We knew it before the season, but we needed confirmation. The Canadian is excluded from the playoffs after 75 games. Injury or not, this is what awaited the CH in this first season of reconstruction. Now for the killer question: how long will it be before his next appearance in the spring tournament?
Kent Hughes spoke about two or three years in an interview with the digital daily The Athleticlast week.
Two years would be quite a feat.
Unless the Habs win the Loto Bédard. But don’t bet all your assets on it.
Let’s take the count.
Three years, yes, but under certain conditions.
It will take informed decisions from the leaders of the hockey sector and luck.
And the Stanley Cup, you ask?
Do not go too fast in business!
No cutting overnight
Teams that have won multiple big trophy titles since the turn of the millennium have not gotten there easily, whether we’re talking about the Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Edmonton Oilers and Buffalo Sabers, who have benefited from several first draft picks, are still waiting.
The Oilers bet on the best player on the planet in Connor McDavid, but they come to 22e rank in defense. They won’t bring the cup back to the Alberta capital until they improve in net and on the blue line.
In the case of the Sabres, they would first have to qualify for the playoffs before dreaming of the Cup. They risk missing the playoffs for a 12th consecutive year.
You, supporters of the Canadiens, would you endure such a drought?
Striking examples
Let’s take a look at how the Lightning, Avalanche and Blackhawks traveled to the Cup.
I gave Lightning to my southern main Steven Stamkos in 2008, Victor Hedman in 2009, Nikita Kucherov in 2011 and Andrei Vasilevskiy in 2012.
The Florida team reached the final in 2015, facing the Hawks who were still dominant with the presence in their ranks of players such as Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa and Duncan Keith.
The Lightning returned to the Finals five years later, winning the first of what was two consecutive Holy Grail conquests.
The Colorado Avalanche’s victory over the Lightning last year came 11 years after the arrival of Gabriel Landeskog, nine years after that of Nathan MacKinnon, seven years after that of Mikko Rantanen and five years after that of by Cale Makar.
These examples show that rebuilding a team is not easy. The exercise is equivalent to bringing together the right ingredients for a successful chemical formula.
It can blow you in the face several times before you find the right recipe!
A good start
That said, the leaders of the Canadian have done good things for a year. Starting with Martin St-Louis who knew how to bring the players together for his speech.
Hughes made some good acquisitions securing the services of Mike Matheson and Kirby Dach.
To use a well-known expression, rebuilding a hockey team starts from the back and, in this regard, we can think that the future bodes well for defense.
Credit should be given here to Marc Bergevin and Trevor Timmins for the selections of Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris, Logan Mailloux, Mattias Norlinder, William Trudeau and Jayden Struble, as well as the signing of Arber Xhekaj.
Added to this list is the diminutive Lane Hutson who was drafted by the duo Martin Lapointe and Nick Bobrov last year.
No successor to Price
On the attacking side, Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield are already well established. Rafaël Harvey-Pinard has made his place, but others will be needed.
Let’s see what Joshua Roy, Owen Beck and Riley Kidney can do.
Let’s conclude with the big piece, that is to say the estate of Carey Price.
Without making a comparison, Samuel Montembeault is doing well, but he still has to develop greater consistency.
The watchword is: be patient!
The coach did not like
Martin St-Louis was clear when questioned by reporters about Sean Farrell being on the lineup for Tuesday’s game in Philadelphia.
“That’s a question for Kent,” he replied, referring to Kent Hughes.
We all understood that the decision was not his.
The games may no longer have any meaning for the Canadian, the rule is that we do not send a green rookie into the fray without this player having participated in a few training sessions.
Weak as reason
In Hughes’ absence, Jeff Gorton met with media representatives. He explained Farrell’s use by arguing that relatives and friends had traveled from Boston to see him play.
It’s weak as a reason.
That said, it’s not the end of the world, but we can speak of a first public divergence between St-Louis and its bosses.
The Habs coach has an open mind, but I don’t think he likes having his line of conduct dictated to him.
His strength of character is known to all. This is what allowed him to make his way as a great to the National League and become a member in good standing of the Hockey Hall of Fame.