Montreal Canadiens: Pending Free Agents They Must Re-Sign Before Wednesday
Free Agents Who Need To Be Set Free
Some of these guys need to go because they don’t really fit or simply are easy to upgrade and a few of them need to be set free because their contract demands are simply too high for what they bring to the table.
Phillip Danault
Phillip Danault is a terrific defensive centre. He has been in the middle of the Canadiens most productive offensive and one of the league’s best defensive lines for the past three season. With Tomas Tatar and Brendan Gallagher flanking Danault, the Habs were sure to shut down the other team’s best players.
Just look at the postseason run. Every team that played against the Canadiens saw its best players struggle to score. Mitch Marner had zero goals and Auston Matthews had one in seven games. Kyle Connor, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Nikolaj Ehlers, Paul Stastny, Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele combined to score one goal. Max Pacioretty had one goal and Mark Stone didn’t register a single point against the Canadiens. In the Final, Brayden Point was held scoreless and Steven Stamkos had one goal.
So, why would the Canadiens move on from Danault? Well, he offers next to nothing in the goal department and wants to be paid like a second line centre. Apparently he is asking for $5.5 million per year on a long term contract and the Canadiens just can’t offer that to a centre when they are going to have to pay Nick Suzuki and Jesperi Kotkaniemi big bucks in the near future.
Danault may be the best defensive forward in the NHL, but he scored six goals in 75 games for the Canadiens this season. You just can’t go long term at over $5 million for a centre who can’t put the puck in the net. Let him hit the open market and keep in touch. If he isn’t getting offers he likes, maybe he will circle back and sign a three year deal at $3.75 million. If so, take him, but if not let him walk.
Tomas Tatar
Tomas Tatar was already mentioned because his line with Danault and Gallagher has been so good for the past three regular seasons. The problem is, Tatar keeps finding a way to play his worst hockey late in the regular season and in the postseason.
Most numbers people would tell you it is a coincidence, but can you bet big money on that long term?
Tatar has played three seasons for the Canadiens and he picked a bad time to have his worst one. In 2018-19, he scored 25 goals and 58 points in 80 games. In 2019-20 he was even better with 61 points in 68 games. This season? Just ten goals and 30 points in 50 games.
He has also played 15 games with the Canadiens in the postseason and scored just two goals and one assist. He has played 40 NHL Playoff games in his career and has just six goals and 12 points.
In the past four years, Tatar’s teams have made two trips to the Stanley Cup Final. Unfortunately for him, he was a healthy scratch for most of the games both times. It’s time to let the 30 year old walk. If he wants to come back at less than the $4.8 million the Canadiens were paying him then maybe bring him back, but I just don’t see that happening.
Eric Staal
Eric Staal was brought in at the trade deadline and though he scored an overtime goal in his first game with the Canadiens, it took him a long time to find the right role. Eventually, he formed a solid fourth line with Joel Armia and Corey Perry in the postseason, but he just doesn’t have the speed to keep up at the NHL level anymore.
He played really well early in the postseason, but had just one point in the final two rounds. It’s time to let Jake Evans or Ryan Poehling play the fourth line centre role.
Jon Merrill
Merrill was also brought in at the trade deadline and didn’t really add a ton of value to the team. He was in and out of the lineup during the playoff run and though re-signing him for one year at a million dollars or less wouldn’t hurt the team, they can find better options for the third pairing.
Erik Gustafsson
Erik Gustafsson plays a much different game than Merrill, but he would also only make sense if he signed a one year deal at around $900,000. If he is willing to do that then he’d be worth keeping around for power play help and third pairing minutes, but he was rarely trusted to play in the postseason, even in the games he dressed.