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Canadiens Analysis

Trade Talk: The Canadiens Will Have To Adapt To Losing Barron

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10 months ago

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Montreal Canadiens defenceman Justin Barron

Now that the dust has settled following the Montreal Canadiens trade that sent Justin Barron to the Nashville Predators in exchange for Alexandre Carrier, it’s time to discuss some issues and boons that may arise without Barron in the mix.

The first thing I’d like to address is the pushback from some regarding the original trade to acquire Barron from the Colorado Avalanche. Many were upset that I said it was a bad trade, and thus, a mistake.

I understand the power of tribalism, but if we remove emotion from the equation, it was a trade that did not work out, and since the Canadiens were hoping Barron would be in the NHL by now, it did not meet the intended results.

By definition, that is a mistake.

In the professional sports landscape, mistakes are par for the course. Mitigating the damage made by the inevitable mistakes is what matters most, and there’s no doubt Kent Hughes and Co. did a good job recouping value by acquiring Carrier.

The ultimate sin would be ignoring mistakes, but thankfully, Hughes did not take that route.

Frankly, I’m surprised Nashville agreed to the deal, but much like it was in the Yaroslav Askarov dossier, their handling of Carrier was confusing, at best.


Justin Barron’s Impact

Even though Hughes made the correct decision by cutting his losses and avoiding the fallacy of being pot committed, it doesn’t mean Barron did not bring any value to the table for the Montreal Canadiens.


He was one of the best offensive blueliners on the team, and though his time with the Canadiens was tumultuous, they will miss his shot production, which ranked third among all defencemen this season.


Barron was taking 4.2 shots per 60 at 5v5, which was more than certain forwards, including Juraj Slafkovsky, Jake Evans, and Patrik Laine. When we consider the Canadiens just set a record for the longest streak of games (31) without reaching at least 30 shots, losing Barron’s shot production is far from ideal.

The main player I would task with shooting more often is also the youngest player in the lineup, but Slafkovsky’s low shot output has been a problem since he entered the league, which suggests the uptick will probably have to come from multiple players rather than just one source.

Montreal Canadiens Goal Production

We have to recognize Carrier is much more reliable in his own zone, and that the Canadiens also have significant issues in their own end, but if the team is to improve, they will have to compensate for the loss of Barron’s offensive impact. Only then will Carrier’s improved defensive play provide heightened value.

We should probably point out Barron’s goal production was very healthy considering his inconsistent usage. Last season, only Johnathan Kovacevic (6) scored more 5v5 goals than Barron (5) on the Canadiens’ blue line. Kovacevic also featured in 14 additional games.

With Lane Hutson in the mix, the overall impact of Barron’s loss is mitigated, but even when both players were in the lineup, the Habs struggled to generate shots and score goals, which connotes the team’s forwards will have to pick up the slack, as they’re the ones in a situation that’s conducive to  rectifying the issue by taking more shots.

All Montreal Canadiens statistics are 5v5 unless otherwise noted, via Natural Stat Trick.

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