Montreal Canadiens preview: Carey Price holds the keys to success
The Montreal Canadiens have gone 25 years without winning a Stanley Cup. This season, they will rely on franchise goaltender Carey Price to bounce back and lead the team.
It was a rough summer for the Montreal Canadiens. Even though they got Jesperi Kotkaniemi in the 2018 NHL Draft, the Habs are undeniably worse off right now than they were before the offseason began.
Star defenseman Shea Weber will be out until at least December. They also traded their captain (and consistent goal scorer) Max Pacioretty, leaving a team that already struggled to score last season even drier. The Canadiens traded Alex Galchenyuk as well, who is merely several seasons removed from being a 30 goal scorer. Though at least they got Max Domi in return for him.
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The Canadiens should be a rebuilding team. But it’s hard to rebuild when you have guys like Weber and goaltender Carey Price signed to long-term deals. The latter is coming off the worst season of his career. However, Price is also quite capable of making the Canadiens appear to be better than they truly are. With the pressure rising in Montreal, the Habs are counting on him to return to form.
Offseason Recap:
Additions: F Max Domi, F Tomas Plekanec, F Kenny Agostino, F Matthew Peca, F Michael Chaput, D Xavier Ouellet, F Joel Armia, F Hunter Shinkaruk, F Tomas Tatar, F Nick Suzuki
Domi is a nice addition to the Canadiens. Sure, he came at a mighty hefty price tag. But Domi has quietly been a great passer and playmaker, setting guys up for scoring chances at a pretty darn impressive rate. A lot of Canadiens need to bounce back as far as scoring goals. Whoever plays with Domi is going to bounce back.
Plekanec is back in town, so the shops that sell turtlenecks are rejoicing. He gives the Canadiens some solid center depth and the fans a guy to root for. Agostino gives them another depth forward option. He consistently puts up nice numbers in the AHL, but hasn’t been able to do so in the NHL. Armia will help the Habs address their lack of strong bottom six options. He did quite well with the Winnipeg Jets.
Tatar was a part of the Pacioretty trade, as was Suzuki. I like Tatar a bit, as he put up solid numbers with the Detroit Red Wings. Suzuki’s obviously the crown jewel. I’m not sold he sticks at center, but whether he’s at center or wing, the guy makes things happen. It wouldn’t be surprising if Suzuki earns himself a tryout.
All stats are from Corsica and Natural Stat Trick.