Canadiens Analysis
A Key Situation Where Hutson Can Help The Canadiens
While many NHL players are enjoying some well-deserved time off, Montreal Canadiens defenceman Lane Hutson is already back at work.
Hutson is taking part in the Bauer hockey camp, a mini-combine that includes a handful of top NHL players. Once the camp is over, don’t be surprised to see Hutson move on to the next available patch of ice.
Simply put, he displays the type of determination and commitment necessary to become an elite athlete. What’s more, he’s aware that he’ll have a target on his back now that he finished top-10 in Norris Trophy voting, not to mention how easily he captured the Calder Trophy as the league’s best rookie.
ON TOPIC: Lane Hutson Sets The Bar For The Montreal Canadiens Rebuild
Dedication aside, these camps also give players a chance to stretch their legs, playing in situations that may not be in their familiar wheelhouse.
For example, Hutson’s beautiful shootout goal on Friday was a healthy reminder that he may have even more to give to the Canadiens.
Lane Hutson working on his shootout moves at Bauer Hockey camp 🔥 pic.twitter.com/7WJrbvFdZm
— /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) June 13, 2025
Montreal Canadiens Angle
Of course, scoring at a camp is completely different from scoring in the NHL, but it’s not the first time Hutson has dazzled with his shootout excellence.
His sweet deke versus Germany in 2023 was among the nicest shootout goals of the tournament, and you’d be hard-pressed to argue the impressive combination of dekes and fakes would not work in a different setting.
Lane Hutson (MTL) during the exhibition shootout showed off his spectacular puckhandling ability. Mercy. pic.twitter.com/yzc0Zzr8Y5
— Chris Peters (@chrismpeters) May 9, 2023
The Canadiens were not sunk by their lacklustre results, but the fact that they only won two of their six shootouts last season could lead to a problem down the road.
The Habs required overtime to settle the score on 22 occasions, which connotes they were fairly lucky not to have participated in more shootouts. To make matters more interesting, Nick Suzuki failed to score on all four of his attempts, a complete reversal in fortunes compared to his first few seasons in the league.
Only five Canadiens players managed a shootout goal, with Emil Heineman, Kirby Dach, and Oliver Kapanen scoring on their lone opportunity. Patrik Laine went 2 for 4, while Cole Caufield hit 2 of 6.
That being said, Hutson also failed to score in his lone shootout chance, joining Alex Newhook, Mike Matheson, Juraj Slafkovsky, Logan Mailloux, and Christian Dvorak in the 0 for 1 category.
Scoring goals is far from Hutson’s greatest strength at 5v5, as he tends to use low shots to generate second-chance scoring opportunities for his teammates, but if he’s given enough time and space he has shown the ability to display some dazzling hand-eye coordination, making the shootout an interesting option for the 21-year-old defenceman.
This may not seem like a pressing issue, but in a league with forced parity, a few points can be the difference between an encouraging playoff appearance and failure of a season.
In addition to Ivan Demidov’s golden hands, Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis may want to turn to Hutson the next time a game is on the line.
Top #GoHabsGo prospect Ivan Demidov scores a very nice goal in the shootout to win it for Russia U-23. pic.twitter.com/Fh5gFz0Frr
— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) August 29, 2024
Considering how Patrick Kane was his favourite player growing up, it’s no surprise that he has a similar style shootout-wise. He’s going to score a lot of shootout goals into wide open nets with goalies lying on the ice minus their jockstraps and having suffered broken ankles. The thought of Hutson, Demidov, Caufield, Suzuki and more feeding off each other in practices with trying to one-up each other with their slick hands and trickery is enough to make one giddy with excitement. I predict a lot of gaping jaws and “Did you just see that?!” from fans and media over the next decade.