Montreal Canadiens: Kaiden Guhle continues to play above expectations

The Montreal Canadiens came into the 2022-23 season with few expectations as to what the defense core would bring. The Habs had some injuries leaving them short-staffed on the back end coming into the season.

However, the Montreal Canadiens have seen some good things come from their young defenders. Kaiden Guhle has been a smooth operator on the defensive side of things, settling into the NHL level nicely.

Guhle, the 16th overall pick from the 20202 NHL Entry Draft, has jumped headfirst into this season after making the game out of training camp. The youngster has the looks of a developing top-pairing player.

Sure there have been some bumps and bruises, but that’s expected from a 20-year-old who just made his NHL debut this season. After training camp, it was impossible not to bring Guhle with the Habs; things have worked out quite well so far.

Montreal Canadiens defender Kaiden Guhle continues to impress.

The offensive side of things has also been there when it comes to Guhle. It’s not just the defensive game. Guhle has found the back of the net once and picked up six helpers for seven total points early in this 2022-23 campaign.

It has to be rewarding to see Guhle step into the team’s defense core and get the job done effectively, and be able to tap into the scoring. He’s playing big minutes, averaging 20:49 of ice time a night.

This is third on the Habs roster, behind David Savard and Joel Edmundson, and it may be valid to pull Edmundson off that list since he was recently activated and has only played in five games. Either way, he’s over the 20-minute mark a night on average.

Guhle continues to prove he can handle the opportunity the Habs are giving him. Rather than shying away from the pressure, he’s jumped in with both feet. More often than not, Guhle has been deployed in the defensive zone and has been solid.

Overall, he’s gotten his reps in and has been someone who helps corral the puck and get the breakout moving. There will be things to improve and areas to sure up over time, but Guhle has shown plenty to like.

The expectations for a 20-year-old in his rookie campaign can not be that high. After all, his name is not Cale Makar. In my opinion, Guhle continues to play better than I anticipated he would. The Habs should be more than pleased with what he has shown so far.