HABS Miss Opportunity To Right A Wrong

HABS Miss Opportunity To Right A Wrong

Written by Fred Arshoff

First of all right off the top I’d like to thank Marlene Wall very much for the merging of the two photos of the immortal Hector ‘Toe’ Blake into one to make the cover photo for this article.

When the Canadiens announced they traded their Captain Shea Weber I thought this was the perfect time to finally retire number 6 for the late great Hector ‘Toe’ Blake. Something I feel is way over due. When they retired number 3 for the great Emile ‘Butch’ Bouchard they made defenceman Ryan O’Byrne change numbers in the middle of the season. This time it would have been even easier as no one was wearing 6 after Shea Weber was traded.

Why in the name of G–D give such a sacred number to Chris Wideman. It isn’t like he is a super star. I admit he switched numbers for a rookie, but there are so many others numbers he could have chosen.

Not only looking at “Toe’s” playing career with the Canadiens, until an injury forced him to retire, but also for all he did for the team as what I consider was the best coach they ever had. Retire his number. He LIVED AND DIED BLEU, BLANC ET ROUGE and took pride in his playing and coaching careers. Let’s also remember when ‘Toe’ coached, the Habs, times were much different than they are now. They had no assistant coaches to help them. Also instead of jumping on a plane to fly to the next game, when out of town, they took the train and most train rides were like eight hours. As a small example of Toe’s coaching when the Canadiens got Yvan Cournoyer it was Toe who taught him how to play defensively as he was a top goal scorer in the OHA, specifically the Montreal Jr. Canadiens, but they never taught him the art of checking, etc. Toe worked with him on that aspect of his game before and/or after the regular team practice and didn’t play him just on the powerplay till he showed in practices he learned that concept. Through Blake’s work with Cournoyer he became one of the best two way hockey players who also had a flare for scoring goals.

As a player Blake played on the “Punch line” one of the best scoring lines in the NHL at that time. In Blake’s 577 NHL games he had 235 goals, 294 assists for a total of 529 points and 282 penalty minutes. Back then they didn’t keep +/- stats. These numbers are from regular season games. Blake played in 57 playoff games scoring 25 goals had 37 assists for a total of 62 points with 23 penalty minutes.

Blake started as head coach, as there were no assistant coaches back then, in the 1955-56 season and coached the team until he decided to retire after winning the Stanley Cup in the 1967-68 season.

In that span of time he coached the team to eight Stanley Cups.

Please Kent Hughes give Hector ‘Toe’ Blake’s family the honour to see his number 6 raised to the rafters of the Bell Center alongside his linemates of the Punch Line, Elmer Lach & ‘Rocket’ Richard. The Montreal Canadiens have always been a class act, so why change now, when a person has done so much for the organization.

Video of Hector “Toe” Blake

Sources

Hector ‘Toe’ Blake’s hockey stats
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/toe-blake

Hector ‘Toe’ Blake’s playing & coaching stats
https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=416

Stephane Robidas Hired As Assistant Coach

Stephane Robidas Hired As Assistant Coach

Written by Fred Arshoff

On Thursday July 28, 2022 Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes announced the team had hired Stephane Robidas as an assistant coach to replace the departed Luke Richardson who left to become head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks. Although not announced beside being assistant coach of the defence Robidas will be the assistant coach in charge of the penalty kill. In most cases the defence coach is in charge of the PK. The one exception I can recall was when Guy Carbonneau was head coach and had Kirk Muller, who was assistant coach of the forwards, in charge of the penalty kill and defence coach Doug Jarvis in charge of the power play. Of course even then there were exceptions to all rules.

There are some saying with the hiring of Rodidas as an assistant coach the Canadiens hired outside the box. I say they didn’t in this case as he played for the Habs from 1995-96 to 2001-02.

There are also those who say that now the Canadiens really have no NHL experience in coaching behind the bench. I do agree there is very little experience but what we have are coaches with new fresh ideas so other teams won’t know what to look for. I actually like the idea of new fresh coaches rather than keep recycling the same old ones and hoping they can get the job done. We’ve all seen what Martin St. Louis did last season with no NHL experience. The assistant coach with the most NHL experience in coaching now is Alex Burrows who has been with the HABS roughly two years.

As Robidas played for the HABS he knows the team’s culture and will help implant that in the new, younger players and why you have to take PRIDE IN WEARING THE RED WHITE AND BLUE.

There are some who would have liked Marc Crawford hired as assistant coach but I feel differently, as I stated above. That is recycling as he also has NHL head coaching experience. We don’t know if he would have accepted the job, in case St. Louis fails, right from the get go at the start of the season to bring NHL experience behind the bench as a head coach.

Robidas, like St. Louis, before signing with the Canadiens coached house league hockey. This will help actually as the Habs defence is young and Stephane knows how to coach/teach/develop younger players from his time with the Leafs as Director of Development. He did make one comment, I really liked, about the youth on the Canadiens defence. Today’s younger hockey players have much more of a skillset than the older NHL players did at a young age as they are on the ice much more from a much younger age. Robidas did say which players will have to improve on different skills as some players while playing Jr. Hockey learned more of one skill than another and will work with the players to get all the skills they need. He also will work with them on the team concept. I can also envision him going to the practice facility in Brossard early and staying late to work with individual players on skills they need to improve.

As Robidas wasn’t a super star, by any stretch of the imagination, he knows all too well the importance of practice and to use drills that the players will like and help them improve.

I’m also very sure before the Montreal Canadiens start their training camp he will be watching video of the defencemen returning as well as those with two way AHL contracts who may start the season with the Laval Rocket. He will know first-hand what each player does well and what they need help with. I’m also sure, in reference to learning about the players, he will speak to Rob Ramage director of player development.

What I’m looking very forward to seeing, with the departure of so many veteran defencemen, is the new defence pairings that Stephane will make knowing there are so many youngsters unless more player trades are made or free agent signings.

In closing I’d like to wish Stephane the best of luck in his new position as an assistant coach of the Montreal Canadiens

Sources

Stephane Robidas announced as new assistant head coach of the Canadiens
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/news/stephane-robidas-named-assistant-coach/c-335118344
Years Stephane Robidas played for the Habs
https://icehockey.fandom.com/wiki/St%C3%A9phane_Robidas

Samuel Montembeault Gets 2 Year Extension

Samuel Montembeault Gets 2 Year Extension

Written by Fred Arshoff

On Monday July 18, 2022 the Montreal Canadiens announced they had signed goalie Samuel Montembeault to a 2 year contract extension. This means he is under contract for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 season

I wasn’t surprised that Sam was extended but I expected a one year contract extension. Then I started to think about the second year and several theories came to my mind and I’d like to share them with you, as I’m sure many of you were also taken a bit by surprise of the second year.

The first theory that came to my mind is none of us know how Price’s knee will hold out and will he be able to play in the 2023-24 season, especially as there still is uncertainty about his knee for this coming season of 2022-23. So Kent Hughes is doing his job and ensuring the Habs will have two NHL goalies on the roster.

My second theory is that Jake Allen will be a UFA on July 1, 2024. As much as we would like him to be extended there is no guarantee he will be extended or accept the contract offered by Kent Hughes. So once again Hughes is doing the right thing and not putting all his eggs in one basket.

My third theory is if a team makes a trade offer for Jake Allen that is too good to refuse Hughes will have a second goalie ready to backup Price.

Even if Price and Allen are healthy, there is nothing wrong with having Montembeault dress as the backup to Allen when Price isn’t playing to give him a complete rest on those days. The same principal can be used at team practices to give Price or Allen a day off from practice to rest up.

We all do know to stay sharp you do have to play, especially a goalie, so what can be done is very simple. Every so often send Sam to the Laval Rocket for a predetermined length of time to play in meaningful games to stay sharp. For the benefit of those who don’t know to be sent down to any AHL team for a conditioning stint the player and management have to sign a paper that is signed and sent to the NHL office stating the length of the conditioning stint and if the player isn’t called up after that date the player becomes a UFA. The reason that is done is as in the past teams told player’s we’re sending you down for a conditioning stint and they never called them back up. Now the NHLPA (National Hockey League Players Association) had this clause put into the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) with the NHL.

With this new two contract extension Monty will be making $1,000,000 per season with no bonus clauses and is a one way deal thus if sent down to the Laval Rocket he still gets the same pay.

Since Sam was given the contract extension the Canadiens announced he had wrist surgery and is expected to be ready for training camp.

As NHL teams can only have a 23 person roster, during the regular season until after trade deadline, normally teams keep two extra forwards and 1 spare defenceman. What I believe the Habs will do, to be compliant, is keep 1 spare forward, 1 spare defence and Monty. There is no rule what position the three spare players play. After the trade deadline you can have as many players as you like but must not go over the salary cap.

Sources

Canadiens announce Montembeault’s contract extension
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/news/two-year-contract-extension-for-samuel-montembeault/c-335023256

Montembeault’s and Jake Allen’s contract information

https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/canadiens

Montembeault’s wrist surgery
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/news/montembeault-ill-be-ready-for-training-camp/c-335032450

Montreal Canadiens Acquire Mike Matheson

Montreal Canadiens Acquire Mike Matheson

Written by Fred Arshoff

Before going into this article I’d like to thank Marlene Wall very much for the merging of the three photos into 1 to make the cover of this article, on very short notice while she was celebrating her brother’s birthday

On Saturday July 16, 2022 the Canadiens announced they had made a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins acquiring defenceman Mike Matheson and a 4th round draft choice in the 2023 NHL Entry draft for Jeff Petry and Ryan Poehling.

Right off the top I will say I thought it would take longer than this to trade Petry as he had a 16 team no trade list, so Hab’s General Manager Kent Hughes couldn’t negotiate with all the NHL teams but just those teams that weren’t on the no trade list. Due to this I’m sure the other teams general managers were trying to play hard ball with Hughes, knowing that Petry wanted out of Montreal. What I doOutgoing like is once again Kent Hughes held his ground to get what he felt was a fair return for the Canadiens organization and not just trade Petry because he wanted to be traded. For more information on Kent Hughes doing what is best please see my article on this at https://montrealsportsblog.wordpress.com/2022/07/03/kent-hughes-doing-all-the-right-things/

Outgoing

As Petry did have a bad season it made it even harder to trade him. Part of the reason he may have had an off season being on the number one defence pairing for the entire season. He has played the number one pairing for the Canadiens a few times for shorter periods of time and did well so perhaps long term is just too hard for him. Not everyone is made out to be a number one pairing defenceman. Another reason he may have had a bad season was that he missed his family and we can all fully understand that.

The Canadiens will miss Jeff as he plays a regular shift as well as on the power play and penalty kill.

Again to be very honest after Ryan Poehling’s first NHL game with the HABS against the Toronto Maple Leafs I thought the HABS found another Maurice “Rocket” Richard at the rate Ryan was scoring. Sadly but not unexpectedly it didn’t continue. Let’s be honest one of Poehling’s problems was when he was sent back to the Laval Rocket he may have expected to score a hat trick in each and every game.

I feel one of Poehling’s problems was when he was sent down at the end of the 2020-21 season he didn’t play well and admitted this year when he was sent down to Laval he was very disappointed and it reflected in his play. This season when sent to Laval, after the 2021-22 training camp, he showed no disappointment and his play was much better. Although in 2020-21 he was disappointed he shouldn’t have allowed that to show in his play but should have used being sent down to motivate himself to do even better to show the management that they were wrong in sending him back to the Laval Rocket. If Jean Francois Houle, the Laval Rocket Head Coach, spoke to Ryan when he was sent down I have no way of knowing. Same goes in the previous year, when Joel Bouchard was head coach, whether he spoke to him or not.

Incoming

In getting Mike Matheson the HABS defence gets four years younger and also get a defenceman who can play either side, thus if there is an injury it will make it easier for Martin St. Louis to use the best available D-man. Also the general manager knows Matheson personally, as his former agent, and says he is a 5 star gentleman and works very well in locker rooms. That will be an excellent benefit as there will be a new captain of the team appointed for this coming season. Also Hughes said that Matheson works very well to mentor younger players and with the HABS having so many younger defencemen coming up the pipeline that will be another excellent benefit. Although Matheson may not put the same number of points up as Petry does his big body will certainly help the team.

The HABS by taking Matheson did something that isn’t done very often in a trade but got a local talent that was born and raised and played his Jr. hockey right on the island of Montreal. Having a local player is always nice.

The fourth round draft pick can be the sleeper in this trade, and we won’t be able to judge that part for several years as whomever the HABS draft with this pick will need to spend time in Laval to develop. Also lower round draft picks aren’t necessarily terrible players just look at Brendan Gallagher who was a 5th round draft pick and he certainly plays much better than players drafted way before him. I will admit it means the scouting department will have to do their homework to draft the best available player as usual. Also the hockey and player development departments will have to work to make that player into a quality NHL player. Also the 2023 NHL Entry draft is supposed to be, by all accounts, a much deeper draft than the 2022 we just had.

Who Wins This Trade

Looking at this trade I feel the Canadiens came out ahead as their core defence just got four years younger with a player who is more versatile and a draft pick which could turn out to be a future star or even traded to fill a particular need.

For the Penguins I can see it being easier for Poehling as he will have other top centers to score goals so less pressure on him and a change of scenery can help players. For Petry it will mean his family will able to be with him and that will help him regain his form.

Closing

I would like to thank Jeff and Ryan for all they did for the Montreal Canadiens organization and wish them the best of luck with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

I would also like to welcome Mike to the Habs organization and wish him all the best back here in his home town.

Photo of Mike Matheson playing in Pointe Claire

Why Joel Teasdale Was Extended

Why Joel Teasdale Was Extended

Written by Fred Arshoff

I wrote this article as Ken Clift asked me why Joel Teasdale was qualified. Since then Teasdale was given a one year two way extension by Montreal Canadiens/Laval Rocket General Manager Kent Hughes. So my reply will be on why he was extended. As I always do I will answer in the form of an article so all see my point of view on this subject.

Joel Teasdale Start With The Montreal Canadiens Organization

Joel Teasdale was an undrafted player that Canadiens/Laval Rocket General Manager Marc Bergevin gave a chance upon the advice of Hab’s assistant coach Dominique Ducharme as well as the Laval Rocket head coach Joel Bouchard, both who had seen him play in the QMJHL (Quebec Major Jr. Hockey league) when both of them were head coaches of teams in the “Q”. Using the advice given to him by his recent two hiring’s Bergevin signed Teasdale to an ELC (Entry Level Contract).

The ELC paid Teasdale for the 2018-19 season $753,333 and a $80,000 signing bonus. For the 2019-20 season $753,333 a $70,000 signing bonus, if playing in Laval $70,000. The 2021-22 season paid him $763,333, at Laval $70,000 with no bonus clauses.

The Injuries

Before the Montreal Canadiens rookie camp in 2018 Teasdale was working out at his home, like many players do to get ready for training camp, but while working out he tore up his knee and needed surgery. Due to the extent of the surgery he didn’t play any games in the 2019-20 season. That wiped out his first year of his ELC contract. Due to injury he was paid but had no development as a professional hockey player. In the 2020-21 season he played in 26 games again due to a knee injury. In the 2021-22 season Teasdale got into 44 games again due to knee injuries. Due to missing so many games, although not his fault, it really has slowed up his development as a hockey player.

My Observations

From watching the Laval Rocket games on TV on the AHL Network and listening to other games on TSN 690 radio I felt his play was good but his skating was below par. That can very well be due to the knee injuries he has suffered. Let’s be honest though to play hockey as a professional you do have to be a very good skater, not below par. What I would suggest for Teasdale is to speak to Adam Nicholas who is director of hockey development for the Montreal Canadiens. Nicholas before joining the Canadiens had a hockey school and worked with NHL players helping them with skating including Zdeno Chara. I’m very sure Nicholas could give Teasdale drills/exercises to do during the off season to help improve his skating. Another person who also may help Teasdale with his skating is Marie-Philip Poulin who is a consultant to the Montreal Canadiens player development (she only works part time at present). Many women work with NHL hockey players on skating as women are very good skaters.

Why Was Joel Teasdale Extended

Not being a member of the Hab’s hockey operations team or working for them in any capacity I can’t say what happened in meetings but do have a theory that makes a lot of sense. As we have seen Teasdale missed a lot of time due to knee injuries thus slowing up his development, so it would be very hard for them to know how good he can play if he played one full season without any injuries to truly evaluate how he compares to others coming up the ladder. To use one of the 50 contracts allowed to see his development and if the player development department, as well as Jean Francois Houle head coach of the Laval Rocket, feel about his development and if he could develop into a good NHL player.

Joel Teasdale New Contract

Teasdale’s new contract was signed Wednesday July 13, 2022. This contract is for one year (2022-23 season) only. It is a two way deal. In the NHL Joel will make $750,000, while in the AHL he will make $82,500. There are no bonus clauses in this contract.
This is a pay cut at the NHL level from the $763,333 he was making the past three seasons but his AHL pay increased by $12,000.

Video of Joel Tealsdalescouting report

Sources

Joel Teasdale contracts and stats
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/joel-teasdale

Montreal Canadiens hockey operations department
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/team/hockey-operations

Montreal Canadiens announce Teasdale contract extension
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/news/one-year-contract-extensions-for-belzile-teasdale-and-schnarr/c-334952062

Corey Schueneman Extended

Corey Schueneman Extended

Written by Fred Arshoff

I’m writing this article not that I thought Corey wouldn’t be extended but I didn’t expect him to get a guaranteed minimum salary in his contract.

On Monday July 11, 2022 the Montreal Canadiens announced they signed Corey Schueneman to a one year 2 way contract extension.

This contract, for the upcoming season (2022-23), at the NHL level will pay $750,000 and in the AHL will pay $275,000 but he is guaranteed to receive $350,000. What the Canadiens will do is at season’s end see how much he made and make a final payment to him with the difference in what he received in salary and the $350,000 he was guaranteed to make.

Let’s remember when a player is called up from that day to the day he is returned to the AHL he receives his NHL pay so it’s on a per day basis. And that is for the accountants to figure out.

In 2021-22 he also had a 2 way contract that paid him $750,000 and in the AHL he got $175,000 but had no guaranteed salary that I can see.

For Corey this doubles what he makes at a minimum. That is a very nice increase. As you can clearly see his NHL pay remained unchanged.

The only defenceman with a two way contract that may get paid this season will be the Laval Rocket Captain Xavier Ouellet. If Montreal Canadiens/Laval Rocket General Manager Kent Hughes gives him an extension. Let’s remember though that Ouellet has a lot more professional hockey experience than Schueneman. Ouellet is currently a UFA.

Corey got his first taste of the NHL in 2021-22 playing 24 games with the HABS scoring 2 goals and 6 points with 8 PIM’s.

When he was returned to the Laval Rocket, just before the AHL playoffs, I noticed his play wasn’t as good as it was when he played for the Habs. If that was due to an undisclosed injury, I don’t know, or maybe it was from disappointment at being sent back to Laval.

Video of Corey Schueneman

Sources

Montreal Canadiens announce they extended Schueneman
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/news/one-year-contract-extension-for-corey-schueneman/c-334912000

Corey Schueneman salary cap information and stats
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/corey-schueneman

Xavier Ouellet contract
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/xavier-ouellet

Victor Mete Free Agent

Victor Mete Free Agent

Written by Fred Arshoff

I’m writing this article as several people on Facebook and Twitter made comments about Victor Mete I mentioned in my article Kent Hughes doing all the right things that can be read at https://montrealsportsblog.wordpress.com/2022/07/03/kent-hughes-doing-all-the-right-things/
I wanted to give my thoughts on Victor Mete being a free agent and why I feel the Montreal Canadiens won;t sign him.

I will admit right away I am a big fan of Victor Mete and really wanted him to succeed in Montreal.

Looking Back At Victor Mete

Victor Mete was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens when Marc Bergevin was the GM. Mete was the 4th round pick the 100th overall player drafted in the 2016 NHL Entry draft.

Mete like many other players drafted by the HABS and players drafted the year before were invited to the Montreal Canadiens Development Camp. Mete made enough of an impression at the development camp that he was invited to the Habs Rookie Camp (rookie camp normally lasts one week and starts a week before the main camp). Again he made enough of an impression that he was invited to the team’s main camp. At the main camp he made enough of an impression that he made the Montreal Canadiens roster right out of Jr. Hockey. He played his Jr. Hockey for the London Knights of the OHL (Ontario Hockey League) in the 2016-17 season

In the middle of the 2018-19 season the Montreal Canadiens felt Mete had to be sent down to the Laval Rocket (Montreal Canadiens AHL affiliate). The coach of the Laval Rocket then was Joel Bouchard. He played two games for the Laval Rocket and it was supposed to be longer but the Habs ran into injuries so he was recalled.
After Mete played 14 games for the Habs in the 2020-21 season GM Marc Bergevin decided to place Mete on waivers so he could be sent down to the Laval Rocket. That plan didn’t work as the Ottawa Senator’s General Manager Pierre Dorion claimed Mete on waivers.
Before this year’s Entry draft Dorion stated he won’t be qualifying Mete so that will make him a UFA on July 13th.

What Caused The Demise Of Victor Mete

I feel the start of Mete problems were from the get go. Being a fourth round draft pick you normally require two years to develop in the AHL that’s something Mete never had. He went straight from Jr. to the NHL, thus no development as a professional.

Then in the 2019-20 playoffs Claude Julien who was head coach of the Canadiens then had Mete play his off side so he could be paired with Brett Kulak. By playing on your opposite side all your turns are done in reverse. That may take a player a second to recall so they are turning the correct way. I admit by being able to play both side can make you a better asset in case of injury then head coach can play you on either side.

Mete’s Expiring Contract

Mete last summer signed a one year one way contract with the Ottawa Senators. Mete was making $1,200,000. That was a very big raise from his previous contract that he signed with the Montreal Canadiens when Marc Bergevin was General Manager. That was also a one year one way contract for $735,000. In these two contracts there were no bonus clauses.

Should The HABS Offer Mete A Contract

As much as I like Mete I feel the HABS shouldn’t offer him a contract, as they have enough young defencemen, and more upcoming. Having veterans play will take away playing time from the younger developing players. I am taking into account that Josh Brooks will be an RFA as Kent Hughes didn’t qualify him on July 11, 2022.

Where Should Mete Look

If I was Victor Mete I would be looking to sign with a team that is looking and in need of a depth defenceman 5th to 7th defence. As much as I like Mete I don’t see him anymore as a top four defence.

In closing I would like to wish Victor Mete the very best of luck in finding a NHL team to sign him to a contract. I also would like to thank Victor Mete for his excellent play while playing for the Montreal CanadVideo

Video of Victor Met’s NHL hilights

Video of Victor Mete OHL hilights

Sources

Victor Mete salary information and stats
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/victor-mete

List of Montreal Canadiens General Managers by year
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Montreal Canadiens Draft Juraj Slafkovsky And Trade Alexander Romanov

Montreal Canadiens Draft Juraj Slafkovsky And Trade Alexander Romanov

Written by Fred Arshoff

Before diving into this article I’d like to thank Marlene Wall very much for the merging of the pictures to make the cover photo. As many of you know Marlene merges the bulk of the photos to make the cover photo of my article and they wouldn’t be nearly as good without her help in making the cover photos when required. A tip of my hat to you, Marlene.

As most of you know the NHL Entry draft round one was on July7, 2022.

With the first overall pick at the draft the Montreal Canadiens selected Juraj Slafkovsky. This did surprise me as I expected them to draft Shane Wright.

Since after the draft I’m very glad the Canadiens didn’t select Shane. He did end up the fourth overall player, selected by the Seattle Kraken. What Wright said after being selected fourth overall made me very glad that the HABS didn’t draft him. What he basically said is he will be playing with a chip on his shoulder for being selected fourth overall. First of all to me that sounds like a very spoiled child. Just because you’re projected by many to be the first overall pick is not a guarantee you will be. Two other teams as well skipped over you. Each team has to draft for their needs. I think with Wright’s attitude if with the HABS if he wasn’t put on a line with players he feels he wants to play with he would be airing himself in the dressing room and perhaps to the media as well, and that’s not needed at all. Perhaps his agent told him he is the best available player in the draft or perhaps his coaches in Jr., but that doesn’t mean they are right.

If the Canadiens management figured out Wright’s attitude from their interviews with him and they did have several. I can’t say as I wasn’t present nor any member of the media. What I do feel is they made the right decision.

What I do like with Juraj Slafkovsky being the first pick is that he is bigger than the other two projected first overall draft picks. He has also played against men and played very well, enough to catch the scout’s eyes.

Although Juraj isn’t the big center the HABS need he is a big power forward another need the HABS had so they filled a need and took a player who I feel is NHL ready.

The HABS traded to the New York Islanders Alexander Romanov and the 98th overall draft pick to acquire the 13th overall pick. Before the ink dried on that trade the HABS made a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks giving them the 13th overall pick they had just acquired and pick #66 to acquire Kirby Dach. These two trades I really like, or if you want you can call it one trade involving three teams, I’ll leave that up to you.

What I really like in this is the HABS got the big center they really needed. I admit I will miss Romanov and find him to be a very good 3rd or 4th defenceman, but to get a quality player you must give up quality.

By acquiring Dach they have a big center the team desperately needs and better yet he is young but has already played three seasons in the NHL so doesn’t have to play for the Laval Rocket to develop. I will admit Dach has been injury prone in his three seasons with the Blackhawks. I would think the Montreal Canadiens strength and conditioning coach Dale Lablans will be speaking with him about his injuries and giving him an off season regiment to follow to avoid his getting injured again. I also would think when the trade was made Hughes did ask the Blackhawks to send over Dachs medical papers including scans etc to the HABS team Dr’s to know what he had in the past and perhaps find ways to prevent it from happening again.

For those wondering how the loss of Romanov on defence will impact the HABS there are several young upcoming very good, if not excellent, young defencemen to name some Kaiden Guhle, Barron, Harris, then Fairbrother and Brooks. The latter two once they fully recover from their injuries, so there is really no shortage of good young defencemen at this time. Then in this year’s draft they drafted Lane Hutson, who by all accounts is supposed to be a very good upcoming D-man.

In closing I’d like to thank Kent Hughes and all the members of the Montreal Canadiens hockey operations department for drafting the best available players for the Habs. An extra big shoutout to Martin Lapointe and Nick Bobrov, the Co-Directors of Amateur Scouting, for doing their due diligence in preparing for the draft.

VIDEO OF Juraj Slafkovsky. HILIGHTS

Video of Kirby Dach. hilights

Source

HABS hockey operations team
https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/team/hockey-operations

The Rem Pitlick situation

The Rem Pitlick situation

Written by Fred Arshoff

As some of you may know or may not know Rem Pitlick is scheduled to be a RFA (Restricted free agent) on July 13,2022, but he has to be qualified by July 11^th or he becomes a UFA (unrestricted free agent)

There has been a lot of talk that if Pitlick doesn’t sign a contract by July 11^th Montreal Canadiens General Manger Kent Hughes won’t qualify Pitlick thus he will be a RFA.

The contract that is terminating was signed by the Nashville Predators on August 4, 2021 and it was a one year two way contract. This contract paid Pitlick $917.831 at the NHL leval but dropped way down to $70.000 at te AHL leval. There where no bonus clauses.

Pitlick was drafted by the Nashville Predators in the 2018 NHL entrey draft in the 3 76^th overall player selected.3rd round

What is the sticking point in the negotiations between Hughes and Pitlick I have no clue, it could be Pitlick wants only a one way contract and the Huughes wants a 2 way contract, it could be the dollar amount or the length of the contract. These things will never be made public but will remain private between Pitlick and the Montreal Canadiens organization.

The Montreal Canadiens claimed Rem Pitlick on waivers January 12, 2022 from the Minnesota Wild.

Pitlick in 46 games wit the Montreal Canadiens had 9 goals and 17 assists for a total of 26 points. He was a -9 this was the first time in his young NHL career he has been a minus player.

Video of Rem Pitlick’s 2021-22 NHL Highlights

Sources

Rem Pitlick Stats and salary information

https://www.capfriendly.com/players/rem-pitlick

Rem Pitlick waiver claim date

https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/canadiens-claim-forward-rem-pitlick-off-waivers-wild/

Montreal Canadiens Draft

Montreal Canadiens Draft

Written by Fred Arshoff

On Thursday July 7, 2022 the NHL holds its Entry draft and it will be right here in Montreal, Quebec, Canada at the Bell Center. I want to write what I feel the Habs should do at the draft.

Before we go look at this year’s draft here is what happened the last time the Canadiens had the 1st overall draft pick in 1980, they drafted the late Doug Wickenheiser and left Denis Savard available to the Chicago Blackhawks. Let’s hope that Kent Hughes and the rest of the Canadiens Hockey Operations department don’t make a mistake like that.

Currently the Hab’s have 14 draft picks in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. That number can change if they make trades perhaps bundling 2 picks to go up in the draft. That will be left to General Manager Kent Hughes. When I say bundle picks as an example trade their 2nd 1st round pick with their 1st pick in the 2nd round to get a higher draft pick in the first round. Also they can trade down, if a player they want they can tell will be available later in the draft so trade their pick and get another pick for letting another team move up.

I do feel drafting 14 players is way too many, to sign and develop properly. Some draft picks can be traded for draft picks in the 2023 or 2024 draft. The 2023 draft according to many scouts is supposed to be a deeper draft then this year’s draft. Let’s remember when you sign a player to an NHL contract it counts on your 50 person contract list. In some cases such as if the player can still play Jr. Hockey it goes on the sliding 50 person so once the player can’t play JR due to being overage then the player will count on your 50 person contracts. One such player is Riley Kidney.

Although the GM hasn’t said publicly who they will choose as the 1st overall pick in this year’s draft I believe it will be Shane Wright. According to many he is the best available player. Also he is a center and the Canadiens are in need of a real number two center. I say that as I count Nick Suzuki as the teams number one for many years to come. Normally I do say and still say always draft the best player available when it’s your turn to draft regardless of position but in this case Wright to me looks like the best available player available to start the draft.

The reason I say always draft the best available player available at your draft time is, even if you land up with a surplus of players a one position normally that would mean another team doesn’t have enough and a trade can be made and by having what the other teams needs you can ask for more rather than less as you’re the one with the positional player the other team is looking for.

Also the hockey operations department does have to take into account where each and every player is playing as in Jr. Hockey here in Canada there are no days off for exam periods and Christmas season, Easter break, while in the NCAA there are no games or practices during their exam periods, same for Christmas and Easter breaks. Those players have more time to rest their nagging injuries. The European players play on a different size ice then we do, so they will have to figure out how long it will take those players to adjust to our ice surface.

For other draft picks I have no clue at all, with one exception but much later in the draft Ryan Francis who is an overage Jr. player who was chosen by the Calgary Flames in the 5th round of last year’s draft but never signed. I would like the HABS to draft him in the 5th or 6th round as I feel from watching him in the Memorial Cup games looking like he could be a good 4th line player.

Let’s remember every draft pick is important to make the right choice as an example Brendan Gallagher who was the HABS 5th round pick 147th overall player selected in the 2010 NHL Entry draft and what an impact he has on the team. Another example of a very late draft pick is Cayden Primeau who was a 7th round pick of the Habs in the 2017 NHL Entry draft. Although the jury is still out on Primeau, in some games he looks great and not in others.

Let’s hope the Montreal Canadiens Hockey Operations Department makes the right choices.

Sources

Draft picks and sliding scale
https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/canadiens
Brendan Gallagher
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/brendan-gallagher
Cayden Primeau
https://www.capfriendly.com/players/cayden-primeau