2025-26 Montreal Canadiens discussion thread

[The Chicoutimi Cucumber]

I'm pretty confident that he will assume the proud mantle of Jeff Petry and Mike Mattheson: an indispensable puck-moving defenceman who eats monster minutes and plays a critical role in driving the team's transition game, all the while being demonized by significant chunks of an ingrate fanbase for occasional defensive miscues. 🤷‍♂️ This goes back decades among Habs fans.

[Commandant]

31 minutes ago, The Chicoutimi Cucumber said:

I'm pretty confident that he will assume the proud mantle of Jeff Petry and Mike Mattheson: an indispensable puck-moving defenceman who eats monster minutes and plays a critical role in driving the team's transition game, all the while being demonized by significant chunks of an ingrate fanbase for occasional defensive miscues. 🤷‍♂️ This goes back decades among Habs fans.

 

100%.

 

He was already demonized by Isles fans for occassional giveways (even before the trade) and that is despite his Even strength defence being ranked 87% percentile in those stat charts.  People just only see the bad plays and not good ones.

[GHT120]

So the subjective fan reaction that "his fingerprints were on more goals against" is not supported by the objective fact that "he was on the ice for fewer shots and expected goals against at five-on-five this past year, compared to 2023-24" .

[DON]

 

2025-26 Depth Assessment: Goalies – HabsWorld.net

 

Needs Assessment: Low – Is this Montreal’s long-term tandem between the pipes?  Probably not but Montembeault is set as the starter for the next little while and they need to see if Dobes is a potential longer-term option for them.  With playoff hopes, there’s some risk here but no realistic way to get a meaningful upgrade either.

 

Needs Assessment: Low – With what should be (pending waiver clearance) Kahkonen and Fowler in goal, Laval’s in good shape.  With Gaudreau and Jones set to play in Trois-Rivieres as well, they’re set unless they want a third goalie.

[DON]

Way-too-early predictions for the 2025-26 NHL season: Stanley Cup winner, awards and more - The Athletic

[The Chicoutimi Cucumber]

2 hours ago, DON said:

Way-too-early predictions for the 2025-26 NHL season: Stanley Cup winner, awards and more - The Athletic

 

A surprisingly realistic list. 

[DON]

Same article.

Go Marty!

 

https://www.prohockeyrumors.com/2025/07/canadiens-still-have-work-to-do-this-summer.html

[Prime Minister Koivu]

 

This tweet really put our current team in perspective. 
 

Only two seasons ago this was our lineup - WOW

[tomh009]

4 hours ago, Prime Minister Koivu said:

This tweet really put our current team in perspective. 
 

Only two seasons ago this was our lineup - WOW

Yeah. Mind you, that was after a bunch of injuries. But Armia-Dvorak-Drouin on the second line, oof.

[Habs Fan in Edmonton]

31 minutes ago, tomh009 said:

Yeah. Mind you, that was after a bunch of injuries. But Armia-Dvorak-Drouin on the second line, oof.

The 3rd and 4th lines were nothing to write home about either.

[DON]

Which NHL teams improved the most this offseason? Ranking all 32 - The Athletic

2. Montreal Canadiens
Net Rating added: +23

In: Zack Bolduc, Noah Dobson
Out: Emil Heineman, Logan Mailloux, David Savard, Christian Dvorak, Joel Armia

If you’re a Canadiens fan, it’s time to get excited. Only one team has improved more over the last summer externally and it’s likely that few teams will improve more internally, given the collective age of Montreal’s roster.

[DON]

 

2025-26 Depth Assessment: Right Defencemen – HabsWorld.net

 

Needs Assessment: Medium – Some might disagree with this but if you’re like me and think the depth on the left side might be thinner by the start of the season, there could be an opportunity to balance things a little better.

 

One other NHL-calibre prospect wouldn’t hurt but it’s not a huge need.

[Prime Minister Koivu]

Dog days of summer…

 

Future Calder trophy winner doing fun things 

[Dalhabs]

56 minutes ago, Prime Minister Koivu said:

Dog days of summer…

 

Future Calder trophy winner doing fun things 

Demidov can take Hutsons spot on PP2.

[Commandant]

3 minutes ago, Dalhabs said:

Demidov can take Hutsons spot on PP2.

 

????

[Dalhabs]

39 minutes ago, Commandant said:

 

????

Hutson will play on PP unit 1. Demidov can have same role on PP unit two.

[Commandant]

35 minutes ago, Dalhabs said:

Hutson will play on PP unit 1. Demidov can have same role on PP unit two.

 

I think demidov will be at RW on PP1

 

Dobson will qb PP2

 

Umbrella style.

 

Slafkovsky

Caufield - Suzuki - Demidov

Hutson

 

Gallagher

Laine - Dach - Bolduc

Dobson

[JoeLassister]

21 minutes ago, Commandant said:

 

I think demidov will be at RW on PP1

 

Dobson will qb PP2

 

Umbrella style.

 

Slafkovsky

Caufield - Suzuki - Demidov

Hutson

 

Gallagher

Laine - Dach - Bolduc

Dobson

I think we're quick to demote Matheson from all PP units, but maybe this is where the team is at now.

[Commandant]

2 hours ago, JoeLassister said:

I think we're quick to demote Matheson from all PP units, but maybe this is where the team is at now.

 

He should be a PP guy in the NHL, just not on a team with Hutson and Dobson.  Im not a fan of 2D on PP.

 

Its a nice luxury to have 

[GHT120]

1 hour ago, Commandant said:

Its a nice luxury to have 

It also keeps an option in reserve in case things aren't working for some reason

[GHT120]

Slaf skipping a Slovakian National team-building event to attend Suzuki's wedding ... I've heard/read there has been some negative public reaction "back home".

 

Google Translate:

The SZĽH is organizing a team building event for the national team this weekend, about 40 players were invited.

❌ Juraj Slafkovský, Šimon Nemec

Šatan: I spoke with Juraj on the phone, but we couldn't agree on a date. He is going to the wedding of Montreal's captain Suzuki. Besides him, other players will also be missing.

[The Chicoutimi Cucumber]

59 minutes ago, GHT120 said:

Slaf skipping a Slovakian National team-building event to attend Suzuki's wedding ... I've heard/read there has been some negative public reaction "back home".

 

Google Translate:

The SZĽH is organizing a team building event for the national team this weekend, about 40 players were invited.

❌ Juraj Slafkovský, Šimon Nemec

Šatan: I spoke with Juraj on the phone, but we couldn't agree on a date. He is going to the wedding of Montreal's captain Suzuki. Besides him, other players will also be missing.

 

I think a friend's wedding is a valid reason to skip out on some 'team building event.' It's not like he's missing a practice or something. What this suggests to me, frankly, is that key players on this Habs team are a close-knit bunch. That's only to the good.

[Habs Fan in Edmonton]

1 hour ago, The Chicoutimi Cucumber said:

 

I think a friend's wedding is a valid reason to skip out on some 'team building event.' It's not like he's missing a practice or something. What this suggests to me, frankly, is that key players on this Habs team are a close-knit bunch. That's only to the good.

 

100%

[tomh009]

Scott Wheeler's 2022 re-draft in The Athletic:

 

(Logan Cooley as first pick in the re-draft)

2. New Jersey Devils: LHD Lane Hutson

Actual draft pick: No. 62 (change: +60) to Montreal
My final ranking: No. 19 (change: +17)

 

What’s more valuable, a good but not superstar first-line center, or an elite offensive defenseman? I think there’s a case to be made either way, and debated re-drafting Hutson at No. 1 here, but I leaned Cooley for now (I could see myself switching when I redo this at the decade mark, though) and think the league probably would too, rightly or wrongly.

 

This is one I’m proud of, though, because it’s easier to find ways to talk yourself out of picking a player who profiled like Hutson did at the time than it is to stick your neck out for him (see: the other 31 teams talking themselves out of it and even the Habs taking Filip Mesar and Owen Beck before they took him) and I’ve stuck my neck out for him again and again over the years and trusted and nailed my evaluation of the player.

 

Here’s an excerpt from my report on Hutson at the time:

“The reality is there aren’t many defencemen Hutson’s size who play in the NHL, even as the game changes. And those guys have never been selected in the first round. But there aren’t many players who play like Hutson in hockey either. I often get asked just how high he’d go if he were 6-foot-3 and the reality is that he wouldn’t be able to do a lot of what makes him so interesting at that size. He’s a unique player who uses a light (though not powerful) stride to create entries and exits, weave past coverage, escape pressure, and find or create seams.

 

“He sees the ice as well as anyone in the draft, regularly identifying plays a step ahead of the opposition. He has an uncanny knack for executing long east-to-west plays, whether that’s feathering high, leading saucer passes with perfect weight cross-ice or flinging a hard pass to a streaking teammate’s tape. He makes a ton of plays under pressure when other players would panic (though sometimes he could actually use some hurry-up to his game haha).

 

“Inside the offensive zone, though his shot lacks power, he acts as a fourth forward with his ability to slide off the line and create. He’s got shakes and shimmies to spare, routinely making opposing defenders miss one-on-one in all three zones. He’s one of the most clever players in the draft. And while his size will continue to make evaluators pause, I actually quite like the way he defends. He gets back to so many loose pucks that he doesn’t have to rely all that much on engaging in battles and even when he does, his positioning and active stick help him disrupt opposing carriers and break up plays.

 

“But above all else, he’s the kind of player where when you think you’ve put him in a difficult spot or you’ve got him cornered, he’ll show you that he isn’t with a spin (or a spin into a spin!), a fake (with his eyes, or head, or shoulders, or hands, or feet, or each) or his sublime vision through layers. He just looks right past what’s in front of him.

“I’m fascinated to see where he’s picked, because I wouldn’t shy away from taking him in the late first and if he’s around on Day 2 it’d be a no-brainer for me.”

 

Nailed it.

3. Arizona Coyotes: LW Juraj Slafkovský

Actual draft pick: No. 1 (change: -2) to Montreal
My final ranking: No. 5 (change: +2)

 

When I included Slafkovský in my players I was wrong about column last year, I wrote that “When I look back at where I was at on Slafkovský pre-draft and actually read over my report, I think it 1) had the player from a makeup/skills perspective accurately scouted and depicted and 2) was quite measured in its analysis and projection” and “You don’t rank a player in the top five and in the top tier of a draft class if you don’t see serious upside.”

 

I also wrote that I could live with having Cooley, Shane Wright and Simon Nemec ahead of him because, even with the benefit of hindsight, I think my process in slotting those players above Slafkovský was sound.

 

I confessed in that piece that it was Matt Savoie at No. 4 that I really missed on, though, and wondered if I should give more consideration to draft range and the way it will influence a player’s opportunity, development, usage and ultimately success in my projections. For a long time, I thought about my projections exclusively in my own terms/the way I viewed the player’s upside. But I knew that Slafkovský was in the conversation at No. 1 for Montreal when I published my list and I knew that Savoie was going to go closer to No. 10 and that does influence what follows (i.e., getting an opportunity to play on a first line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, who Montreal was wise to play him with).

 

Slafkovský was also just a better player and prospect, but I’ve thought about that ripple (the way their players are viewed by others) a little more in shaping my own evaluations since. It’s a delicate balance because the danger is that you stop trusting yourself and groupthink takes over, but at the very top of the draft in a scenario like 2022’s where Slafkovský was going to go No. 1 or close and Savoie wasn’t, that was going to give Slafkovský a leg up and a higher chance of success, which is what I’m ultimately trying to project.

[Prime Minister Koivu]

Lots of players in Montreal practicing

 

I interesting bit about Evans - whom I suppose is a veteran mentor now lol 

 

Please have a monster year Laine 🎉