The Montreal Canadiens had plenty of trade rumors flying around leading up to the trade deadline on Friday afternoon. However, even with clear needs the Canadiens stood pat and didn't make any moves.
It leaves this team now with more questions than answers as they try to keep pace in a very competitive Atlantic Division. These are some of the questions they are now left with, looking forward to the rest of the season.
Do the Montreal Canadiens finally activate Patrik Laine?
The former second-overall pick has yet to be activated from injured reserve, seemingly because the Canadiens didn't have a spot in the lineup and were trying to move him. It felt almost like a certainty that this move would get done when considering the cap space it could open up, and that was more valuable than any kind of return.
However, Laine is still on the roster as the trade deadline has passed, and fans are left to wonder if the Canadiens will finally activate him and where he might play. Last season, Laine was an excellent goal scorer as he had 20 goals in 52 games, but he struggled defending as he had the worst xGF% in 5v5 situations at 40.26% on the Canadiens among players with 20 or more games played.
It is hard to envision a world where Laine could bump Zachary Bolduc or Kirby Dach off that third line and it might be a point where he sits out the remainder of the season, unless there is an injury.
What is the answer for the Canadiens third pair on the blueline?
The third pair on defense has been an issue for awhile now and the Montreal Canadiens are now going to be left trying to figure out how to manage that rotation on their blueline. In the game against the Sharks, it was Alexandre Carrier and Jayden Struble as the third pair with Arber Xhekaj as a healthy scratch.
However, Carrier and Struble both saw under nine minutes of 5v5 ice time while the other four defenseman were over 18 minutes. That has been a trend going back to when Xhekaj was on the ice and the question now is whether or not it is sustainable.
The problem is that regardless of the combination they use on the third pair, they have struggled based on their xGoals% according to MoneyPuck.
Pair | xGoals % |
|---|---|
Arber Xhekaj - Alexandre Carrier | 46% |
Jayden Struble - Arber Xhekaj | 42.6% |
Jayden Struble - Alexandre Carrier | 36.3% |
Who is the starting goalie for the Montreal Canadiens?
Of the moves the Canadiens were expected to make, the goalie position seemed like the biggest long-shot even if it was sorely needed. The duo of Samuel Montembeault and Jakub Dobes just hasn't been working, and at the very least, if they traded one, they could bring Jacob Fowler back up.
However, once again, the Canadiens didn't bring anyone in or move any players out to keep this position status quo.
Now that there are no roster limits for the remainder of the season, the Canadiens could bring up Jacob Fowler without a subsequent move. The challenge though, now becomes managing a three-goalie rotation and trying to avoid any player getting rusty.
This is a position that the Canadiens have a clear fix unlike the other two but they didn't make it easy for them going into the rest of the season.