The Blue Line Just Needs Time To Be Dominant Force
There are different ingredients to every Stanley Cup winning team as some rely heavily on goaltending while others have a deep group of forwards that grind their way to wins. What is indisputable is that the old saying "defense wins championships" keeps being used for a reason.
Every Stanley Cup winner has a great group of defensemen that can get the job done at both ends of the ice to make the team a winner. The good news for Canadiens fans is there is no question they are going to have an elite group of defensemen in the very near future at the NHL level.
Kaiden Guhle has taken another step forward this season and has displayed a tremendous skating stride to go with his 6'3" frame which makes him a monster to go up against. The 22 year old is going to be on the Canadiens blue line for a very long time and will be difficult for the opposition to deal with.
Jayden Struble has burst onto the NHL scene as a 22 year old rookie who played 21 career AHL games and looks like he has been playing pro hockey for a decade. He is exceptional defensively and a bull on skates as he runs over opponent's before heading up ice with blazing speed. He started the season well down the team's depth chart but has proven to be a key piece of the future.
Arber Xhekaj just turned 23 and is showing signs of defensive improvement while becoming one of the more feared skaters in the entire league. He was asked to go down to the AHL this season and work on the defensive side of things and he did exactly that and looks like a much more seasoned all around defender this year.
Beyond the NHL level, Lane Hutson is making a run at the Hobey Baker as college hockey's best player. The 20 year old has scored 12 goals and 37 points in 28 games for Boston University, one of the top teams in the country. He appears to be a point producing phenom in the near future.
Logan Mailloux has been having a tremendous rookie season in the AHL with the Laval Rocket. He has scored 11 goals and 35 points in 48 games and is leading the AHL in points by a defenseman in his first season of pro hockey. There were plenty of questions about his all around game when this season began, but those questions have disappeared as he dominates the AHL.
We haven't even mentioned Jordan Harris, Johnathan Kovacevic, Justin Barron, Bogdan Konyushkov who is playing well in the KHL or Adam Engstrom who is faring well in Sweden or veteran Mike Matheson who is 30 but having a career year with the Canadiens.
The possibilities for the future blue line pairing are endless, but there is no question anymore that this will quickly turn into an elite group of defenders.