Montreal Canadiens: Analytics Can’t Save Jonathan Drouin Anymore

2019-20, Continued Fall From Grace

On paper, Drouin’s 18-35-53 totals over 81 games are pretty solid, but there’s unfortunately a rather large asterisk attached to that. Let’s cut those numbers down a bit shall we? How about 17-30-47 totals over 61 games.

Why have I made this adjustment you ask? Because in the final 26 games of the 2018-19 season, Drouin had just one goal and five assists, so technically, much like the way he started this season, Drouin tapped out, though unfortunately it was when the Canadiens absolutely needed him most, and who knows how things would have fared had he played even 10 percent better.

As stated, this was ultimately the last truly productive season Drouin would have in Montreal, with injuries, poor play, and his aforementioned mental struggles making it so he never played more than 58 games in a season over the next four seasons. Something I, again, completely sympathize and relate to, but every single aspect of Drouin’s play can’t be excused because of it unfortunately.

Life goes on, and now Drouin is no longer in the city or playing for the fanbase that drove him to his mental limit to begin with.

In 2021-22, a solid start to the campaign ended early after Drouin underwent wrist surgery, recording 6-14-20 totals over 34 games, and in 2022-23, a solid 27 assists (second-most on the team) was offset by just two goals over 58 games, bringing Drouin’s tenure with the Canadiens to an end with a whimper, rather than a bang.

So yeah, now we’re here, and again, Drouin has somehow continued to receive the benefit of the doubt, even though at this point it’s abundantly clear there’s very little of those benefits left, at least from an entirely productive standpoint. Ultimately, whether Drouin plays or not, the Avalanche will continue to win, but I think that says more about Drouin’s impact on said wins than anything else. That being, very little.