Montreal Canadiens: Reasons Why This Lost Season Was Definitely Not a Waste

The Montreal Canadiens 2021-22 season could be described as a lost year for the organization.

They now have nine games left to play and they really knew what their fate would be this season after their first nine games.

There were a few weeks, maybe months, where the schedule felt like quite a grind. The team was icing a lineup that looked like an early preseason squad due to all the injuries, everyone knew they weren’t making the playoffs, and there was still half a season to play.

But, things have picked up as the team has played better in the second half of the season. It isn’t difficult to be better than eight wins in the first 45 games, but there were many encouraging signs late in the year. At the very least, fans were given some exciting hockey to watch for a while and there was some hope flickering for the future once again.

There were a few distinct reasons for that return of hope after the desolate days of December and January.

Still, the Canadiens are last in the Eastern Conference and look certain to finish with a bottom three record in the league. That is not ideal, and was definitely not the plan for a team that was in the Stanley Cup Final last season.

But the 2021-22 season will not go down in the record books as a complete waste of time for the Canadiens. There are many positives to take out of this season and things that will benefit the team for many years to come.

New Leaders Off the Ice

Speaking of making the most of an early pick, the Canadiens have not been able to do that with their pair of third overall picks.

In fact, most of their first round picks have been terrible. Cole Caufield looks pretty good right now, but there was a long line of first round picks not working out for the Canadiens before him.

Over a span of seven years, the Habs came away with Noah Juulsen, Nikita Scherbak, Michael McCarron, Alex Galchenyuk, Nathan Beaulieu, Jarred Tinordi and Louis Leblanc. All of those players were first round picks of the Canadiens and all of those players were placed on waivers at some point in their short careers.

One of the first things Kent Hughes talked about after being named the team’s new general manager this season was development. He said there would be more communication with prospects about their on-ice development as well as their off-ice tendencies. That is music to Habs fans ears after about a decade of failed top prospects.

Hughes also showed at the trade deadline he wasn’t going to let others dictate his trades. He probably could have dealt Chris Wideman or Mathieu Perreault for a very meagre return but he didn’t because he didn’t get the offer he wanted for them.

That might mean they lose these players for nothing at the end of the season, but it was the same mentality that eventually resulted in fantastic trades for Artturi Lehkonen and Brett Kulak. Adding a couple of second round picks and a great prospect in Justin Barron for those Kulak and Lehkonen is terrific value for the Canadiens.

Also, behind the bench, Martin St. Louis has been a breath of fresh air. He immediately unlocked the offensive potential of a number of players, and has trusted young defenders like Jordan Harris, Justin Barron and Corey Schueneman in big situations which will help their confidence and development.

Young stars take over

The biggest win for the Montreal Canadiens this season is the incredible growth of a few young stars. The team needs to get younger, quicker, and more skilled, but they already have a few building blocks at the NHL level.

Nick Suzuki has proven over a full season for the first time that he is capable of being a first line centre. He looked great last season but it was only for 56 games. He was really good in the postseason as well, but an 82 game season is an incredible grind for a young player.

Not only has Suzuki looked good all season, he appears to be better as the year drags on. Considering he is the only players on the roster to play all 73 games, that’s quite an accomplishment. He is just 22 years old, and has set career highs with 19 goals and 53 points.

That is just the beginning for him as he looks ready to really explode offensively next season.

Cole Caufield has exploded offensively in the second half of this season. He struggled mightily to begin the year, and just wasn’t trusted in big situations by Dominique Ducharme. Since St. Louis has taken over as the team’s head coach, Caufield has taken over as its best offensive threat.

The 21 year old has scored 17 goals and 30 points in 28 games since the coaching change was made on February 9th. That is a 50 goal and 88 point pace over a full season and the sample size is not that small anymore.

Suzuki and Caufield looked great in last year’s postseason, but they have shown this year that they are ready to be a terrific one-two punch for the foreseeable future.

They have some company on the blue line. Alexander Romanov was a healthy scratch for most of the playoffs but he has really blossomed this season. He started the season on the third pairing but has recently played over 25 minutes in several games. He has all the tools, skating, physicality, a great shot, a good breakout pass and good defensive instincts, to be a top pairing defenceman one day.

The 22 year old has shown not only is that a real possibility, but it could happen as soon as next season.

The Canadiens have lots of work to do after a bad season, but they already have cornerstones in place at centre, right wing and left defence and the breakout of Suzuki, Caufield and Romanov is the best thing to come of the 2021-22 season.

Want your voice heard? Join the A Winning Habit team!

Write for us!