Cole Caufield is scoring goals, contract-year players are becoming good trade bait, and Lane Hutson is progressing faster than we thought.
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I know about rebuilds.
When I bought a house in the Eastern Townships, the real estate agent gushed about the building’s potential.
That’s real estate speak for “you better be prepared to spend some time and money to make this place livable.
And that’s what we did. We renovated a bathroom and turned a storage space into a second bathroom.
We renovated the kitchen and knocked out a wall to create an open space with the dining room. We replaced the in-ground swimming pool and installed solar panels to heat the water, extending the season from Victoria Day — excusez-moi, Journée nationale des Patriotes — to Thanksgiving.
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The area was littered with tradesmen but finding the right combination of competency and reliability was a challenge. The guy who installed our hardwood floors disappeared before he finished the job, leaving behind an expensive sanding machine. He showed up three weeks later and explained that he found a cheap flight to Florida.
The installation of a stone footing for a wood stove was delayed to accommodate the deer hunting season.
Two full seasons and 11 games into their rebuild, the Canadiens are experiencing some of the same problems. Coach Martin St. Louis spoke recently about transforming a house into a home, and the analogy is apt.
Whether you are renovating a house or a hockey team, you need a clear vision of want in the finished product.
You have to have confidence that you have the right people working for you.
And you have to ignore the garbage that accumulates during construction.
There was nothing pretty about Tuesday’s 8-2 loss to the Seattle Kraken. With the loss, the Canadiens reached the 10-game mark with a 4-5-1 record, three points behind where they were at that point last season.
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The Kraken stormed to a 4-0 lead before the game was 11 minutes old, Sam Montembeault got the hook for the second time this season and the special teams were a disaster, giving up three power-play goals and going 0-for-4 when they had the advantage.
There was talk earlier this year of Montembeault representing Canada at the 4 Nations event in February, but he and Cayden Primeau have been the model of inconsistency.
The loss to the Kraken was enough to make people forget that there has been some progress in the rebuild and, that until Tuesday night, the special teams were, well, special. Even after Thursday’s loss in Washington, the power play was ranked 11th in the NHL and the penalty kill eighth. Last season, the power play was 27th and the PK was 24th.
Two of the most effective penalty killers have been Jake Evans and Joel Armia, both of whom are eligible to become unrestricted free agents next July. Evans has a $1.7-million cap hit and delivers a lot of bang for the buck, and the Canadiens will want to keep him.
Armia has a $3.4-million cap hit which, given his production, qualifies as a bad contract. He won’t be back in Montreal next season but, if he continues to play well on the PK, he could attract some interest at the trade deadline.
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In fact, the Canadiens could be very active in the new year.
Christian Dvorak and David Savard are also in the final year of their contracts. Dvorak’s name appears on a couple of deadline trade target lists because he’s a dependable faceoff guy albeit with limited offensive ability. Savard will be attractive to teams looking for a physical defenceman who blocks shots. He’s a guy I’d like to see stick around, but the Canadiens have too many young defencemen looking for ice time.
There are other positive developments. After 11 games, Cole Caufield shared the NHL lead for goals with 10, and linemate Nick Suzuki was at a point-a-game pace, with Juraj Slafkovsky not far behind.
And then there’s Lane Hutson. As skilled as he is, I had my doubts a 5-foot-10, 162-pounder could survive in the NHL. I thought he would a third-pairing defenceman who would juice up the power play.
A dozen games into his NHL career, he’s a top-four defenceman who leads the team in ice time. His confidence level is over the top and St. Louis hasn’t hesitated to use him in any situation.
And the fans showed their love for him in their dying moments of Tuesday’s loss. The crowd began to thin out midway through the third period but the 7,000 fans who were still in the building unleashed a chorus of boos when the power play once again stalled with five minutes to play.
But when Hutson stepped on the ice with the second unit, the vibe changed and there was a buzz of anticipation. The Canadiens didn’t score but, for Hutson, it was obvious the house had become a home.
phickey0412@gmail.com
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