The Montreal Canadiens and the rest of the NHL are preparing for the NHL Draft, starting with the first round on Friday night and then Rounds 2 through 7 on Saturday. While it is a time to focus on the future, general manager Kent Hughes and the rest of the front office can't lose sight of the present.
Shortly after the NHL Draft, free agency starts, and before then, the Canadiens have several decisions they have to make. It starts with four restricted free agents, but also potential trades involving players like Brendan Gallagher and Samuel Montembeault.
Even though this will certainly change, taking a look at the current lines and pairs gives a good idea of where the biggest needs are for the Montreal Canadiens on their roster. For these lines, I did not include any players who are currently not under contract, including their restricted free agents.
Montreal Canadiens Forwards
Wing | Center | Wing |
|---|---|---|
Cole Caufield | Nick Suzuki | Juraj Slafkovsky |
Alex Newhook | Oliver Kapanen | Ivan Demidov |
Alexandre Texier | Phillip Danault | Josh Anderson |
Florian Xhekaj | Jake Evans | Brendan Gallagher |
Extra Forward: Owen Beck
The Montreal Canadiens' top line should not change from the playoffs, and there is no reason to at this point. The group of Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, and Juraj Slafkovsky wasn't great in the playoffs, especially in 5v5 situations, but showed enough in the regular season to remain together going into next season.
On the second line, the Canadiens have a big hole at the center spot and could look to several players, like Alex Newhook or Jake Evans, to fill that role. Oliver Kapanen was a healthy scratch in the playoffs, but he was also a 20-goal scorer in the regular season and is only going to be 23 years old. If the Canadiens don't upgrade here, Kapanen should get the first chance to win this spot.
The third line remains unchanged based on the roster, but the fourth line is almost guaranteed to be different. Brendan Gallagher all but confirmed he will be playing somewhere else next season, but at the time of this article, he is still under contract. Meanwhile, restricted free agents Zach Bolduc and Joe Veleno should be back, and those two should fill out the fourth line.
The extra forward spot will be up for grabs, and one player to watch, assuming the Canadiens don't sign a free agent, is Florian Xhekaj. He received some high praise from the departing Laval Rocket head coach and could compete in training camp for that spot.
Montreal Canadiens Defensive Pairs
Left | Right |
|---|---|
Kaiden Guhle | Lane Hutson |
Mike Matheson | Noah Dobson |
Jayden Struble | Alexandre Carrier |
Extra Defenseman: David Reinbacher
For the blueline, not much changes here, and right now, they don't have as many holes. The most notable omission is Arber Xhekaj, who is a restricted free agent. The Canadiens certainly have replacements waiting in David Reinbacher and Adam Engstrom, and both easily could be on the Canadiens roster or be moved in a trade this summer.
The fact that Lane Hutson can play both on the left and right side gives them options, and it wouldn't be surprising in training camp if they experiment with Hutson on the left side to get new pairs that include a player like Reinbacher. Even if they make no moves, the Canadiens should be prepared to take a different approach to their pairs next season.
Montreal Canadiens Goalies
Jakub Dobes, Jacob Fowler, Sam Montembeault
Similar to the blueline, there are no changes at the goalie position, and the Canadiens still have three under contract at this point of the offseason. Montembeault seemed like a guarantee to be traded this offseason after Dobes and Fowler jumped ahead of him on the depth chart.
While that trade hasn't happened yet, it doesn't mean it won't, and there is even some advantage to not moving him. This past season was a disaster for the veteran, but he certainly could bounce back, and without him, Montreal is very inexperienced at the position.
It should be an interesting few weeks, and if the Canadiens don't make any moves and don't bring back any free agents, they do have some options that hopefully build on the success they had last season.
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