Headlines

  • Jeff Skinner Signs With Sharks
  • Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Henry Thrun
  • Avalanche Sign Josh Manson To Two-Year Extension
  • Stars Trade Matt Dumba To Penguins
  • Panthers Sign Mackie Samoskevich To One-Year Deal
  • Golden Knights Beginning To Work Out Jack Eichel Extension
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • MLB Trade Rumors
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors

Pro Hockey Rumors

  • Home
  • Teams
    • Atlantic
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Central
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Dallas Stars
      • Minnesota Wild
      • Nashville Predators
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Utah Mammoth
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • Metropolitan
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Pacific
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Partners
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Montreal Canadiens

December 15, 2017 at 7:44 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

As the holiday season approaches, PHR will look at what teams are thankful for as the season nears the quarter point of completion. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We take a look at what’s gone well in the first month and what could improve as the season rolls on. So far we’ve covered the following teams:

Atlantic: BOS, BUF, DET, FLA, TOR
Metropolitan: 
CAR, CBJ, NJD, NYI, NYR, PHI, PIT, WSH
Central: 
COL, MIN, NSH, STL
Pacific:
ANA, ARZ, CGY, EDM, LAK, SJS, VAN, VGK

What are the Canadiens most thankful for?

A watered-down Atlantic Division.  Beyond Tampa Bay and Toronto, the last guaranteed playoff spot is up for grabs and so far, none of the six other teams in the Atlantic have staked a claim.  The Canadiens have underachieved and had already endured losing streaks of five and seven games before they hit the 30-game mark of the season.  Most years and in most divisions, that’s all but a death knell but with the current state of the division, they’re still within striking distance of a playoff position.

Who are the Canadiens most thankful for?

Nov 21, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Montreal Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher (11) skates against the Dallas Stars during the game at the American Airlines Center. The Stars defeat the Canadiens 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY SportsStaying healthy has been an issue for winger Brendan Gallagher the last couple of years, particularly when it comes to his hand which has been broken twice already.  As a result, he was largely ineffective last season which led to some speculation about his future with the team.  Fortunately for the Canadiens, he has been one of their most consistent forwards and leads the team in goals with 13 and is tied for the team lead in points with 19 which is strong value for his $3.75MM cap hit.  With Montreal’s attack struggling for big chunks of the season already, he has been one of their lone bright spots up front.

GM Marc Bergevin showed earlier this summer how much he believes in goaltender Carey Price when he signed the netminder to an eight-year, $84MM extension.  Price’s play has been up-and-down this season while he missed ten games with a lower-body injury.  However, Montreal has their franchise player locked up long-term and in doing so, they are avoiding the inevitable media frenzy that would have existed had he entered the season without a new deal.  Even though his numbers are far from strong so far, this team will go as far as Price can take them and if he gets on a run, the odds of them making the postseason will go up considerably.

[Related: Canadiens Depth Chart from Roster Resource]

What would the Canadiens be even more thankful for?

Their top players playing like their top players.  We’ve already looked at Price’s struggles but their top forwards aren’t.  Winger Max Pacioretty, who has led the Canadiens in scoring for the past six seasons, has just eight goals and 18 points so far and has only scored once in the last month.  Center Jonathan Drouin, their top acquisition over the summer, has just five tallies in 27 contests.  While he sits second on the team in assists, they were clearly expecting more goal production out of him when they immediately signed him to a six-year deal after the trade was made.  Those two were expected to lead the way offensively and if they can start doing so, Montreal would be in much better shape.

What should be on the Canadiens’ Holiday Wish List?

Following a summer that saw Montreal fail to re-sign both winger Alexander Radulov and defenseman Andrei Markov, there are sizable weaknesses both on the back end and up front.  Finding a reliable partner to play on the left side alongside Shea Weber would certainly be beneficial while they’ve been seeking a top-line center for many years now.  That said, any sort of offensive boost would be an upgrade.

The Canadiens will have the ability to add significant salary between now and the deadline as they currently project to be more than $7.4MM under the cap, per CapFriendly.  That would allow them to absorb a big-ticket contract without having to send money the other way, something that most teams looking to buy won’t be able to do.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Share 0 Retweet 0 Send via email

Montreal Canadiens

Atlantic Notes: O’Reilly, Nylander, Marner, Borgstrom
Main
East Notes: Red Wings, Islanders Arena, Senators
View Comments (0)

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Jeff Skinner Signs With Sharks

    Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Henry Thrun

    Avalanche Sign Josh Manson To Two-Year Extension

    Stars Trade Matt Dumba To Penguins

    Panthers Sign Mackie Samoskevich To One-Year Deal

    Golden Knights Beginning To Work Out Jack Eichel Extension

    Lightning Acquire Sam O’Reilly From Oilers For Isaac Howard

    NHL, NHLPA Ratify Four-Year CBA Extension

    Gavin McKenna To Commit To Penn State

    Tyler Johnson Announces Retirement

    Recent

    West Notes: Sharks, Lord, Prosvetov

    Erik Karlsson Open To Being Traded To A Handful Of Teams

    Minor Transactions: 7/11/25

    Snapshots: Drouin, Hoefenmayer, CBA

    Blues’ First-Rounder Justin Carbonneau Will Return To QMJHL

    Wild Re-Sign Michael Milne

    Jeff Skinner Signs With Sharks

    Submit Your Questions For The #PHRMailbag

    Jets Re-Sign Isaak Phillips To Two-Year Contract

    Canadiens Still Have Work To Do This Summer

    Rumors By Team

    Rumors By Team

    • Avalanche Rumors
    • Blackhawks Rumors
    • Blue Jackets Rumors
    • Blues Rumors
    • Bruins Rumors
    • Canadiens Rumors
    • Canucks Rumors
    • Capitals Rumors
    • Devils Rumors
    • Ducks Rumors
    • Flames Rumors
    • Flyers Rumors
    • Golden Knights Rumors
    • Hurricanes Rumors
    • Islanders Rumors
    • Jets Rumors
    • Kings Rumors
    • Kraken Rumors
    • Lightning Rumors
    • Mammoth Rumors
    • Maple Leafs Rumors
    • Oilers Rumors
    • Panthers Rumors
    • Penguins Rumors
    • Predators Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Red Wings Rumors
    • Sabres Rumors
    • Senators Rumors
    • Sharks Rumors
    • Stars Rumors
    • Wild Rumors

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • 2025’s Top 50 Unrestricted Free Agents
    • Sam Bennett Rumors
    • Nikolaj Ehlers Rumors
    • Mitch Marner Rumors
    • Marco Rossi Rumors

    Pro Hockey Rumors Features

    Pro Hockey Rumors Features

    • Support Pro Hockey Rumors And Go Ad-Free
    • 2025 Free Agent Focus Series
    • 2025 Offseason Checklist Series
    • 2025 NHL Free Agent List
    • 2026 NHL Free Agent List
    • Active Roster Tracker
    • Coaching Staff Directory
    • Draft Pick Tracker 2025
    • Key Offseason Dates
    • Offseason Trade Tracker
    • Pro Hockey Rumors On X
    • Pro Hockey Rumors Polls
    • Waiver Claims 2024-25

     

     

     

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives

    PHR Info

    • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Commenting Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version