Montreal Canadiens: Free Agents Habs Should Target to Play With Shane Wright

David Perron

The best option to step onto a two-way line with Wright next season is David Perron. The 34 year old has played on a line with Ryan O’Reilly for the past several seasons, meaning he is playing in a tough defensive role every night.

He has also been able to score at nearly a point per game pace recently, with 57 points in 67 games this season and 58 points in 56 games last season. He also had nine points in a six game first round series with the Minnesota Wild this season. He played a big role on the 2019 Stanley Cup winning team in a two-way role.

Perron has played on five different teams in his NHL career but, oddly, he has signed all of his contracts with the St. Louis Blues. It is still possible he stays in St. Louis, but the Sherbrooke, Quebec native could choose to play for his hometown team.

If he does, his contract might not be too extravagant. He is 34 years old so he can’t expect a ton of term. The Habs will be able to offer up an attractive cap hit if they are able to unload Shea Weber’s contract, which sounds like a done deal, but they would want to avoid going super long term.

At his age, Perron won’t be expecting a long term deal anyway. He could play near his hometown, and on a line with the recent first overall pick. A trio of Perron, Wright and Gallagher would give the number one pick two great veterans wingers who battle and play the game the right way on every shift, while still having the ability to put up decent offensive numbers.

They could also slowly increase Wright’s defensive responsibilities throughout the season. He is a great defensive player, but you can’t expect him to be ready to go head to head with Auston Matthews on opening night. With Perron and Gallagher on his wings, he might be ready for other team’s top lines by the end of his rookie season.

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