Message Sent: Canadiens Run New Lines, Demote Top Players

Despite the Montreal Canadiens playing a much healthier brand of hockey in the five games leading up to Saturday’s matchup, the team’s lifeless 6-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights was enough to re-ignite the concerns that plagued the team at the start of the season.

The issues were particularly evident, as the Habs were coming off their best outing of the season, a 3-0 blanking of Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers. The juxtaposition in results was too much to ignore.

There’s always a certain grace period needed when discussing rebuilding organization, but preaching patience to Habs fans when the team offers Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde performances is starting to wear thin. Effort, commitment, and focus are free, and we must never forget that visiting the Bell Centre costs a lot of money in an economy that doesn’t necessarily allow for it in many households.

For some, making the trip to Montreal is a once-in-a-lifetime event. Paying hundreds, or much more, to attend a sports event means that there needs to be a minimal level of entertainment involved, that’s the unspoken rule between sports teams and the people who fill their coffers.

Montreal Canadiens Internal Solutions

Of course, you can’t simply rip the entire team apart, which is why the Montreal Canadiens took a different route on Monday when they recalled forward Joshua Roy from the Laval Rocket. The 21-year-old has scored eight goals and eight assists in 17 games, but more importantly, he represents a player who is expected to make a significant impact on the team for years to come.

Some of you already know how I feel about the decision to send Roy down after a relatively disappointing training camp. We won’t delve into the specifics, and there are always many factors in play, but suffice it to say the Habs are a worse team without Roy in the lineup.

It’s also worth pointing out Patrik Laine featured in a regular jersey, which means he’s been cleared for contact. Don’t expect him to return to play this week, but we’ve reached the point where we can start to visualize where he will end up.

On top of promoting Roy, head coach Martin St-Louis decided it was time to mix things up among his forwards, running a new lineup at practice that is clearly a message to those struggling, despite his insistence that playing Juraj Slafkovsky and Kirby Dach on the fourth line was anything but.

“I don’t know if it’s a message. On the board, they’re probably the 4th (line). When the game starts, it’s about how you handle yourself. Is it a message? I don’t think it’s a message. Just get to work.”

– Coach Marty today on Dach & Slafkovsky being listed on the Habs 4th line pic.twitter.com/1cZ6HR44wG

— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) November 25, 2024

Montreal Canadiens Forward Combinations

Cole Caufield – Nick Suzuki – Alex Newhook
Emil Heineman – Jake Evans – Joshua Roy
Josh Anderson – Christian Dvorak – Brendan Gallagher
Juraj Slafkovsky – Kirby Dach – Joel Armia

Patrik Laine took a few rushes with the first line, but seeing as he won’t be ready to play in the next couple of games, it seems that St-Louis wants to kickstart Newhook’s season, which has been quite disappointing from almost every angle. His blazing speed has been neutered by the fact that he spends most of his shifts defending, with the odd rush toward the opposing net sprinkled in every fifth game.

That’s not to say the combination won’t work, but statistically speaking, adding Newhook to the first line is the equivalent of tying a cinder block to a surfboard before you head out to the chop. The team still lacks talent upfront, and therefore we have to acknowledge that St-Louis options are limited, but it’s not to the point where the lineup can afford any unforced errors, such as tanking the top line. Again, I could be very wrong in my assessment, we’ll have to wait and see, but this feels like the Anderson on the top line redux, minus Anderson’s physical play.

The most interesting change was seeing Emil Heineman join Roy and Jake Evans on the second line, a combination that should help Roy maintain an elevated level of effort, a necessary step if he’s to avoid heading back to the Laval Rocket. There’s a healthy chance that the second line ends up with a bottom-six assignment midway through Tuesday’s game against the Utah Hockey Club, especially if the team starts out with the intensity and effort level of a frozen bag of carrots, as they did on Saturday, but in the meantime we will get to watch three underrated players at work.

The third line remained intact, one of the few bright spots this season. Having enough time to build (and maintain) chemistry is one of the major reasons why they’ve surpassed expectations.

The same cannot be said for Slafkovsky and Dach, as they’ve been played up and down the lineup, with every third game or so involving a new assignment. Both players have been underwhelming, but we should probably guard against putting them in the same boat. Slafkovsky has actually improved on a few key statistics this year, despite his lack of goals. As per usual, his low shot output is the culprit when discussing his weaknesses.

MUST READ: The Biggest Issue Holding Back Juraj Slafkovsky’s Goal Production

But it’s not as simple for Dach. He’ll need more time, because the rust ran a little deeper than we expected, but blindly coughing up pucks in the defensive zone is not a rust issue. As it stands, Dach is a player that is playing with little to no confidence, and there’s very little confidence to be found on the fourth line.

However, this is not Dach’s first kick at the can. He’s played on almost every line this year, making the decision to demote him to the fourth line, as temporary as it may be, somewhat logical.

The message is simple.

Train hard and play harder, while providing the type of intensity and work ethic that is necessary to not just survive, but to thrive in the NHL.