The Montreal Canadiens and their surplus of young defencemen could be viewed as a negative or positive.
It depends on how Kent Hughes views it and what his plans are going forward. There is a group of four or five defenders who could play this season in Montreal. I would say that David Savard, Mike Matheson and Kaiden Guhle are the three defensemen who will likely have a permanent spot.
With Johnathan Kovacevic gone, there is an open spot, but it doesn't make things any easier. There is still a group of five defenders who could play consistent minutes with Montreal. With just four spots available, unless Savard gets traded, there is going to be an odd man out each night.
In my opinion it begs the question, is keeping the group of young guys intact going to work against the develop trajcetory of the group?
Aside from Hutson, there are four guys who will fight for two spots
I think that Lane Hutson is going to be a standout at camp and I don't think that his game needs American Hockey League development. If he plays in Laval, he will be with players that aren't at his skill level and I think that will work against him. Savard seems like the ideal partner to pair with the rookie since he worked well with Arber Xhekaj and Kaiden Guhle.
This would leave two open spots for the group of Jordan Harris, Jayden Struble, Justin Barron and Arber Xhekaj. I would make a case for Xhekaj to be in the lineup because he brings a blend of physicality and size that the others don't. But he has also shown that there is more substance to his game and having him in the pressbox just doesn't make any sense.
I think that Xhekaj should have a permanent spot, but you can argue that Jordan Harris deserves one also and if not for his injury, Struble would have stayed in Laval. Struble, however, didn't stay in Laval and he proved that he has the chops to compete in the NHL. So, if things shake out the way they did in 2023-24, then Barron is the odd man out.
But as we know, it takes just one good offseason for a player to really take off and given the fact that Barron brings the coveted right shot defenseman to the group, I'm not sure Montreal wants him riding the pine. I also think that Hutson will need insulation, so trading Savard to open a spot for Barron, at least right away, doesn't seem too wise. So, I think that whoever is least impressive at camp will be the one in the pressbox.
The 2025-26 training camp in Montreal will be a much different story completely, with Logan Mailloux, David Reinbacher and Adam Engstrom likely nipping at the heels of their NHL counterparts. But that's a story for another day.