Montreal Canadiens: Senators Completely Collapse as Habs Future Looks Brighter

To emphasize again, the Habs are a rebuilding team. Hughes has stated it. Gorton has stated it. Its acknowledged, and its expected that they still have a few more years ahead of them before they can contend once more.

There’s no issue in calling the Montreal Canadiens a rebuilding team because that is what they are. Its not a case of underachieving for them its simply a case of development and facilitating a learning environment, something head coach Martin St. Louis has emphasized since day one. The Ottawa Senators are not a rebuilding hockey team.

Calling the Canadiens a rebuilding team is an acknowledgement of where they are at after a largely dismal era under former GM Marc Bergevin. Calling the Senators a rebuilding team is an excuse, and its an excuse that can’t be made any longer. This team needs to win, and isn’t, and something desperately needs to be done about that before all of this completely implodes on itself.

It goes without saying that comparing the Senators and the Canadiens as similar teams at this point is, as I mentioned in my last piece, a complete and total insult, there’s no other way to put it, both to the Canadiens and the Sens.

This isn’t just overly hopeful optimism from a Sens fanbase and organization that long for the days of Karlsson’s dazzling passes and offensive wizardry, this is pure delusion from a team that is desperately trying to salvage whatever they can from a core that is coming apart at the seams, going as far as using the team like the Habs as comparison when honestly, Montreal seems to be handling their future better. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, how do you think Claude Giroux feels about this team's performance?

What about Tkachuk? Or Stutzle? Or genuinely any other player on this team that isn’t on this team to rebuild, rather compete. Yet it seems like Ottawa as a team simply doesn’t have the tools to do that. Of course, the Canadiens similarly aren’t ready to compete at this point, but that’s to be expected with the roster they have.

As the 2023-24 season continues on, the Canadiens continue their path towards the future under St. Louis, Caufield, Suzuki, and the numerous other prospects trying to find their footing in the NHL, whether it be Justin Barron of Juraj Slafkovsky. Yet, just as much as one team looks towards what lies ahead, another team is desperately trying to salvage whatever they have left. The Ottawa Senators are in trouble, a lot of trouble, and the comparisons between them and the Montreal Canadiens, simply, need to stop.

This is no longer a rebuild folks. Rather, this is simply starting to look like a massive failure.