Montreal Canadiens: New Year's Resolutions For All Habs Players

The Montreal Canadiens are about to wrap up their 2023 schedule and will look forward to better times ahead. The past 12 months were not the best in the history of the franchise so a lot of fans are happy to see a new year dawning.

Many players will be hoping to see better days ahead as well. This is a time for them to reflect on what has worked and what has not as the team looks to be headed to a third consecutive season outside the playoffs.

As Canadiens players look to improve their game to turn things around for the franchise, here are their New Year's resolutions that should help them.

Goaltenders

Jake Allen's resolution is to play well enough to land a job with a Stanley Cup contender. The Canadiens continue to run with a three goaltender system but it is not going to last forever. In fact, it can't really last much longer as there is a trade deadline in early March and things need to be figured out before then. There are some really good teams, like the Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes and New Jersey Devils, who have questions in net. Allen should see the writing on the wall and be trying to prove to those great teams he can be their answer in goal. Otherwise, he could find himself dealt to a bottom feeder like the Chicago Blackhawks or Buffalo Sabres. He does have a little no trade protection to help, but can only block a trade to seven teams he would have picked in July. It would be best to just play great and get dealt to the Hurricanes instead.

Sam Montembeault's resolution is to prove he is worth his new contract extension before it even kicks in. He signed a three year contract extension earlier on December 1st that more than triples his salary when the 2024-25 season begins. Since then he has played just five games and been fine, but the pressure can turn up pretty quick on a guy in the crease at the Bell Centre. A bigger payday means higher expectations and he will want to prove right away that he is deserving of the $3.15 million cap hit.

Cayden Primeau's resolution is to force the team to trade a different goaltender. The three goalie situation has gone on longer than many expected, and Primeau has played well enough to prove he should be part of the solution going forward. He at least deserves a longer look and needs to use his next few games to convince management to trade away Jake Allen instead of him.