Elliotte Friedman has been in plenty of Montreal Canadiens content over the past few weeks. Friedman has been hot on the trail of the Canadiens' search for a bottom-six forward, and he is also a Lane Hutson believer, which has come up many times on his 32 Thoughts Podcast. Plenty of Elliotte's takes have been sitting well with the Habs' faithful, but one on his recent episode may need fixing. In discussing the Canadiens' rebuild, Friedman said Montreal isn't a "destination."
Cities being a destination has come up often in recent years. The premise is that some cities get an advantage in free agency because of their player-friendly lifestyle. There are many reasons why a city could be a destination. The provincial, state, and federal income tax could be a factor, as could the pressure from the fanbase, the weather, or the quality of the team. When looking at all these factors, it makes sense why Friendman may reach the destination conclusion.
- The Canadiens don't have a favorable state income tax thanks to Quebec and Canadian laws.
- It's fun to play in Montreal's environment, but it can be a pressure cooker when things are going wrong, like right now.
- Montreal is a beautiful city to play in, but the Winters can be rough if you'd prefer to play in a warmer city.
- Montreal's roster is a dumpster fire right now. They can't defend, and their offense isn't clicking. It'll be good in a few years, but finding players to help them right now is difficult.
I don't see anything wrong with Friedman's take. When looking at the current state of the Canadiens, he doesn't say anything false. They have plenty of things against them when trying to sign free agents. Look at teams like Dallas and Florida, which have been good over the past few seasons, and you'll see teams with no destination issues.
Florida and Dallas have no worries about state income tax. The fans are great, but there is no real pressure on them to perform; they are beautiful cities to live in and are perpetual contenders with a great culture every year.
It's easy to say that we'd trade places with any player on the Canadiens and relish the opportunity to play in the market. However, we can only guarantee it'll be positive once in the situation. Playing in Montreal may be more challenging than we think, which could be a problem for the Canadiens going forward.