Montreal Canadiens: The Many Candidates to Form an Elite Line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield

What route should they take?

Ideally, the Canadiens don’t have to give up a ton of assets to acquire a player to fill this role. Suzuki was developed by the team and Caufield was drafted by the organization and brought along through the ranks. That’s the best way to develop star players.

The Canadiens may be doing the same with Joshua Roy, or perhaps even Sean Farrell. Roy is lighting up the QMJHL and isn’t even old enough to play in the AHL next season. Farrell scored 28 points in 24 games in his first college season and is already a friend of Caufield’s from their days together with the United States Development Team.

Though one of them might develop into a first line star, they won’t be ready for that action next season. Neither of them are going to be playing pro next season and the could use a season of AHL development after that to fine-tune their offensive game at the pro level.

That means the ideal situation for the Canadiens is to invest in a short-term solution while Farrell and Roy continue to develop at lower levels.

The perfect scenario would be to sign David Perron to a short term contract with a high cap hit. He will be 34 years old this summer, but has 55 points in 62 games so he will want a big contract. If the Canadiens can get him to agree to a two-year contract with a bigger cap hit, like, say $6.5 million, it would be a perfect fit.

Perron could keep up with Suzuki and Caufield offensively while teaching them the finer points of the defensive game. He has experience winning a Stanley Cup as a two-way threat with Ryan O’Reilly and would be the perfect mentor for the younger players in the organization.

Not to mention, he could help groom Joshua Roy for that first line role as well with some guidance at training camp and support when they are eventually teammates.

The Canadiens already have an incredible duo in Suzuki and Caufield. Playing with Perron for two years would bring their games to a new level, and bridge the gap before they are playing alongside another young star in Roy or Farrell.

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