The preseason is behind the Montreal Canadiens. It’s all completed with the road juggling, the costume rehearsals to rekindle the epochal rivalry with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and American Hockey Leaguers taking part in on the highest strains. Oct. 9 awaits when the Maple Leafs and Canadiens do battle within the common season opener on the Bell Centre. As puck drop looms, we make predictions of greatest and worst-case situations for Montreal in 2024-25.
Finest-Case Situation Arguments
Slavkofsky-Suzuki-Caufield Grow to be a Official Menace
It took some time to see what the Juraj Slafkovsky, Nick Suzuki, and Cole Caufield line may ship. Two seasons in the past, followers and pundits had far more criticisms than reward for then-rookie Slafkovsky, and Caufield’s season was minimize brief on account of an harm.
Moreover, for many of 2023-24, the Canadiens regarded like what most predicted they might be: a mildly attention-grabbing membership in rebuilding mode, exhibiting flashes of what may very well be however not a critical menace. However the previous couple of weeks of the common season noticed some genuinely attention-grabbing chemistry between the trio. They tore some defences up in late March and early April, just like the 9-3 drubbing of the Philadelphia Flyers that noticed Slafkovsky web his first NHL hat trick.
In 2024-25, this trio makes his presence identified league-wide. They aren’t a Connor McDavid-led Edmonton Oilers or Nathan MacKinnon-led Colorado Avalanche prime line, however they’re hungry and so they make defences and goalies suppose twice. Suzuki has one other point-per-game season, if not higher, and each he and Caufield surpass 30 targets. Slafkovsky no less than flirts with that quantity. Had there been an NHL All-Star Recreation this season, there’s a case to be made that each one three may need been chosen.
Samuel Montembeault Proves He’s a Discount
It’s tempting to argue that the awkward Carey Worth contract sort of assisted basic supervisor Kent Hughes and firm once they provided Samuel Montembeault a three-year deal value $3.15 million per season. Had Montembeault proven on the time that he deserved much more? Not essentially. Had he displayed on the time that he was value retaining round? Sure.
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He’s not even within the prime 25 of the NHL’s best-paid netminders. His numbers additionally aren’t wonderful (he’s by no means had a season with goals-against common beneath 3.00), however the defences in entrance of him have been common – on day. In 2024-25, he rewards Montreal by turning into the perfect, least expensive goalie within the league. Montembeault turns into the Habs’ Adin Hill. Nobody thought that a lot of him but it surely seems he’s fairly stable. If the crew in entrance performs properly, so does he.
Newhook Is Wholesome and Useful
One of many under-the-radar signings of the 2023 offseason was Montreal grabbing former Avalanche ahead Alex Newhook. The Newfoundland native was a first-round choice in 2019. That wasn’t very way back.
He was an attention-grabbing participant on that crew, netting 30 factors or extra in each 2021-22 and 2022-23 with far much less ice time than the standard suspects on that roster. The 23-year-old (22 on the time) felt like a pleasant match with a Montreal squad that was comparatively younger on the assault and whose ceiling would enhance over the next campaigns. Alas, accidents prevented Newhook from partaking in as many video games as he and the membership would have appreciated in 2023-24 (55).
In 2024-25, Newhook stays wholesome and his presence pays dividends. Colorado’s loss is Montreal’s achieve, particularly if he can discover a common spot on the second line. Remember the fact that final season he netted 34 factors, his most ever, in 27 fewer video games than in his closing marketing campaign with the Avs. The expertise is there. He simply wants to remain wholesome.
Laine Comes Again Higher Than Ever
There was by no means going to be a model of this text that didn’t point out Patrik Laine. Montreal’s superior new acquisition fell sufferer to an unlucky, extremely awkward play in a preseason sport versus Toronto and shall be out for 2-3 months.
Followers, pundits, podcasters, and writers have gone on and on about how the Laine commerce may find yourself being probably the greatest strikes the Canadiens have completed in fairly a while. That’s all on maintain for now. Nonetheless, ought to his restoration show expedient and emphatic, there is no such thing as a denying that having a participant with a confirmed monitor file of being a 40-goal scorer would imply the world for Montreal. This group can’t rating (2.83 targets per sport final season, ending 26th).
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Laine proves to the hockey world that he nonetheless is the participant the Winnipeg Jets and Columbus Blue Jackets thought that they had and restores some offensive lustre to the Canadiens’ popularity as a terrific second-liner.
Finest End result: Robust First-Spherical Efficiency
Montreal scores extra targets on a nightly foundation than they’ve in years. The defence doesn’t essentially go from unhealthy to nice however exhibits indicators of enchancment to alleviate stress on the netminding. The prognosticators who picked the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Crimson Wings because the Atlantic Division groups who would squeeze into the postseason all say: “Oopsie. Our unhealthy,” because the Canadiens get a wildcard spot. They face the Florida Panthers within the opening spherical and placed on a heck of a present with a six or seven-game exit. There isn’t a deep Stanley Cup run however 2024-25 is the marketing campaign the Habs announce to everybody they’re value getting enthusiastic about.
Worst-Case Situation Arguments
Defence By no means Improves
Our Canadiens writing crew has spent a whole lot of time on the keyboards determining, analyzing, and making sound, educated predictions of what the defensive pairings could be this season. It’s an intriguing mixture of older veterans like David Savard (33) and Mike Matheson (30) and younger studs like Kaiden Guhle (22) and Arber Xhekaj (23). Plus, everyone misplaced their minds when prospect phenom Lane Hutson took to the ice for the ultimate pair of standard season matches final April.
The issue is the defence isn’t good. Two seasons in the past it gave up the fourth-most photographs on objective within the league and final season the third-most. In addition they had the sixth-worst anticipated goals-against determine in 2023-24.
In 2024-25, because the forwards see their targets, assists, and factors totals enhance, all their plus-minus figures stay patently mediocre. The blue line continues to battle, missing toughness and composure.
Lack of Self-discipline and Penalty Kill
They are saying it’s good to take sure penalties. Don’t let the opposition shove you round. Be an annoyance to the opposite crew. Break up performs. Honest sufficient.
However that gained’t result in something constructive if a membership not solely takes far more penalties than they need to however can’t kill them off both. The Canadiens have been a bottom-10 group in each respects within the final two seasons. They will’t cease sending their very own to the sin bin and once they do their rivals are blissful to oblige on the facility play. Don’t do the crime should you can’t do the time!
Head coach Martin St. Louis fails to manage his gamers, who proceed to be reckless and undisciplined on the ice. He couldn’t the previous two campaigns. Why would that out of the blue change? Xhekaj turns into a wild card the followers love and hate in equal measure.
St. Louis Merely Isn’t the Man
This is able to be a fairly bitter tablet to swallow contemplating that he was given a two-year extension shortly after the conclusion of 2023-24. Because it stands, he shall be behind the bench till the tip of the 2026-27 season. Clearly, supporters need this to work out, as does everybody working inside the membership.
The reality is the enhancements over his two-plus seasons (he arrived in February 2022) have been tiny. Squint and perhaps you’ll be able to spot them. They didn’t rating loads in 2022-23, nor did they in 2023-24. They gave up loads of targets in 2022-23 and once more in 2023-24. They conceded tons of photographs in 2022-23 and continued that development in 2023-24. They took countless penalties in -… you get the purpose.
We should always remind readers that St. Louis’ predecessor, Dominique Ducharme, was fired lower than a yr after teaching the Canadiens to the Stanley Cup Ultimate. Making the Cup Ultimate seems like a greater end result than lacking the postseason until we missed the memo.
Come mid-April 2025, St. Louis is given his marching orders.
Worst End result: No Playoffs, One other Misplaced Season
The 2024-25 Canadiens are barely a distinct model of their 2023-24 selves. Laine’s absence till no less than December – if not January – places the crew behind the eight-ball. The defence isn’t significantly better than final season’s, which implies Montembeault, a good if unspectacular goalie, struggles. Some gamers enhance their stats, like Suzuki and Slafkovsky, however when the prize is the playoffs, it’s all for naught.
Montreal as soon as once more clears its locker room in mid-April. The tip-of-season media session incorporates a assortment of bewildered faces and drained expressions. Gamers are internally questioning that perhaps this group isn’t adequate. St. Louis insists that he’s happy with his boys and the crew will come again stronger in September. Unbeknownst to him, his time with the membership shall be minimize brief the week after.
These are our greatest and worst-case predictions for the Habs. The irony of writing them through the closing days earlier than the common season begins is that the fanbase is digesting the Laine harm. That’s an issue which may very properly make a number of the much less fascinating predictions come true. Come what could, there may be by no means a boring second when following the Canadiens. The match on Wednesday versus the Maple Leafs already has loads of spice, and that’s sport one in all 82.
