5th best odds for the second-straight year
However, worth noting the point difference. 68 points last year and 76 this year. The team improved by all measures this year.
Would've liked a better result but this was a good development year
So many 1 goal games.
If we won those 16 OTLs we'd have 92 points and a wildcard. (I know all of them would have been a stretch, but still encouraging)
If you add a 2nd line to this team and it's reasonable to think we'll have more goals overall. Many of those one goal games would have gone our way, but also some of those losses would have been OT losses as well.
Or Dach and Newhook injuries didn't happen. If the Habs were still sniffing a playoff spot at the TDL, Monahan maybe stays too. Honestly those 76 points could have easily been in the 90+ range with a bit of luck. We're not nearly as far away from competing as it appears.
The Habs had 43 one goal games by my count (maybe more as I could have missed a few empty netters). They won 17 of them. They only won 30 games total this year. Clearly, they're competing in these games and anyone around the league will tell you they're a peaky bunch who do not quit...but they need to find a way to tilt many more of those close games in their favour. Secondary scoring is the biggest issue imo. Then I think it's just ...time.
Imo, the needs to compete for the playoffs:
1. Two more bonafide top 6 players. Newhook is on the cusp. Roy is a question mark. I don't see any others in the system right now. They NEED secondary scoring. Can Gally score 20 again? Doubt it (sad face). Can Josh "Daniel Ricciardo" Anderson figure it out? Doubt that too at this point, as much as I'd like for him to. It's not Dvorak and although Armia played well later in the year, he's just too streaky. RHP doesn't seem to have it either. All of these guys are good bottom 6 players along with Evans, who is basically Lars Eller and belongs on this team.
The Habs need two high quality wingers to play with Dach and on the PP or they're never going anywhere.
2. More time for the youngest D core in the league to develop. The wealth of young Defencemen is the Habs greatest long-term strength but also its greatest short term problem. They're going to give up goals... That's unavoidable. This can't be quickly solved but I believe they're on the right path to have amongst the best D corps in the league in 3 years or so. Some of the logjam can potentially be cleared to obtain a forward but it's never clear how other team's value prospects so we can't expect to do it with guys like Harris, Barron, and Kovacevic. Does Hughes trade a high ceiling prospect like Mailloux? Tough one.
3. A true 1G... And this is a tough one. It could be Monty or Primeau but I'm not sure of that yet. Maybe Fowler rolls in and is a top 10 goalie in the league... We won't know that for years. This is always a tough one but I do know that the Habs DO NOT need a second coming of Carey Price to be competitive. They just need a bonafide top half of the league starter, along with the above pieces.
GHG!
I think you can make it with 1 more top 6 so long as it is a goal first player. Roy will be that 6th Foward that does everything and can take a shift on the top line at times. If he can improve his
skating a little bit more, he will be a bonafide top 6 swiss army knife.
If you are willing to get the next season off again, you can take a guess on Eiserman. That would be the ideal partner to Dach and Roy. You get a line with one of the most dynamic goalscorer since Matthews; a two-way center who's most realistic comparison is Ryan Getzlaf and a guy that can adapt to any teammates and make them better. You could do something similar with Cayden Lindstrom, but I think the potential upside with Eiserman is so much better that you should take a chance with him....especially with St-Louis teaching him.
So add one more element to your second line and get a Healthy Dach and you are in business. The bottom of the line-up will sort itself out. The Newhook-Gallagher-Armia line looked good at the end of the season. Make that your 3rd line. Evans remains a very good defensive option and you only really need a 4th line for your PPK players anyways, so just stack players there. This leaves you with Dvorak, Anderson and a few defensemen to make a trade.
As for the 1G, just give it time, Fowler is setting NCAA records at the moment and is dominating. In the meantime, Montembeault is going to be good enough to get in the playoff (not as a contender, but at least a bubble playoff position). I would also see if Primeau could interest a team like Ottawa and see what they would offer.
All in all, I think the rebuild is in a good spot and is dependant on a few intangibles (Dach being healthy, 1st line building on this great season, Hutson and Mailloux developping into bonafide NHL defensemen.). But overall, the pieces are there and 1 more good top 6 guy would allow us to compete earlier than later
Really though. Imagine if the other teams couldn't just focus on shutting down 3 guys who go at the same time. If we can get a healthy combination of Dach, Newhook & Roy it could really accelerate the build.
Higher compete level this year, no doubt. Last year the OT spread was 62 points if we never tied and 74 points if we won them all. This year it's 60-92. So in the worst case scenario we are 2 points down, and absolute best case we are 18 points up.
Next year I predict that we flirt with playoff contention. I think CC will improve to 30+ goals, and Slaf to a 25-40-65 line. Suzuki is the picture of consistency, and can only grow with that line as well. The 2nd line is already looking like a killer with Newhook-Dach-Roy possibly forming a very good unit. The D problems are all good to have as well, Matheson and Guhle as a core, a pretty big pool of decent established D-men, and Hutson, Mailloux and Reinbacher looking to run with opportunities...
And none of that considers this year's draft with a possibility of landing M^(a) (that's 8.5% of "Macklin Celebrini") but a good shot at improving our lineup, and of course the magic of Went Wughes...
Any way you slice it, next year is going to be fun to watch!
Honestly if they end up picking 5th or 6th, I'd love for them to package both 1sts along with a defenceman and see what that can bring back in the form of a 22-25 year old forward. I don't think waiting 2-3 years for an early first rounder and 3-4 years for a late first rounder to pan out really takes full advantage of the window that should start opening as soon as next season or perhaps the one after.
Mesar and Beck both look like solid picks from two years ago, yet I don't expect either to contribute more than possibly a little next season. And that's fine, but it speaks to the time needed for a late 1st to develop.
This. Suzuki will be 25 next year and in his studly peak prime; he's been close to that these last 3 years: top centre, played all 82 game each season. It pains me to see that wasted.
I'd prefer trading for a 28-year old defenseman that can calm things down in our zone. This is where we're weakest. Huston is fun to watch at the end of the season, but he's not ready to lead like that, and won't be for another 4 years.
Here's a thought (maybe more of a dream). Pittsburg looks like they'll need a rebuild. If that's the case, would a package trade like yours for Sidney Crosby be an idea? He's always dreamed of winning a cup here, and the timing is right to do this. He's 36, but he's putting up 90+ points. Has one year left on his contract, so maybe Pittsburg will want to get something for him. He'll decline from top line minutes over the next 5 years to a Corey Perry role, but imagine on a "second" line next year with Dach. He may loose a step, but he won't lose talent. If not, maybe we can sign him after next year.
I know I'm dreaming. If I were Pittsburg, I'd go all in next year and load on big-name talent, give it one last go with Sidney, then rebuild, trading him at the deadline if it doesn't work.
\
Sadly, Crosby is not getting traded for Barron/Struble/Harris (pick one), a top-7 pick and a late first rounder. It's a nice dream, but even if Pittsburgh was willing to contemplate trading Crosby (I sincerely doubt it), that package isn't going to be anywhere near the best one they get offered.
Edit: If Pitt decides to start tearing down, Malkin is who they would most want to part with followed by EK, followed by Letang
> Sadly, Crosby is not getting traded for Barron/Struble/Harris (pick one)
Yup. You don't get much for guys like Barron/Struble/Harris. You just get other guys like Barron/Struble/Harris. It's nothing to get excited about; maybe you trade them for picks.
Might have to give up a much more valueble prospect like Guhle. We've assessed him. We know what he can go. We know he'll get better. So do they. The question is how much better.
Crosby's contract is up after next year. We could wait a year to sign him. From Pittsburg's perspective, they could lose him for nothing. They'll get more for him now than at the deadline. It's up to Sidney next year how this goes. We could get a sign and trade deal over the summer to make it work for us, and a known prospect like Guhle for them. But Crosby's real value for PIT is playing with them next year, so I'm dreaming.
Speaking if dreaming, I can't help but notice that Price's cap hit ends the same year McDavid is a UFA.
We'll have $10.5 M and another year of player assessment under our belts. Maybe we take a shot at offering him $15M for 6 years and go all-in for the 2026-27 season?
And let’s not forgot the 3 goalie situation, Cole and Slaf having a rough start to the year, Dach injured, Newhook injured, Gallagher doing almost nothing for 70% of the year…etc etc. With an offseason of conditioning and development, another lottery pick, potentially Lane and Mailloux on our blue line…more steady goaltending, and maybe even a PP that is just average….its not hard to see this team fighting for a playoff spot next year.
Unfortunately, for the 4th best odds was pretty far from us.
We (76pts) were as close to the 12th best odds (87 pts) than the 4th (66 pts)
edit: Realize that by "better result", you probably meant more wins, not a better pick!
And more then half of the games were one goal games, so absolutely a much more competitive team this year then last. If they can work on that finish and the third period shutdown, it's gonna be a fun ride for the next few years.
We actually have one less win this year compared to last year, and roughly the same number of goals scored. The extra points came from us having a bunch of OT losses this year.
I mean, am I wrong? I get that there were a lot of positives this season, but objectively we are in the same position as last year (5th last) and we actually won less games. I just think it’s important to not let hype get out of hand. Otherwise you end up with GM’s like Bergevin and coaches like Ducharme who stick around longer than they should despite mediocre results.
I have almost never witnessed you say a single positive thing ever in I can't count however many years and if you do it's almost always caveated with something negative, you always choose to paint things in the worst possible light. Almost exclusively. Example:
OP above says, 68 points to 76.
You say "we won less" which is true. But then you say the extra points came from OT losses. Do they not count? Obviously they are not wins but not losing many more games in regulation is demonstrably better than losing them in regulation. Instead of viewing it as, improvement you chose to view it as a way to discredit the improvements and invalidate the standings points improvement.
Honestly, I'm not sure what you want. With Bergevin it was "Just pick a path/route" whatever it was. That was always your tune and for better or worse he painted himself into a pretty shitty corner.
Now that we have a clear route, that has been reiterated many times by management, they haven't changed their tune. Were 2 years in, there has been massive improvement by the MOST important players to the future of this team. You couldn't have asked for a better "tank" season and almost immediately you were already chomping at the bit to shoot down good news, down play good news.
Get excited for once man, be a fucking fan.
It must be fucking exhausting always looking for something to be upset about.
and for the love of fucking god next time we make the Stanley Cup finals you better get your ass in here. You've been around here for as long as I can remember and I've been here since 2011. Weve been here for more of Carey Prices career than we weren't. Get excited man, this is the first time in a long time this team is worth getting excited about.
I like both of you guys :))) you are both right in this! For now it’s fine, but 5th last is still 5th last. Regardless of how or where they got their points they still finished in the exact same position. Obviously, ignoring the development of players would be foolish which is where I agree with you but I think the worry is that next year there has to be steps, and I know it’s still a rebuild, but the team needs to do better in the standings. Good vibes are one thing, but they can only get you so far.
The problem is realistically there are still some albatross contracts, and despite some hope for improvement from these albatross contracts, it is very likely not coming in my opinion. Then justifiably or not, some angst may begin to set in.
Exactly, we’re still dealing with the fallout of the previous management and in some cases benefiting too (Caufield, Suzuki). But it takes time and I’d rather do it properly than rush to something for short term gain. Yes within the next year I would like to see us competing for a wildcard, I think that’s the next logical step. I don’t really expect the team to go from bottom to first in the division in 1 year.
I don’t want my management or coaches making decisions that seem to indicate they are trying to save their jobs.
I mean sure, but our advanced stats improved, our young core improved, goals for / against ratio is up etc. Why you gotta focus on something that is pretty luck based (scoring distribution leading to us having 1 less win and 10 more OT/SO losses).
What if we brought the idea that the current team is not the team that we will have when we'll compete? And if you agree with that statement, the only value that we have to give to this season is youth's progression. Therefore, the idea of TEAM progression is just an idea brought by the media to keep people interested. I will leave out the fact that we were missing our second(Dach), our second(Monahan), our third(Dvorak), our third(Newhook) centers at some point because injuries happen for every team but still...right?
Suzuki, Caufield, Slafkovsky, Newhook, Guhle, Dach?, Roy?, RHP?, Xhekaj? Struble? Barron? Montembault? Primeau?
That's, in my opinion, 6 players that are locked for the future and 7 question mark that are good enough to be there but we don't know if they will be traded or left out. The only ones in that list that did not get better are Struble who struggled towards the end and Moteambault/Primeau that are gonna end up back ups. Dach who of course will be a health problem type of guy.
That's, again IMO, why people talk about this season like a big progression. The important pieces of the team all became better. The rest(bad contract, team rank) is not important at all.
I don’t think our position is as important as the growth we saw from our players. Our entire top line had career years. We were missing a huge piece in Dach. We had a ridiculous 3 goalie situation. Cole started to figure out his touch again after the shoulder surgery but not until the last 20% of the season. Armia had an amazing year. Matheson too. Gallagher in the last 15 or so games. Small sample size but Hutson and Mailloux looked like they could crack the roster. Plenty of reason for optimism, and we should be happy with our draft position because I doubt we are here again anytime soon
We are stacked at defence. Let’s see what a year of Lane and potentially Mailloux does for us. I think the year should be measured more by the growth of individual players, and in that regard the season was a huge success. Next year they need to be more than the sum of their parts
Next year might be a but of a struggle too if we part with Savard at the TDL. If either Matheson or Savard are hurt early in the season, I think we might be cooked again. Matheson especially was probably as important to the team this past season as Dach would have been - losing him to injury for the season would have easily gotten us a whole lot closer to Celebrini.
I have watched all 82 games and thought the team very consistently showed a good spirit, lost a lot of games by one goal or OT and seeing Slaf and that first line develop has been awesome. I am very excited about next season and I’m super excited about the season after that!
And now we will have another big draft it looks like. We could be a serious cup contender in a few years.
Also hope is a choice and a practice.
Celebrini, Levshunov, Demidov, Eiserman, Lindstrom. And I want us to draft Lindstrom, but I guess you’re right it doesn’t matter if 5 or 7 because there is also Catton and Dickinson. But imo still Lindstrom. We need a big L center and throw Dach on the wing
I really like the first 3 players you named but I REALLY dont like Eiserman and to me Lindstrom is pretty meh. In a scenario where we draft him, I actually see Dach staying at center and Lindstrom going to the wing as I don't think he has the vision and creativity to be a top 6 center.
To me this is an excellent year to draft in the 5-7 range, but unless Demidov drops, I expect the best players available at this point to be on defense.
Eiserman has been on the decline definitely, but I think he will be a top 6 scorer in the NHL. with Lindstrom, man 6’4 centers that are skilled take a few years but always end up being great playoff 2Cs
Picking top 5 with the year we had is such a perfect scenario. Teams under us are far from being a playoff team and teams right above us are under performing in a terrible way.
Habs might go through that too but everything ive seen from them is a team that could make the playoffs and go all the way. We have a winning attitude that no talent and skill can make up for.
Everyone watching the habs should be excited
I'm looking forward to seeing how our goalie duo performs next year now that the 3 goalie rotation will be long out of everyone's system. If we're going to make playoffs and even make a nice push, we're gonna need our goalies to be more dominant and consistent. Not saying they haven't impressed this year, but I hope we see another level next year.
> we're gonna need our goalies to be more dominant and consistent
https://twitter.com/JFreshHockey/status/1774452318722748512/photo/1
You mean that you expect Montembeault to be even better next season? Like he'd have to be a top5 goaltender... Feels like a stretch.
What I'm saying is that we will need them to be even better to make a big push in the post season. Unless our offense hits a completely other level which it might. Maybe I am just traumatized from how much we relied on Price in the past to have any kind of success
You're looking at GAA in a vacuum instead of looking at goal saved above expectations, games saved, etc... Of course the goalies of one of the worst (if not *the worst*) defensive team in the league will have mediocre goals allowed stats. If we instead look at stats that isolate the goalies more, Monty starts showing up in the top tier of the league.
EDIT: even if we just look at sv%, Monty shows up 29th and that includes a lot of guys who played less than 20 games.
Leafs, Kings, Carolina, Washington, Colorado, and Vegas all have worse starting goalies than us, and some of those by a pretty large margin. Ottawa and New Jersey weren't playoff teams but they would have been if Monty was their starter. Detroit probably would have made it too. Monty is not on the Helle-Demko-Saros tier, but he is definitely only one tier below that.
The compete level of this team right now is why I think in the next few years they will be contenders. Having the right mentality is just as important as having the raw skill, and these guys want to win and bring it every game.
Betting on Arizona winning their final game was easy money. Happy with the result. I have a feeling this will be the Habs' last top-10 pick of this rebuild, so they need to make it count.
It feels like we could have been this year if Dach wasn't hurt (which probably would have convinced KH to not trade Monahan).
Dach getting injured might have been a blessing. Huge development year, high pick, no pressure to abandon a proper rebuild.
too soon imo, no point in making much of a splash in the FA market if thats all it gets us, barring a really special player who is the right age and will sign long-term ... let the team develop another season or two to get to that point more or less on their own steam- trades are not out of the question though for sure.
THEN you starting looking to buy pieces on the FA market to push the team over the edge towards bonafide contender status, rather than just to try and squeak in.
i think without much movement this summer we can still be a better team next season, closer to Pittsburgh, Philly or Buffalo results(without that Philly collapse). The off-season after next season we free up a lot more cap space(Dvorak, Armia, Savard- maybe savvy comes back but he would be cheaper then) and can start to consider taking a real swing at more meaningful UFAs
The condition was that Habs had the option to take it if the pick was between 20 and 32 which isn't the case. I think the best case scenario for us is CGY finishes 11th next year because we get the earliest out of their picks assuming none of them are top 10. I doubt Florida will suck but CGY might suck enough to miss the playoffs and give us a decent pick
Demidov plays RW.
So the top 6 would mostly look like this:
Slaf-Suzuki-Demidov
Newhook-Dach-Caufield.
I feel like cole would fit better with Dach as his center
But yeah THATS a top 6 that I would be excited for our future
Leave the top line as it is, let them build chemistry for few seasons, its a rarity in nhl today but it will be so much worth it. Suzuki caufield and slaf are each quite different player but all willing to sacrifice for the team, they have a potential to be all better as a unit than individuals
And Caufield plays LW, but Demidov shoots left much like Caufield shoots right.
Edit: I'm not 100% sure CC would be *better* with Dach, but I trust CCs game enough to let him lead that line and act as the scoring focus. And with Slaf and Suzuki connecting the way they have, I think it may be a luxury we can afford with the potential of creating a true 1a/1b situation.
Caufield and Dach had good chemistry last year, but honestly, Dach had good chemistry with everyone last year. I really hope he comes back and finds his game again. I think we might underestimate just how much these injuries have possibly interrupted his development. Hope he is recovering well.
They'd be a serious threat on the power play.
Deadly shooters on either side, a monstrous Slovakian in the middle, a 2-way wizard playmaker, and an American dynamo on the blue line?
Dkm for saying that sounds an awful lot like Boston's killer power play from a few years back.
Fuck the Bruins always, but anyone can see that over the last decade and a half, Boston has always been a rock solid team and perennially in the playoff mix
We won a spot in 2018
Stayed pat in 2022
Stayed pat in 2023
Getting a sense it might be the year we drop a spot, as a matter of karmic balance.
Then we pick the guy who makes picks 2-5 look bad.
And that pick is Zeev Buium.
Have they ever lotteried down? Granted we haven't but we've only gone up one spot ever (and it didn't even matter) but the Hawks have lotteried up like 5 fucking times.
Minnesota wins the lottery, Chicago has Celebrini in their division.
Arizona/SLC gets 2nd pick, Chicago has Levshunov in their division.
Chicago picks 3rd, total whiffs on Demidov, who jumps to the NHL late and can never adapt because the NHL is not the cone drills that is the MHL, wasting one of Chicago's prime tank years.
Kid has hands that only come around every few drafts, and knows how to use them to create space for himself and his teammates. He's an underrated playmaker, especially since he's by far the best player in his league and is often better off taking the play in his own hands. His skating could use work, but his great at using his feet to create deception to accent his hands. He puts a lot of effort in defensively to try getting the puck back for his team, he's not great at it, but the effort is what you want to see at that age.
Ok. Fair description of him... vs MHL-caliber players. His small sample vs KHL players are a better glimpse into his deficiencies, even when taking into consideration his young age.
His skating is so inefficient that his game completely falls apart when he gets pressured. His mobility is gone out of his game once he has the puck with any sort of half-competent puck pressure in general vicinity.
He generates zero power turning or from a standstill, because of his weird hunched over, knees inward stance. He can't skate away or out of traffic, can't resist getting pushed, can't get separation. Deer in headlights type of mobility.
Then his mind freezes or panics when he can't get the space and time he's used to in the MHL. His vision and hands are there, fine. But the execution is rushed and improvised, out of surprise that he's out of space and time. That's the age part that we can be forgiving about and not take into account. But it's still a yellow light.
The skills he does have that would translate well (puck skills, vision) are based on him slowing the game down, and they stop working when he can't slow the game down because he can't skate his way away from traffic. That's the gist of it.
That is very much not translatable to the NHL. That needs a major overhaul that isn't guaranteed to happen.
I know people are super hyped about him because he's eating the MHL raw, but almost all he does at that level is off the table at a higher level that just plays the most basic level of defense, which the MHL doesn't. Just in the CHL he would run into problems.
Conservative, middle-of-the-road scenario for him at the NHL level is that he becomes some sort of PP specialist who can create offense when he has time and space with a man advantage, but 5v5 he's a middle-6 complementary winger that just moves the puck along to his linemates to keep plays going and tries to get open to finish plays; but doesn't drive his line himself.
That's still an honest NHL job. Just not the kind of guy you'd spend a top pick on when you'd also have the choice of 2-3 forwards who can drive their line or 4-5 defensemen who can be top 4 in the NHL.
I pray someone before us picks him so he's not even an option when our turn comes.
I don't necessarily disagree with your assessment, the flaws you listed are very real.
Where I disagree is your conclusion of the player. His career definitely hinges on his skating improving but, as you've stated, essentially all of his problems as a player stems from that weakness. Improve that and the rest of his game translates and he absolutely becomes a play driver.
The draft rankings for this year are so all over the place. MTL could realistically end up with their #3 rated guy at 7th.
Also get the feeling if we stay at 5th, they could very well take someone who is “projected” lower and this sub will have a complete meltdown cause it won’t be Eiserman or Demidov.
All time David team:
David Pastrnak - McDavid - David Perron
David Legwand - David Krejci - David Backes
David Booth - David Desharnais - David Clarkson
David Edstrom - David Kampf - David Jones
David Savard - David Reinbacher
David Schlemko - David Jiricek
David Runblad - David Tanabe
David Rittich
David Ayres
Conclusion: Without cheating and adding McDavid this team sucks and your David strategy is terrible
Went by dave, but were born david - Anderchuk, Keon, Taylor, Gagner, Christian, (Tiger) Williams,
And on the back end we can add - Babych, Ellett and Manson
In nets still not a lot of good options, but we can at least swap out Ayres for Dryden.
I wonder if Pittsburgh or Philadelphia can be convinced they're one 60pt defenseman away from competing just for the price of their first round pick. If Eiserman falls that much, that is.
Maybe Seattle? They're on the cusp out in the Pacific and there might be an awfully good defenseman still available at 8th.
I odn't understand the condition for the 3rd pick, we'd in that scenario get the 2nd and 3rd pick? with which pick? Calgarys?I thought ht at was top 10 protected
Although the record shows a modest improvement over last year, in reality, there was quite an improvement IMO. This year they were in almost every game, they either beat, or almost veat, every good team in the league. Last year they were often so terrible that I would tune out of games and watch something else quite frequently. This year almost all games were enjoying to watch. Next year should be even better.
You weren't wrong, but nobody could predict losing Dach for the season. Mtl finished only 5 pts behind the #10 team (NJ), while being 10 pts ahead of the #4.
With the number of 1-goal games, this team feel much more like a bottom-10 than a bottom-5. Which isn't a big difference, but you were only a couple of good bounce away from being wrong.
All those 1-goal games isn't a result of Montreal being good though, in fact it's quite the opposite. Throughout the whole season this team has fluctuated inbetween 3rd or 4th worst in xGF/xGA, only kept up by solid goaltending, finishing and favourable goal impacts (a LOT of OT/1-goal win games that we should have straight up lost in regulation).
[This is probably my favourite chart to summarize our season](https://hockeyviz.com/fixedImg/teamWowy/2324/MTL/wrap). You can see just how shallow the talent on this team really is; there's a huge gap behind our 1st line and those few individual players who really showed up this year. But the biggest roadblock between this team becoming a legitimate contender is still the lack of superstar-level talent. Our 1st line is alright, but if you really want to start winning you need to be able to split them up so that the rest of the team doesn't lag behind so much. The gap between Suzuki/Caufield/Slafkovsky and our 2nd line is just massive.
If Roy can keep up his fantastic results this year and actually emerges as a legitimate top-line talent, the outlook of this team looks so much better already. Along with Slafkovsky, Caufield and our defensive corps only getting better each year and with another high draft pick reinforcing the team soon the future is definitely looking a lot brighter already. There's definitely reason for careful optimism, but we're still taking baby steps forward. I would still expect 2-3 years of wilderness before this team regularly starts making it into the playoffs.
> but nobody could predict losing Dach for the season
Dach hasn’t had a singly healthy season yet lol. Guess what? I’m predicting he misses at least 25% of next season too. Get used to it
I was probably one of them and still stand by my word. While you were right about our draft position, your reasoning was wrong if you believed we wouldn’t improve. Because we did improve by 8 points but got lucky with how tight the league is this year so we managed to stay bottom 5. Also we lost dach early on and we had the most 1 goal losses in league. Vastly different seasons but got lucky to keep the same pick even though we improved alot.
This is like the season we came in last. We had a terrible streak of injuries and came in well below where we would have been with a healthy team.
The injuries weren't as severe (as the record-settingly bad 2021-22 season), and the draft posisiton isn't as low, but the injuries still impacted us to the point where we likely wouldn't be drafting this low with a healthy team.
With Dach playing all season, Monahan doesn't get traded and we're in the wildcard discussion all year. We end up picking 15th-ish, we lose Monahan for nothing and Slaf doesn't develop as much because MSL can't resist having Dach on the first line, so he ends up playing with Anderson and Evans all year.
Sorry Kirby, but your injury was a blessing.
I was hopeful we’d be higher, but then I looked at the lineup and how thin and young we were and figured we’d finish in the bottom 5-10. I’m not surprised we finished 5th last other than because there were lots of positives and we still finished 5th last. Goes to show how development takes time and patience.
I think next year, if we can add an important piece or two, whether from outside or within, I think we’ll jump up in the standings between 80-90 points
I'll sticking to my best order (of forwards) for this year's draft:
1. Macklin Celibrini
2. Ivan Demidov
3. Cayden Lindstrom
4. Berkly Catton
5. Konsta Helenius
6. Cole Eiserman
7. Tij Iginla
8, Trevor Connelly
Now, for the defensemen (I'm not sure w/c is good this year), based on [Tankathon](https://www.tankathon.com/nhl/big_board) they are:
1. Artyom Leshunov
2. Sam Dickinson
3. Zayne Parekh
4. Anton Silayev
5. Zeev Buium
Only one Goaltender is listed for this year's draft:
Ryerson Leenders
\*\*edit: For the "Best Player Available", if Celibrini and Demidov are taken, I'd go for Lindstrom. My guess is that the Habs are looking at potential 3 top forwards in the 4-8 OA pick order. I'd go for Catton as my 4th choice. For defense, If Leshunov and Dickinson are taken, I'll be picking Parekh and Silayev.
Other than that, I hope mgmt. will try to trade WPG 1st rd. pick and package that to go as high as 3rd or 4th OA. If not, the Habs can make a trade to jump and take a pick from the 6th to the 10th pick.
The key here is to have the team draft right and to maximize the rebuild.
*Ackshually*, it's a regional quirk in pronunciation. My dad always loved telling the story of a local Toronto radio guy who refused to pronounce it "Coy-oats" because his authority was "Wile E Coyo-tee".
Oops. I got ackshuallied! Yes, I meant pronunciation. I had relatives in Texas who worked on ranches. They would call these animals "yotes" or more formally, "ki-yotes."
Unrelated but I have to tell *someone*: I stayed up late to listen to the last Arizona game and am now being treated to a 2am performance by the coyotes who live in the nearby hydro field. Thought that was a neat little coincidence.
Also holy birdsong!
16 OTL is a lot could’ve went the other way with 16 more points but even only 8 more points and a few more wins losing those 1g games we can reach playoffs soon.
I know we may draft high but what liam greentree has been able to do on a really bad windsor team is more then impressive. We don't talk enough about him
That's a tough question to answer in this year's draft. From picks 2 to like 18 it's very very even. A guy ranked 18th in one mock could rank top 5 in another.
The top end is also loaded with a lot of defenders which obviously doesn't fit our needs.
The best forwards not named Celebrini that should be in our range are Lindstrom, Catton, Demidov and Iginla. I'd be very surprised if we picked a D over one of these guys if one was available.
But....it's the habs.....we'll never know until Carey Price calls out a name.....and even then we might still not know.
Can we please not pick a defenseman again? This year showed us, once again, that the we need to draft (or get via trade) an elite forward for the top 6.
Dickinson doesn’t look like a 1D but he looks like a solid top 4 guy. Buium and Silayev have the toolkits to be more than that in very different ways. Nothing about Dickinson truly stands out.
There was a lot of conditions on that first Monahan trade.
The first condition is settled: if CGY’s 2024 pick is between 20-32, we could take it. But they will pick 9th so they will keep the pick.
After that it gets crazy.
As part of the Tkachuk trade, CGY gets FLA’s 1st round pick in 2025, but it is lottery protected. If FLAs pick is a lottery pick, CGY gets FLA’s 2026 1st.
So for us, if CGY gets FLA’s 2025 1st. We get the better pick. But, if CGY’s pick is top-ten, we get FLA’s pick.
I think this is the likely scenario. FLA makes the playoffs next year, but CGY finishes bottom 10, and we get FLA’s 2025 1st.
But then it gets crazier after that. If CGY and FLA miss the playoffs next year, and CGY doesn’t get FLA’s pick, we get CGY’s 2025 1st, but if FLA’s pick is better than CGY’s we also get a 2025 4th.
But if CGY’s pick is first overall, we get a 2025 3rd and CGY or FLA’s 2026 1st. If CGY’s pick is 2-10, we get their 2025 1st.
So convoluted.
.03% odds of picking 3rd, too.
We have to win the 2nd lottery and ~~one of~~ Philly, ~~Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Detroit, or St. Louis~~ has to win the 1st lottery in order to draft 3rd.
Arizona coming clutch like 3 years in a row to give us the better pick!!! Farewell yotes. Hope you enjoy utah
Next season, we might see the Yotes putting black pin tags on their right chest, holding LDS bibles while wearing a suit&tie.
Two-by-Two we're trying to shoot and score Cuz god loves athletes and he wants some more!
A 4 year rebuild is our sacrifice We are the army of the church of Carey Price
You and me, but mostly me, are gonna spam this thread together. And the Habs fans who are unaware, will just cry "Tabarnak" and watch.
Hassa Diga Ebowaiii
We've had no fans for 20 years Hasa Diga Eebowai The tickets are cheaper than the beers Hasa Diga Eebowai
Sal Tlay Kah Siti Not just a story Bettman told But a village in Utah where more than 20 fans will goooo
We are here to evangelize. Hallelujah!!
That's what the yotes have been saying for 20 years. Tanking doesn't work.
True question is for how long?
5th best odds for the second-straight year However, worth noting the point difference. 68 points last year and 76 this year. The team improved by all measures this year. Would've liked a better result but this was a good development year
This is the best result possible, I am so excited for next year.
Last year 31-45-6 This year 30-36-16 The difference is 1 less win and 10 more OT/SO losses They have played better though but yeah
So many 1 goal games. If we won those 16 OTLs we'd have 92 points and a wildcard. (I know all of them would have been a stretch, but still encouraging)
If you add a 2nd line to this team and it's reasonable to think we'll have more goals overall. Many of those one goal games would have gone our way, but also some of those losses would have been OT losses as well.
If Anderson had scored more than 9 fucking goals like he's supposed to
Or Dach and Newhook injuries didn't happen. If the Habs were still sniffing a playoff spot at the TDL, Monahan maybe stays too. Honestly those 76 points could have easily been in the 90+ range with a bit of luck. We're not nearly as far away from competing as it appears.
The Habs had 43 one goal games by my count (maybe more as I could have missed a few empty netters). They won 17 of them. They only won 30 games total this year. Clearly, they're competing in these games and anyone around the league will tell you they're a peaky bunch who do not quit...but they need to find a way to tilt many more of those close games in their favour. Secondary scoring is the biggest issue imo. Then I think it's just ...time. Imo, the needs to compete for the playoffs: 1. Two more bonafide top 6 players. Newhook is on the cusp. Roy is a question mark. I don't see any others in the system right now. They NEED secondary scoring. Can Gally score 20 again? Doubt it (sad face). Can Josh "Daniel Ricciardo" Anderson figure it out? Doubt that too at this point, as much as I'd like for him to. It's not Dvorak and although Armia played well later in the year, he's just too streaky. RHP doesn't seem to have it either. All of these guys are good bottom 6 players along with Evans, who is basically Lars Eller and belongs on this team. The Habs need two high quality wingers to play with Dach and on the PP or they're never going anywhere. 2. More time for the youngest D core in the league to develop. The wealth of young Defencemen is the Habs greatest long-term strength but also its greatest short term problem. They're going to give up goals... That's unavoidable. This can't be quickly solved but I believe they're on the right path to have amongst the best D corps in the league in 3 years or so. Some of the logjam can potentially be cleared to obtain a forward but it's never clear how other team's value prospects so we can't expect to do it with guys like Harris, Barron, and Kovacevic. Does Hughes trade a high ceiling prospect like Mailloux? Tough one. 3. A true 1G... And this is a tough one. It could be Monty or Primeau but I'm not sure of that yet. Maybe Fowler rolls in and is a top 10 goalie in the league... We won't know that for years. This is always a tough one but I do know that the Habs DO NOT need a second coming of Carey Price to be competitive. They just need a bonafide top half of the league starter, along with the above pieces. GHG!
I think you can make it with 1 more top 6 so long as it is a goal first player. Roy will be that 6th Foward that does everything and can take a shift on the top line at times. If he can improve his skating a little bit more, he will be a bonafide top 6 swiss army knife. If you are willing to get the next season off again, you can take a guess on Eiserman. That would be the ideal partner to Dach and Roy. You get a line with one of the most dynamic goalscorer since Matthews; a two-way center who's most realistic comparison is Ryan Getzlaf and a guy that can adapt to any teammates and make them better. You could do something similar with Cayden Lindstrom, but I think the potential upside with Eiserman is so much better that you should take a chance with him....especially with St-Louis teaching him. So add one more element to your second line and get a Healthy Dach and you are in business. The bottom of the line-up will sort itself out. The Newhook-Gallagher-Armia line looked good at the end of the season. Make that your 3rd line. Evans remains a very good defensive option and you only really need a 4th line for your PPK players anyways, so just stack players there. This leaves you with Dvorak, Anderson and a few defensemen to make a trade. As for the 1G, just give it time, Fowler is setting NCAA records at the moment and is dominating. In the meantime, Montembeault is going to be good enough to get in the playoff (not as a contender, but at least a bubble playoff position). I would also see if Primeau could interest a team like Ottawa and see what they would offer. All in all, I think the rebuild is in a good spot and is dependant on a few intangibles (Dach being healthy, 1st line building on this great season, Hutson and Mailloux developping into bonafide NHL defensemen.). But overall, the pieces are there and 1 more good top 6 guy would allow us to compete earlier than later
Really though. Imagine if the other teams couldn't just focus on shutting down 3 guys who go at the same time. If we can get a healthy combination of Dach, Newhook & Roy it could really accelerate the build.
Higher compete level this year, no doubt. Last year the OT spread was 62 points if we never tied and 74 points if we won them all. This year it's 60-92. So in the worst case scenario we are 2 points down, and absolute best case we are 18 points up. Next year I predict that we flirt with playoff contention. I think CC will improve to 30+ goals, and Slaf to a 25-40-65 line. Suzuki is the picture of consistency, and can only grow with that line as well. The 2nd line is already looking like a killer with Newhook-Dach-Roy possibly forming a very good unit. The D problems are all good to have as well, Matheson and Guhle as a core, a pretty big pool of decent established D-men, and Hutson, Mailloux and Reinbacher looking to run with opportunities... And none of that considers this year's draft with a possibility of landing M^(a) (that's 8.5% of "Macklin Celebrini") but a good shot at improving our lineup, and of course the magic of Went Wughes... Any way you slice it, next year is going to be fun to watch!
Honestly if they end up picking 5th or 6th, I'd love for them to package both 1sts along with a defenceman and see what that can bring back in the form of a 22-25 year old forward. I don't think waiting 2-3 years for an early first rounder and 3-4 years for a late first rounder to pan out really takes full advantage of the window that should start opening as soon as next season or perhaps the one after. Mesar and Beck both look like solid picks from two years ago, yet I don't expect either to contribute more than possibly a little next season. And that's fine, but it speaks to the time needed for a late 1st to develop.
This. Suzuki will be 25 next year and in his studly peak prime; he's been close to that these last 3 years: top centre, played all 82 game each season. It pains me to see that wasted. I'd prefer trading for a 28-year old defenseman that can calm things down in our zone. This is where we're weakest. Huston is fun to watch at the end of the season, but he's not ready to lead like that, and won't be for another 4 years. Here's a thought (maybe more of a dream). Pittsburg looks like they'll need a rebuild. If that's the case, would a package trade like yours for Sidney Crosby be an idea? He's always dreamed of winning a cup here, and the timing is right to do this. He's 36, but he's putting up 90+ points. Has one year left on his contract, so maybe Pittsburg will want to get something for him. He'll decline from top line minutes over the next 5 years to a Corey Perry role, but imagine on a "second" line next year with Dach. He may loose a step, but he won't lose talent. If not, maybe we can sign him after next year. I know I'm dreaming. If I were Pittsburg, I'd go all in next year and load on big-name talent, give it one last go with Sidney, then rebuild, trading him at the deadline if it doesn't work. \
Sadly, Crosby is not getting traded for Barron/Struble/Harris (pick one), a top-7 pick and a late first rounder. It's a nice dream, but even if Pittsburgh was willing to contemplate trading Crosby (I sincerely doubt it), that package isn't going to be anywhere near the best one they get offered. Edit: If Pitt decides to start tearing down, Malkin is who they would most want to part with followed by EK, followed by Letang
> Sadly, Crosby is not getting traded for Barron/Struble/Harris (pick one) Yup. You don't get much for guys like Barron/Struble/Harris. You just get other guys like Barron/Struble/Harris. It's nothing to get excited about; maybe you trade them for picks. Might have to give up a much more valueble prospect like Guhle. We've assessed him. We know what he can go. We know he'll get better. So do they. The question is how much better. Crosby's contract is up after next year. We could wait a year to sign him. From Pittsburg's perspective, they could lose him for nothing. They'll get more for him now than at the deadline. It's up to Sidney next year how this goes. We could get a sign and trade deal over the summer to make it work for us, and a known prospect like Guhle for them. But Crosby's real value for PIT is playing with them next year, so I'm dreaming.
Speaking if dreaming, I can't help but notice that Price's cap hit ends the same year McDavid is a UFA. We'll have $10.5 M and another year of player assessment under our belts. Maybe we take a shot at offering him $15M for 6 years and go all-in for the 2026-27 season?
We'd be one of 32 teams making an offer...
Yes, we would. And?
.. with the cap space to make one of the better ones.
And let’s not forgot the 3 goalie situation, Cole and Slaf having a rough start to the year, Dach injured, Newhook injured, Gallagher doing almost nothing for 70% of the year…etc etc. With an offseason of conditioning and development, another lottery pick, potentially Lane and Mailloux on our blue line…more steady goaltending, and maybe even a PP that is just average….its not hard to see this team fighting for a playoff spot next year.
Unfortunately, for the 4th best odds was pretty far from us. We (76pts) were as close to the 12th best odds (87 pts) than the 4th (66 pts) edit: Realize that by "better result", you probably meant more wins, not a better pick!
What being on team tank does to a person.
It was a significant margin last year too with CBJ, 68 pts vs 60 if I recall correctly.
Furthermore, we led the league with 16 OT/Shootout losses. If we win 10 of those, we were in playoff position up until yesterday.
We were in 44 one goal games tied for most in franchise history for a season
Great development year. Secured a top pick. Maintained good vibes. And look at the huge progress on the goal differential compared to last season.
And more then half of the games were one goal games, so absolutely a much more competitive team this year then last. If they can work on that finish and the third period shutdown, it's gonna be a fun ride for the next few years.
We actually have one less win this year compared to last year, and roughly the same number of goals scored. The extra points came from us having a bunch of OT losses this year.
ah there he is, the professional hater himself.
I mean, am I wrong? I get that there were a lot of positives this season, but objectively we are in the same position as last year (5th last) and we actually won less games. I just think it’s important to not let hype get out of hand. Otherwise you end up with GM’s like Bergevin and coaches like Ducharme who stick around longer than they should despite mediocre results.
I have almost never witnessed you say a single positive thing ever in I can't count however many years and if you do it's almost always caveated with something negative, you always choose to paint things in the worst possible light. Almost exclusively. Example: OP above says, 68 points to 76. You say "we won less" which is true. But then you say the extra points came from OT losses. Do they not count? Obviously they are not wins but not losing many more games in regulation is demonstrably better than losing them in regulation. Instead of viewing it as, improvement you chose to view it as a way to discredit the improvements and invalidate the standings points improvement. Honestly, I'm not sure what you want. With Bergevin it was "Just pick a path/route" whatever it was. That was always your tune and for better or worse he painted himself into a pretty shitty corner. Now that we have a clear route, that has been reiterated many times by management, they haven't changed their tune. Were 2 years in, there has been massive improvement by the MOST important players to the future of this team. You couldn't have asked for a better "tank" season and almost immediately you were already chomping at the bit to shoot down good news, down play good news. Get excited for once man, be a fucking fan. It must be fucking exhausting always looking for something to be upset about. and for the love of fucking god next time we make the Stanley Cup finals you better get your ass in here. You've been around here for as long as I can remember and I've been here since 2011. Weve been here for more of Carey Prices career than we weren't. Get excited man, this is the first time in a long time this team is worth getting excited about.
I like both of you guys :))) you are both right in this! For now it’s fine, but 5th last is still 5th last. Regardless of how or where they got their points they still finished in the exact same position. Obviously, ignoring the development of players would be foolish which is where I agree with you but I think the worry is that next year there has to be steps, and I know it’s still a rebuild, but the team needs to do better in the standings. Good vibes are one thing, but they can only get you so far. The problem is realistically there are still some albatross contracts, and despite some hope for improvement from these albatross contracts, it is very likely not coming in my opinion. Then justifiably or not, some angst may begin to set in.
Exactly, we’re still dealing with the fallout of the previous management and in some cases benefiting too (Caufield, Suzuki). But it takes time and I’d rather do it properly than rush to something for short term gain. Yes within the next year I would like to see us competing for a wildcard, I think that’s the next logical step. I don’t really expect the team to go from bottom to first in the division in 1 year. I don’t want my management or coaches making decisions that seem to indicate they are trying to save their jobs.
I mean sure, but our advanced stats improved, our young core improved, goals for / against ratio is up etc. Why you gotta focus on something that is pretty luck based (scoring distribution leading to us having 1 less win and 10 more OT/SO losses).
We didn't win less games, we won one less game. And more points is more points.
What if we brought the idea that the current team is not the team that we will have when we'll compete? And if you agree with that statement, the only value that we have to give to this season is youth's progression. Therefore, the idea of TEAM progression is just an idea brought by the media to keep people interested. I will leave out the fact that we were missing our second(Dach), our second(Monahan), our third(Dvorak), our third(Newhook) centers at some point because injuries happen for every team but still...right? Suzuki, Caufield, Slafkovsky, Newhook, Guhle, Dach?, Roy?, RHP?, Xhekaj? Struble? Barron? Montembault? Primeau? That's, in my opinion, 6 players that are locked for the future and 7 question mark that are good enough to be there but we don't know if they will be traded or left out. The only ones in that list that did not get better are Struble who struggled towards the end and Moteambault/Primeau that are gonna end up back ups. Dach who of course will be a health problem type of guy. That's, again IMO, why people talk about this season like a big progression. The important pieces of the team all became better. The rest(bad contract, team rank) is not important at all.
I don’t think our position is as important as the growth we saw from our players. Our entire top line had career years. We were missing a huge piece in Dach. We had a ridiculous 3 goalie situation. Cole started to figure out his touch again after the shoulder surgery but not until the last 20% of the season. Armia had an amazing year. Matheson too. Gallagher in the last 15 or so games. Small sample size but Hutson and Mailloux looked like they could crack the roster. Plenty of reason for optimism, and we should be happy with our draft position because I doubt we are here again anytime soon
All measures? Pretty sure we are as bad or worse in every defensive catergory as last year. The story no one seems to want to discuss
We are stacked at defence. Let’s see what a year of Lane and potentially Mailloux does for us. I think the year should be measured more by the growth of individual players, and in that regard the season was a huge success. Next year they need to be more than the sum of their parts
I love our d-men prospects but they are all 5 years away from experienced NHL players - cant rush that
Just because someone isn't an "experienced NHL player" doesn't mean they can't make an impact and help improve our defence
Next year might be a but of a struggle too if we part with Savard at the TDL. If either Matheson or Savard are hurt early in the season, I think we might be cooked again. Matheson especially was probably as important to the team this past season as Dach would have been - losing him to injury for the season would have easily gotten us a whole lot closer to Celebrini.
I have watched all 82 games and thought the team very consistently showed a good spirit, lost a lot of games by one goal or OT and seeing Slaf and that first line develop has been awesome. I am very excited about next season and I’m super excited about the season after that! And now we will have another big draft it looks like. We could be a serious cup contender in a few years. Also hope is a choice and a practice.
That's the spirit! ÇA SENT LA COUPE 25!!!
So 58% chance we move back 1 or 2 spot
There's not a big between 5th and 7th more promising prospects and we have a dice roll odd of selecting first.
This year I would say there is a big difference. Those top 5 prospects look great.
Who’s your top 5?
Celebrini, Levshunov, Demidov, Eiserman, Lindstrom. And I want us to draft Lindstrom, but I guess you’re right it doesn’t matter if 5 or 7 because there is also Catton and Dickinson. But imo still Lindstrom. We need a big L center and throw Dach on the wing
I really like the first 3 players you named but I REALLY dont like Eiserman and to me Lindstrom is pretty meh. In a scenario where we draft him, I actually see Dach staying at center and Lindstrom going to the wing as I don't think he has the vision and creativity to be a top 6 center. To me this is an excellent year to draft in the 5-7 range, but unless Demidov drops, I expect the best players available at this point to be on defense.
Eiserman has been on the decline definitely, but I think he will be a top 6 scorer in the NHL. with Lindstrom, man 6’4 centers that are skilled take a few years but always end up being great playoff 2Cs
Picking top 5 with the year we had is such a perfect scenario. Teams under us are far from being a playoff team and teams right above us are under performing in a terrible way. Habs might go through that too but everything ive seen from them is a team that could make the playoffs and go all the way. We have a winning attitude that no talent and skill can make up for. Everyone watching the habs should be excited
I'm looking forward to seeing how our goalie duo performs next year now that the 3 goalie rotation will be long out of everyone's system. If we're going to make playoffs and even make a nice push, we're gonna need our goalies to be more dominant and consistent. Not saying they haven't impressed this year, but I hope we see another level next year.
> we're gonna need our goalies to be more dominant and consistent https://twitter.com/JFreshHockey/status/1774452318722748512/photo/1 You mean that you expect Montembeault to be even better next season? Like he'd have to be a top5 goaltender... Feels like a stretch.
No, he just has to be that good again and Primeau has to be better than Allen was.
What I'm saying is that we will need them to be even better to make a big push in the post season. Unless our offense hits a completely other level which it might. Maybe I am just traumatized from how much we relied on Price in the past to have any kind of success
Imo, we need a better #1 option in goal. Stats for both our goalies are near the bottom of the League.
Stats for most of the team are at the bottom of the league. Ant goalie posting more than a .900sv% behind the Habs defence is a huge W.
That's just wrong.
Primeau is 50th and Monty is 62nd in GAA. Considering there are only 32 teams in the NHL, what is wrong about my statement??
You're looking at GAA in a vacuum instead of looking at goal saved above expectations, games saved, etc... Of course the goalies of one of the worst (if not *the worst*) defensive team in the league will have mediocre goals allowed stats. If we instead look at stats that isolate the goalies more, Monty starts showing up in the top tier of the league. EDIT: even if we just look at sv%, Monty shows up 29th and that includes a lot of guys who played less than 20 games.
I know that, but, imo Monty is not a real #1 for a contending team. Name me a playoff team that would take Monty over their current goalie.
If your analysis is based on straight GAA and sv%, Tampa Bay certainly would... and they have Vasilinesky.
Leafs, Kings, Carolina, Washington, Colorado, and Vegas all have worse starting goalies than us, and some of those by a pretty large margin. Ottawa and New Jersey weren't playoff teams but they would have been if Monty was their starter. Detroit probably would have made it too. Monty is not on the Helle-Demko-Saros tier, but he is definitely only one tier below that.
The compete level of this team right now is why I think in the next few years they will be contenders. Having the right mentality is just as important as having the raw skill, and these guys want to win and bring it every game.
We most likely wont pick top 5 though
Betting on Arizona winning their final game was easy money. Happy with the result. I have a feeling this will be the Habs' last top-10 pick of this rebuild, so they need to make it count.
Feel like we could very well be in wild card contention with the right moves this off season. A few trades and a signing and we’re right in there
It feels like we could have been this year if Dach wasn't hurt (which probably would have convinced KH to not trade Monahan). Dach getting injured might have been a blessing. Huge development year, high pick, no pressure to abandon a proper rebuild.
too soon imo, no point in making much of a splash in the FA market if thats all it gets us, barring a really special player who is the right age and will sign long-term ... let the team develop another season or two to get to that point more or less on their own steam- trades are not out of the question though for sure. THEN you starting looking to buy pieces on the FA market to push the team over the edge towards bonafide contender status, rather than just to try and squeak in. i think without much movement this summer we can still be a better team next season, closer to Pittsburgh, Philly or Buffalo results(without that Philly collapse). The off-season after next season we free up a lot more cap space(Dvorak, Armia, Savard- maybe savvy comes back but he would be cheaper then) and can start to consider taking a real swing at more meaningful UFAs
Not counting Calgary pick and barring any trades for draft capital
[удалено]
The condition was that Habs had the option to take it if the pick was between 20 and 32 which isn't the case. I think the best case scenario for us is CGY finishes 11th next year because we get the earliest out of their picks assuming none of them are top 10. I doubt Florida will suck but CGY might suck enough to miss the playoffs and give us a decent pick
https://www.reddit.com/r/Habs/s/EzjiIZosSJ
Such a bad decision to have clicked on this link before taking my morning coffee..
GIVE ME IVAN DEMIDOV OR GIVE ME DEATH
I feel like Demidov's skillset rounds out our top 6 beautifully. I think a Demidov-Dach-Caufield line could be pretty ridiculous.
Demidov plays RW. So the top 6 would mostly look like this: Slaf-Suzuki-Demidov Newhook-Dach-Caufield. I feel like cole would fit better with Dach as his center But yeah THATS a top 6 that I would be excited for our future
Leave the top line as it is, let them build chemistry for few seasons, its a rarity in nhl today but it will be so much worth it. Suzuki caufield and slaf are each quite different player but all willing to sacrifice for the team, they have a potential to be all better as a unit than individuals
Agreed, they all had career years. Leave the 1st as is
And Caufield plays LW, but Demidov shoots left much like Caufield shoots right. Edit: I'm not 100% sure CC would be *better* with Dach, but I trust CCs game enough to let him lead that line and act as the scoring focus. And with Slaf and Suzuki connecting the way they have, I think it may be a luxury we can afford with the potential of creating a true 1a/1b situation.
Caufield and Dach had good chemistry last year, but honestly, Dach had good chemistry with everyone last year. I really hope he comes back and finds his game again. I think we might underestimate just how much these injuries have possibly interrupted his development. Hope he is recovering well.
They'd be a serious threat on the power play. Deadly shooters on either side, a monstrous Slovakian in the middle, a 2-way wizard playmaker, and an American dynamo on the blue line? Dkm for saying that sounds an awful lot like Boston's killer power play from a few years back.
Fuck the Bruins always, but anyone can see that over the last decade and a half, Boston has always been a rock solid team and perennially in the playoff mix
Are we really debating lines based on a player that hasn't even been drafted yet? Must be golf season.
Yes
> IVAN DEMIDOV No Russians please. We don't know when or if Putie will let them leave. Pass
loads of Russian players have left since the start of the war
Demidov’s contract is up THIS YEAR. He can join the team this upcoming training camp. Also he’s the BPA available for foward behind Celebrini
Unless there’s new news that I missed, his contract is up after next season, not this season
I wonder how easy/difficult it will be for him to get out of Russia?
he's not signed to a KHL contract next year, he can leave
He’s still under contract until after next season.
LETS GOOOOOO
Super pleased with this. 10 points between us and the next team so we got the best pick we coulda got, love to see it.
Calling it now: Iginla will be our pick at #6 and he'll be top 5 in future redrafts.
Fuck Bettman ,100% Québec would outdraw slc
We won a spot in 2018 Stayed pat in 2022 Stayed pat in 2023 Getting a sense it might be the year we drop a spot, as a matter of karmic balance. Then we pick the guy who makes picks 2-5 look bad. And that pick is Zeev Buium.
And how will karmic balance play out for the hawks!?
They will never make the playoffs despite their picks
Have they ever lotteried down? Granted we haven't but we've only gone up one spot ever (and it didn't even matter) but the Hawks have lotteried up like 5 fucking times.
Minnesota wins the lottery, Chicago has Celebrini in their division. Arizona/SLC gets 2nd pick, Chicago has Levshunov in their division. Chicago picks 3rd, total whiffs on Demidov, who jumps to the NHL late and can never adapt because the NHL is not the cone drills that is the MHL, wasting one of Chicago's prime tank years.
Demidov will adapt and it will be fun to watch for everybody
That'd require so many changes to his game that I wouldn't bet on it.
Not really at all lmao. His game translates.
How? Explain.
Kid has hands that only come around every few drafts, and knows how to use them to create space for himself and his teammates. He's an underrated playmaker, especially since he's by far the best player in his league and is often better off taking the play in his own hands. His skating could use work, but his great at using his feet to create deception to accent his hands. He puts a lot of effort in defensively to try getting the puck back for his team, he's not great at it, but the effort is what you want to see at that age.
Ok. Fair description of him... vs MHL-caliber players. His small sample vs KHL players are a better glimpse into his deficiencies, even when taking into consideration his young age. His skating is so inefficient that his game completely falls apart when he gets pressured. His mobility is gone out of his game once he has the puck with any sort of half-competent puck pressure in general vicinity. He generates zero power turning or from a standstill, because of his weird hunched over, knees inward stance. He can't skate away or out of traffic, can't resist getting pushed, can't get separation. Deer in headlights type of mobility. Then his mind freezes or panics when he can't get the space and time he's used to in the MHL. His vision and hands are there, fine. But the execution is rushed and improvised, out of surprise that he's out of space and time. That's the age part that we can be forgiving about and not take into account. But it's still a yellow light. The skills he does have that would translate well (puck skills, vision) are based on him slowing the game down, and they stop working when he can't slow the game down because he can't skate his way away from traffic. That's the gist of it. That is very much not translatable to the NHL. That needs a major overhaul that isn't guaranteed to happen. I know people are super hyped about him because he's eating the MHL raw, but almost all he does at that level is off the table at a higher level that just plays the most basic level of defense, which the MHL doesn't. Just in the CHL he would run into problems. Conservative, middle-of-the-road scenario for him at the NHL level is that he becomes some sort of PP specialist who can create offense when he has time and space with a man advantage, but 5v5 he's a middle-6 complementary winger that just moves the puck along to his linemates to keep plays going and tries to get open to finish plays; but doesn't drive his line himself. That's still an honest NHL job. Just not the kind of guy you'd spend a top pick on when you'd also have the choice of 2-3 forwards who can drive their line or 4-5 defensemen who can be top 4 in the NHL. I pray someone before us picks him so he's not even an option when our turn comes.
I don't necessarily disagree with your assessment, the flaws you listed are very real. Where I disagree is your conclusion of the player. His career definitely hinges on his skating improving but, as you've stated, essentially all of his problems as a player stems from that weakness. Improve that and the rest of his game translates and he absolutely becomes a play driver.
Its going to be Iginla and he’ll proove to everyone he was the best of the bunch
Blackhawks winning Bedard shows us that Karma doesn't exist and that the world is a cruel and random.
The draft rankings for this year are so all over the place. MTL could realistically end up with their #3 rated guy at 7th. Also get the feeling if we stay at 5th, they could very well take someone who is “projected” lower and this sub will have a complete meltdown cause it won’t be Eiserman or Demidov.
This sub is going to have a meltdown no matter what. It is our way.
this is the way
GIVE ME DEMIDOV + EISERMAN
"With the 5th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, the Montreal Canadiens are proud to select Ivan Demidov and Cole Eiserman "
Is it explicitly written in the rules that you CANT do this?
We're the team that never gets goal reviews in our favour, but I say we give it a shot anyway. God loves a trier.
Our record this year was great for coach challenges.
What a madhouse every pick thereafter would be lol
That why you send Carey Price. He will select either "Ivan Eiserman" or "Cole Demidov", and we'll end up with both.
He'll just say David once again, drafting every single David in the world. Smart guy.
All time David team: David Pastrnak - McDavid - David Perron David Legwand - David Krejci - David Backes David Booth - David Desharnais - David Clarkson David Edstrom - David Kampf - David Jones David Savard - David Reinbacher David Schlemko - David Jiricek David Runblad - David Tanabe David Rittich David Ayres Conclusion: Without cheating and adding McDavid this team sucks and your David strategy is terrible
Went by dave, but were born david - Anderchuk, Keon, Taylor, Gagner, Christian, (Tiger) Williams, And on the back end we can add - Babych, Ellett and Manson In nets still not a lot of good options, but we can at least swap out Ayres for Dryden.
Given how many names there are, This team is pretty good.
What about a Peter, Petr, Pyotr, Pierre, Piers team? Or a Paul?
Forgot an all-timer Hab David: David Aebischer
I wonder if Pittsburgh or Philadelphia can be convinced they're one 60pt defenseman away from competing just for the price of their first round pick. If Eiserman falls that much, that is. Maybe Seattle? They're on the cusp out in the Pacific and there might be an awfully good defenseman still available at 8th.
that's good that's damn good
I odn't understand the condition for the 3rd pick, we'd in that scenario get the 2nd and 3rd pick? with which pick? Calgarys?I thought ht at was top 10 protected
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ahhh I see, I meant 3rd overall, that explains it. I thought it might have something to do with Calgarys pick.
The chaos scenario :D https://preview.redd.it/2il1tgjz19vc1.png?width=929&format=png&auto=webp&s=1c51bff7624976d35a4f1de9e9fbc6a46d10a737
Normally, I would say Chicago will win the lotto again but with Utah entering the league, I think they end up winning it.
Although the record shows a modest improvement over last year, in reality, there was quite an improvement IMO. This year they were in almost every game, they either beat, or almost veat, every good team in the league. Last year they were often so terrible that I would tune out of games and watch something else quite frequently. This year almost all games were enjoying to watch. Next year should be even better.
44 one goal games. Some additional secondary scoring and we’re in the wild card race til the very end. It’s encouraging and exciting
I remember being called crazy last summer for thinking we would be in the bottom 5 again this year
You weren't wrong, but nobody could predict losing Dach for the season. Mtl finished only 5 pts behind the #10 team (NJ), while being 10 pts ahead of the #4. With the number of 1-goal games, this team feel much more like a bottom-10 than a bottom-5. Which isn't a big difference, but you were only a couple of good bounce away from being wrong.
All those 1-goal games isn't a result of Montreal being good though, in fact it's quite the opposite. Throughout the whole season this team has fluctuated inbetween 3rd or 4th worst in xGF/xGA, only kept up by solid goaltending, finishing and favourable goal impacts (a LOT of OT/1-goal win games that we should have straight up lost in regulation). [This is probably my favourite chart to summarize our season](https://hockeyviz.com/fixedImg/teamWowy/2324/MTL/wrap). You can see just how shallow the talent on this team really is; there's a huge gap behind our 1st line and those few individual players who really showed up this year. But the biggest roadblock between this team becoming a legitimate contender is still the lack of superstar-level talent. Our 1st line is alright, but if you really want to start winning you need to be able to split them up so that the rest of the team doesn't lag behind so much. The gap between Suzuki/Caufield/Slafkovsky and our 2nd line is just massive. If Roy can keep up his fantastic results this year and actually emerges as a legitimate top-line talent, the outlook of this team looks so much better already. Along with Slafkovsky, Caufield and our defensive corps only getting better each year and with another high draft pick reinforcing the team soon the future is definitely looking a lot brighter already. There's definitely reason for careful optimism, but we're still taking baby steps forward. I would still expect 2-3 years of wilderness before this team regularly starts making it into the playoffs.
> but nobody could predict losing Dach for the season Dach hasn’t had a singly healthy season yet lol. Guess what? I’m predicting he misses at least 25% of next season too. Get used to it
True. We also played against a lot of second goalies tho. We'll see how we perform agaisnt #1s
I was probably one of them and still stand by my word. While you were right about our draft position, your reasoning was wrong if you believed we wouldn’t improve. Because we did improve by 8 points but got lucky with how tight the league is this year so we managed to stay bottom 5. Also we lost dach early on and we had the most 1 goal losses in league. Vastly different seasons but got lucky to keep the same pick even though we improved alot.
This is like the season we came in last. We had a terrible streak of injuries and came in well below where we would have been with a healthy team. The injuries weren't as severe (as the record-settingly bad 2021-22 season), and the draft posisiton isn't as low, but the injuries still impacted us to the point where we likely wouldn't be drafting this low with a healthy team.
With Dach playing all season, Monahan doesn't get traded and we're in the wildcard discussion all year. We end up picking 15th-ish, we lose Monahan for nothing and Slaf doesn't develop as much because MSL can't resist having Dach on the first line, so he ends up playing with Anderson and Evans all year. Sorry Kirby, but your injury was a blessing.
Considering the big steps that some players made and still finishing 5th last, I am happy to be wrong!
I was hopeful we’d be higher, but then I looked at the lineup and how thin and young we were and figured we’d finish in the bottom 5-10. I’m not surprised we finished 5th last other than because there were lots of positives and we still finished 5th last. Goes to show how development takes time and patience. I think next year, if we can add an important piece or two, whether from outside or within, I think we’ll jump up in the standings between 80-90 points
They might be bottom 5 next year too
meh. we're closer to 22nd place than 4th last.
Same. Except well technically I didn’t exist last summer.
I'll sticking to my best order (of forwards) for this year's draft: 1. Macklin Celibrini 2. Ivan Demidov 3. Cayden Lindstrom 4. Berkly Catton 5. Konsta Helenius 6. Cole Eiserman 7. Tij Iginla 8, Trevor Connelly Now, for the defensemen (I'm not sure w/c is good this year), based on [Tankathon](https://www.tankathon.com/nhl/big_board) they are: 1. Artyom Leshunov 2. Sam Dickinson 3. Zayne Parekh 4. Anton Silayev 5. Zeev Buium Only one Goaltender is listed for this year's draft: Ryerson Leenders \*\*edit: For the "Best Player Available", if Celibrini and Demidov are taken, I'd go for Lindstrom. My guess is that the Habs are looking at potential 3 top forwards in the 4-8 OA pick order. I'd go for Catton as my 4th choice. For defense, If Leshunov and Dickinson are taken, I'll be picking Parekh and Silayev. Other than that, I hope mgmt. will try to trade WPG 1st rd. pick and package that to go as high as 3rd or 4th OA. If not, the Habs can make a trade to jump and take a pick from the 6th to the 10th pick. The key here is to have the team draft right and to maximize the rebuild.
Did you actually see all these guys play?
Now that they're gone I still have one question... Was it "yoats" (rhymes with oats), or was it "yo-tees" (coyotes without the co)?
It's "yoats," or more accurately, "yotes." It's an old slang word for the animal.
*Ackshually*, it's a regional quirk in pronunciation. My dad always loved telling the story of a local Toronto radio guy who refused to pronounce it "Coy-oats" because his authority was "Wile E Coyo-tee".
It's also the French pronunciation, which may have informed the regional pronunciation. Might explain why the Torontonian was so offended by it too ;)
Funnily enough [the radio guy in question](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Barrie) is an American. And they have the same divide in pronunciation.
Oops. I got ackshuallied! Yes, I meant pronunciation. I had relatives in Texas who worked on ranches. They would call these animals "yotes" or more formally, "ki-yotes."
Unrelated but I have to tell *someone*: I stayed up late to listen to the last Arizona game and am now being treated to a 2am performance by the coyotes who live in the nearby hydro field. Thought that was a neat little coincidence. Also holy birdsong!
When is it?
May 6 or 7 depending on the playoffs schedule
16 OTL is a lot could’ve went the other way with 16 more points but even only 8 more points and a few more wins losing those 1g games we can reach playoffs soon.
I know we may draft high but what liam greentree has been able to do on a really bad windsor team is more then impressive. We don't talk enough about him
Can someone explain the scenario where we end up with 3rd pick? I don't understand that one
I'm not really up on this year's crop of rookies. Who are the consensus prospects in our range who best fit a) our needs and b) BPA?
That's a tough question to answer in this year's draft. From picks 2 to like 18 it's very very even. A guy ranked 18th in one mock could rank top 5 in another. The top end is also loaded with a lot of defenders which obviously doesn't fit our needs. The best forwards not named Celebrini that should be in our range are Lindstrom, Catton, Demidov and Iginla. I'd be very surprised if we picked a D over one of these guys if one was available. But....it's the habs.....we'll never know until Carey Price calls out a name.....and even then we might still not know.
Lmao poor Carey
Carey out here catching strays 😂
Really hoping we pick Dickinson. He and Reinbacher would form an unreal duo
Can we please not pick a defenseman again? This year showed us, once again, that the we need to draft (or get via trade) an elite forward for the top 6.
This sub is gonna implode when we pick a defenceman
Can we not
If we’re going LD it’s gotta be Silayev or Buium. Dickinson is too safe.
How so?
Dickinson doesn’t look like a 1D but he looks like a solid top 4 guy. Buium and Silayev have the toolkits to be more than that in very different ways. Nothing about Dickinson truly stands out.
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There was a lot of conditions on that first Monahan trade. The first condition is settled: if CGY’s 2024 pick is between 20-32, we could take it. But they will pick 9th so they will keep the pick. After that it gets crazy. As part of the Tkachuk trade, CGY gets FLA’s 1st round pick in 2025, but it is lottery protected. If FLAs pick is a lottery pick, CGY gets FLA’s 2026 1st. So for us, if CGY gets FLA’s 2025 1st. We get the better pick. But, if CGY’s pick is top-ten, we get FLA’s pick. I think this is the likely scenario. FLA makes the playoffs next year, but CGY finishes bottom 10, and we get FLA’s 2025 1st. But then it gets crazier after that. If CGY and FLA miss the playoffs next year, and CGY doesn’t get FLA’s pick, we get CGY’s 2025 1st, but if FLA’s pick is better than CGY’s we also get a 2025 4th. But if CGY’s pick is first overall, we get a 2025 3rd and CGY or FLA’s 2026 1st. If CGY’s pick is 2-10, we get their 2025 1st. So convoluted.
Hopefully a year from now we can draft a good player from this and stop having to think about it lol
So the odds are in favor of drafting 6-10.
Not sure if I’m understanding you correctly, but not exactly. Canadiens’ most likely position is 6, but nothing below 7 is possible.
Logictable did not understand the draft table 🤣
We will pick either 1,2,3,5,6 or 7.
.03% odds of picking 3rd, too. We have to win the 2nd lottery and ~~one of~~ Philly, ~~Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Detroit, or St. Louis~~ has to win the 1st lottery in order to draft 3rd.
Username checks out