Montreal Canadiens: Expectations on 4 prospects ahead of 2022-23
By Ryan Praught
Montreal Canadiens fans need to exercise patience with Justin Barron.
Justin Barron is another Montreal Canadiens prospect that got into some games last year, which gives fans a baseline for what to expect, but he played in just five games. Barron is a smooth skating defenseman who is just 20 years old.
Most of his development came as a member of the Avalanche organization, coming to Montreal in the Artturi Lehkonen trade. Barron, like Harris, will likely see some NHL action this year but is someone I expect will play in the AHL at times this year as he continues to develop.
"If we have a defenceman who is playing 15-16 minutes at the NHL and is playing well, but we want them to start playing on the power play, we might send them down to the AHL to work on that..." - Kent Hughes, adding that they'll consult their development staff with all players
— Jared Book (@jaredbook) September 12, 2022
Kent Hughes has made it clear that they plan to use the AHL to their advantage, where players will go down to get more opportunities than they would have gotten in Montreal. Make no mistake, Barron, like Harris, will get opportunities to play in Montreal but don’t be surprised if he gets sent down at times this season.
It won’t be a demotion but rather an opportunity to pay more. This is positive, as previously in Montreal, Laval wasn’t really used as a development team, and so being sent down was seen as a demotion. It seems as though that has changed.
Barron has plenty of upside, and it’s Montreal’s job to get the most out of him. We did not really get to see it last year because of an injury that limited Barron to just five games. I expect Barron to take a step forward this year, and if he can show more flashes like he did last year, Habs fans should be excited. His first career goal is just a small glimpse into what he can do.
Much like Harris, I wouldn’t expect any Calder talk surrounding Barron, but he should still show lots of promise. His smooth skating is really something to watch; as a result, he’s more likely to jump off the screen, but it may not translate to many points right away. I think Canadiens fans need to be patient with Barron. He’s on the right path, but there is still a lot of development to do.