The past three regular-season campaigns for the Montreal Canadiens have been a roller-coaster for the franchise, unable to make the playoffs since 2020/21. Even making a coaching change saw present head coach Martin St. Louis taking the helm.
The Canadiens, though, need to make drastic changes to their current lineup, where General Manager Kent Hughes has his work cut out for him and the company. This is an observation coming from a point of view that reflects on the losing seasons the team is struggling with.
The team the Canadiens franchise has gone with the past three seasons has yet to be determined or motivated to play at an elite level or at least Montreal Canadien level of gameplay. This is an interesting situation because of the changes Hughes boosted about when becoming General Manager.
The squad the Canadiens have now is worth the talent they have amassed, but it is just not doing the trick; the team needs to excel up-to-date in this and the past three seasons. There may be changes the ownership and management are planning to date. However, as I reiterate, drastic changes must be made to the lineup.
The changes needed for the Montreal Canadiens roster
The Canadiens forwards formation is out of date compared to today's game. The team has the right players when building a franchise, but it is minimal upon approval. The right moves the Canadiens management needs to make will have to shake up some parts of the roster and sign players to respectable contracts.
Trading away key players, I will take you through, will be a key factor for the team in possibly turning its fortunes around. However, these suggestions may accumulate to another factor for the team in respects to the players on the Montreal Canadiens.
Players on the Montreal Canadiens who may be expendable
The first player who comes to mind would be forward Josh Anderson. His value as a speedy forward is still intact, and his return will be a valuable addition to the team if the GM makes the right move for the team's interest.
Second, it would indeed have to be Joel Armia. His lack of production decline in the past two seasons probably would give him a lesser value, similar to Anderson, but trading Armia may be a good route to take when it comes to the need for a more productive piece for the team.
Christian Dvorak is another player, except I would buy him out because of some to no production from the forward from the past three seasons since the club acquired him. Along with Dvorak, Jake Evans is a similar candidate because of the same reasons.
Both forwards have not been productive enough for the Montreal Canadiens and should be dealt away for a fresh start. Both would bring in draft picks for the team in a classy manner. The Habs now need to acquire as many draft picks as possible to rebuild for the future.
The defensive aspect of the Montreal Canadiens
This aspect will need certain readjustments revolving around Arber Xhekaj. His presence is critical to the team and needs to be addressed positively to defend the zone, mainly the secondary scoring for the Canadiens roster.
The defensive gameplay is critical to the team, and the need is to revamp the roster significantly by acquiring some draft picks or even getting quality depth players who will benefit from the Habs coaching system and come prepared to play.
The Montreal Canadiens will be a team who will contend and will turn the team's fortune around.