Canadiens: In Other News… Record Lows, Former Habs Get Fresh Start

The Montreal Canadiens are not a good hockey team.

There, now that we’ve addressed the elephant in the room, might as well beat a dead horse while were at it. To be frank, there’s not a whole lot more that can be said about what has been a positively dismal start to 2021-22, and the eventual admittance that this team is in need of a full blown rebuild.

With Vice President Jeff Gorton having taking over the managerial reigns from former GM Marc Bergevin, there’s a number of unknowns that still need to be addressed as the Canadiens seem destined for a long, difficult road ahead.

After a 5-2 drubbing at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday, Montreal now sits second to last in the entire NHL, three points ahead of the lowly Arizona Coyotes, who have struggled to simply pay their taxes let along win games. So, with a number of developments having come out of the past few weeks, and with nowhere to go but well, nowhere, as this current NHL season rages on, here’s a long overdue look at what’s been going on recently, in other news… for the Montreal Canadiens.

Former Canadiens Lindgren, Peca, Get Fresh Start with St. Louis Blues

Remember Charlie Lindgren? You know, the Canadiens once top prospect and all-too brief backup to Carey Price? Well, he signed with the St. Louis Blues this past off-season and quite frankly, I wouldn’t blame you if you weren’t even aware of that. Whilst I had known Lindgren had signed with St. Louis, he largely disappeared off my radar before finding himself thrust into the starting role with the Blues, as the team is currently dealing with a Covid-19 outbreak that has sidelined many of their top players. 

Along with a few other former Habs like, Matthew Peca, Lindgren has stepped up to the plate against all odds. After posting an impressive 8-1-1 record with a 2.16 GAA and .925 SVP with the Springfield Thunderbirds, Lindgren has taken his chance with the Blues and run with it, to the tune of a 4-0-0 record, 1.29 GAA, and a sparkling .956 SVP.

With starter Jordan Binnington and backup Ville Husso out for the foreseeable future, Lindgren might give Husso some trouble once he returns as a legitimate candidate for the Blues backup job. Peca spent the past two seasons bouncing around the Ottawa Senators organization after just two seasons in Montreal, and has since rediscovered his long-struggling offensive game, posting 10-7-17 totals over his first 19 games in Springfield.

While it’s been slow going to start, with just one assist over his first three games, both Peca and Lindgren have brought energy and reliability to the Blues lineup, something this team is in desperate need of as the NHL continues to battle an ongoing Covid crisis.

Max Domi Reigniting Anderson Trade Discussion After Hot Start with Blue Jackets

Max Domi didn’t have the greatest of seasons in 2020-21, his first with the Columbus Blue Jackets. As former head coach John Tortorella thoroughly drained Columbus’s roster of all drive and signs of life, Domi struggled to get his game going in between frequent benching’s and healthy scratches, finishing with 9-15-24 totals over 54 games. For a brief moment, however, Domi was seen as a revelation in Montreal after being acquired by the team in exchange for former third overall pick Alex Galchenyuk.

While Galchenyuk has since fallen off a cliff in terms of production and appears destined for a career overseas after this season, Domi flourished early with the Habs, leading the team in scoring in 2018-19 with 28-44-72 totals over 82 games. Ultimately, however, he also found himself on the way out after 2019-20 as a pending UFA, being sent to the Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Josh Anderson. Anderson has been a bit of an enigma with the Canadiens to say the least, with the former 20-goal threat being under contract for five more years at an AAV of $5.5 million.

While the two ended up posting similar numbers on paper last season, Anderson proved integral to the Canadiens magical run to the Stanley Cup Finals, with OT winners against Vegas in game 3 of the Conference Finals, and against Tampa to force game 5 in the Cup Final. While Domi was rumored to be on the trade block once more heading into this season, he now has two more points than Anderson to start 2021-22, in eight fewer games, with 7-8-15 totals over 17 games. After mediocre 7-6-13 totals over 25 games to start this season, Anderson is reportedly out for the next eight weeks with injury.

Whilst it looked like a lopsided trade in the Canadiens favor as early as last season, Domi’s surprise start to this season has quelled those thoughts for the time being and prompted new discussion into who ultimately won out in this deal. With Domi set to become a UFA at season’s end though, it remains to be seen whether Columbus will continue to reap the benefits from what has been an unexpected start to this season for Domi, and a similarly unexpected change from this once-guaranteed, trade outcome.

Canadiens Prospects Joshua Roy, Xavier Simoneau, Thriving in the QMJHL

Now for a bit of additional content, Joshua Roy and Xavier Simoneau were two of my favorite picks by the Canadiens in the 2020 NHL Draft (barring in mind their idiotic first-round decision). A former first overall pick in the QMJHL draft, Roy was a talented left winger who’s issues with work ethic had led to some less than impressive numbers to start his career, having posted 22-13-35 totals over 35 games in 2020-21. Simoneau, the captain of the Drummondville Voltageurs, was of a known sort to me but was undersized at just 5’07 and was seen as having limited NHL potential.

Yet, after a solid rookie and training camp showing from both players, Roy and Simoneau are off to terrific starts in the QMJHL this season, sitting second and sixth in league scoring respectively, with Roy getting an invitation to team Canada’s WJC camp, being a late cut. With little to look towards but the future for the Canadiens at this moment, it’s reassuring to see some prospects producing and developing for a potential NHL future, with 2020 second round pick Riley Kidney also producing, sitting eighth in league scoring.

As Montreal limps to the finish line in what is in essence a lost season at this point, it’ll be up to players like Roy, Simoneau, and Kidney, to build hope for a better future for this struggling Canadiens franchise.