year, will have you realizing who ultimately won this deal.

Anderson was a ton of fun to watch this year, combining a relentless forecheck and difficulty knocking off the puck with great speed and a lethal release. When he’s on his game, Anderson is a force to be reckoned with, and someone who, should he be able to get his consistency going, will be a key part of this Canadiens’ offence going forward.

With 17-7-24 totals overall, I find Anderson answered well the high expectations placed upon him this season and am excited to see what the future has in store. Oh, and that opening goal in game one wasn’t half bad either.

Nick Suzuki

Well, I think it’s safe to say that Suzuki’s NHL career has gotten off to quite the start, having posted his second consecutive 40-point season thanks to a white-hot season-ending point streak. While he dealt with his usual growing pains with the occasional scoring drought, Suzuki showcased the immense potential he has as a top-line NHL center, and became a key, if not an essential part of the Canadiens offence as the season wore on.

With the second-half slumps that most rookies are plagued by over longer NHL seasons, Suzuki proved that he’s ready to take the next step as the future of this Canadiens offence, combining great hands, skating, and awareness with a shot that is absolutely lethal from the point. With 15-26-41 totals overall, it was another solid season for Suzuki, and here’s hoping he can keep that performance going over this first-round series.

Montreal Canadiens: Best Forward Winner – Tyler Toffoli

I’ll be honest, there were a lot of positives to take away from the Montreal Canadiens’ forward group this season, and there were a number of great stretches from each of these players. However, as I discussed in the Best Defenseman piece regarding Jeff Petry, when all else failed on offence for the Canadiens, Toffoli could always be relied upon. When the Habs picked up Toffoli a few days into free agency, it was expected that’d he serve more of a depth scoring role on the second line. Instead, he took the role of an offensive leader and ran with it, to the tune of a quite healthy 28 goals for a reduced 56-game season.

As stated, Toffoli just has a pure offensive instinct for the game, being able to be in the right place at the right time, while possessing an absolute laser of a release to match. Much in the same way the Habs’ defence rode or died by Petry and the team by Gallagher, Montreal’s offence was led by Toffoli, and it seemed as though he was, as stated, happy to answer the call.

While his skating isn’t quite up to the same level as some of his other attributes, he’s still a deadly talented offensive player when he’s hot, and at times this season, he was white, and I mean white-hot.

Considering he’s signed to a team-friendly deal for three more years, I feel as though the sky is the limit for Toffoli in Montreal, and if this season is anything to go by, we’ve only seen the beginning of what the Montreal Canadiens’ best forward has in store.