Pierre McGuire Believes Nick Suzuki Can Be A 90-100 Point Producer With Improved Powerplay

Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki is on pace for the best statistical season of his young career.

One prominent NHL analyst believes Suzuki hasn't yet scratched the surface of his potential. Pierre McGuire stated on an episode of The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro that Suzuki has the potential to be a franchise number-one centre with the Habs. He took things a step further when he spoke about the idea, in his belief, that Suzuki has 90-100 point potential.

The way this would happen is by the Canadiens' powerplay improving, in which case Suzuki would pad his stats with an increase in his special teams points. At this juncture, the power play group will remain the same, in terms of deployed players. But there are a few players that could be in the mix next year, but more likely over the next few years, to join the Canadiens.

Alex Newhook's emergence as an option to fill the void left by Sean Monahan's departure is promising for the club. Especially when you consider that even if he doesn't remain on the number one unit, he has likely cemented himself as a legitimate option for one of the two powerplay units. That is no shot at Newhook, but a positive for the talent that the Canadiens have, either injured or yet to make their Canadiens debut.

Upon Kirby Dach's arrival in October, fresh off a full offseason to get healthy and recover from injury, he is likely to find a spot on the top unit. Dach can threaten as a shooter, and his deceptiveness will create breakdowns against the opposition. Like Juraj Slafkovsky, Dach has the size (6 foot 4) to screen goaltenders and his hand-eye coordination could be a huge addition to the Habs powerplay.

It's not likely that whoever the Habs draft in June will join the Canadiens for at least a season, maybe two, but it is likely that said player will be a fit on the powerplay. The likeliest scenario is the Canadiens nab a top 10 pick, and in the predicted top 10 for the 2024 NHL Draft, there are some talented offensive players.