What are your thoughts on the current status of the Canadiens’ rebuild? Are they behind or ahead? My own feeling is they have improved, but the young defencemen are struggling this year and some bad goals against have cost them.
Retired Hulkamaniac on X — @WholesalerCynic
I think it takes five years before you can start to really analyze whether a rebuild is working. This is only Year 3 for the Canadiens and the first 11 games have definitely been a step back from management’s pre-season goal of being “in the mix” for a playoff spot. The pre-season knee injury suffered by Patrik Laine didn’t help and the growing pains with the young defencemen have been very painful, along with shaky goaltending from both Samuel Montembeault and Cayden Primeau. Heading into the season I thought the defence and goaltending were the two biggest question marks. The lack of compete level in some games, which has led to so many blowouts, has been my biggest concern so far and the frustration of losing (and poor goaltending) might be starting to set in. That’s not a good thing.
Do you think Martin St. Louis’s honeymoon is over?
N P on X — @Consolidator01
All honeymoons come to an end and that’s definitely starting with St. Louis with the Canadiens giving up six goals or more in five of their first 11 games.
Fans have been patient during this rebuild, but now they’re frustrated and it showed when the Canadiens were booed at the Bell Centre at the end of Tuesday’s 8-2 loss to the Seattle Kraken. It’s one thing for a rebuilding team to lose games, but getting blown out so often is unacceptable.
St. Louis skated his players hard at practice Friday in Washington before they flew to Pittsburgh for Saturday’s game against the Penguins (7 p.m., SNE, Citytv, TVA Sports).
Does anyone on the coaching staff feel at this point that their system might be just a little bit too complicated for such a young team? It appears that at certain points in every game confusion reigns.
Chris Bogucki on X — @ChrisHabs18
Since they are still sticking to St. Louis’s hybrid defensive-zone system — which is a mix of zone and man-to-man — the answer seems to be no. St. Louis doesn’t believe the players are confused, noting that no system is bulletproof, but that when his system is executed properly it’s a good one and that he’s not worried about the defensive structure. “It’s just driving home the details inside of it,” he said recently. But it certainly does look like the Canadiens are confused in their own end and it would be a good idea to simplify things.
Do you see Mike Matheson on this team next season?
#38@Marchellus on X — @DonMarcellus7
If we’ve learned one thing through the first 11 games, it’s how hard it is to win with a young defence corps. Teams need to have some veterans and Matheson is a good one to keep around for what he does on the ice, as well as the role model and leader he is off the ice. The 30-year-old has one more season after this left on his contract and if the Canadiens are going to move him I would think it would be at next season’s trade deadline. Unless, of course, they decide to re-sign Matheson, which at this point doesn’t look like a bad idea.
What would you look to draft if you were Canadiens GM Kent Hughes? Goalie? Forward? Defenceman? Or trade it away and upgrade at right defence or with a top-six forward?
CaleDoyle on X — @cagglecale
It certainly looks like the Canadiens are going to get a high draft pick for the fourth straight year. Teams can get into trouble when they draft by position high in the draft instead of just taking the best available player. Jesperi Kotkaniemi (drafted No. 3 overall in 2018) is one example when the Canadiens were desperate for a centre. The Canadiens could have had left-winger Brady Tkachuk, who instead went to Ottawa with the next pick and is now captain of the Senators with 6-7-13 totals in nine games this season and 168 goals during his seven seasons in the NHL. Kotkaniemi, now with the Carolina Hurricanes, has 65 career goals. It’s too early to say, but defenceman David Reinbacher could end up being another example after the Canadiens took him with the No. 5 overall pick in 2023 in large part because he’s a right-shot defenceman. The Canadiens could have had right-winger Matvei Michkov, who went to Philadelphia with the No. 7 pick and has 4-5-9 totals in his first 11 games with the Flyers this season. If the Canadiens end up with a high pick again at next year’s draft I’d be surprised if they trade it.
How did you like Bruce Springsteen’s concert Thursday night?
D. Boivin @AllenDenB
It was an awesome three-hour show by The Boss. The Canadiens need more players to put in the same effort on the ice as the 75-year-old Springsteen does on stage.
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