by Blain Potvin, Staff Writer, All Habs Hockey Magazine
Welcome to the Habs mid-season report! In part one of the series, we covered defence and goaltenders and graded them based on how they look on the ice and how they’ve performed for the first half of the season. For part two, we will be taking a look at the team’s forwards and head coach Claude Julien.
As a group, the forwards have been much better than expected, in my opinion and boast eight players who are scoring 0.5 points per game (P/GP) or better.
Jonathan Drouin: B-
Statistically, the talented winger is on pace for his best season yet. Being shifted back to the wing has relieved him from the responsibilities of a centre that he couldn’t handle. Drouin’s defensive game is still a work in progress. Offensively, he produces at 0.73 (P/PG) pace based on his talent alone.
His grade is low despite this production for two reasons, the first being that his defensive game is very rough. He continues to make major errors in his zone that lead to goals against. He likely won’t eliminate this from his game, but if he worked to correct these mistakes it would go a long way to elevating his overall game.
Secondly, his work ethic is not consistent. Drouin has the talent to be a top-six forward and on the nights he decides to work, he can take over parts of a the game. Much like Alex Kovalev used to do, Drouin will take nights off and be invisible. At 23, Drouin has time to find a more consistent level of play, but until then his grade will be lower than his potential.
Max Domi: A-
Domi joined the team after a controversial trade that saw Alex Galchenyuk sent to Arizona prior to the start of the season. Domi was coming off of back-to-back nine goal campaigns and raised concerns about his production.
Domi’s personality and work ethic seem to have been a perfect fit with the Montreal market and lineup. He is producing at a 0.87 point per game pace and for the first part of the season was playing well enough as a top line center to help the Habs fight for a playoff spot.
He is the type of player that elevates his game in big moments. However, he is in an emotional and production funk over the dog days of the season. Domi has been in a scoring drought and often takes bad penalties. He is often times overwhelmed in the face-off circle and defensively in his own zone. His score would be higher if his defensive game was more suited to being a true top line center.
Paul Byron: A-
Byron is the veteran leader of the forward group. Being named as alternate captain helped solidify that position. His speed, work ethic and hockey IQ set a great example for the younger players to follow. Despite missing time due to injury, he is on pace for his third straight 20 goal season.
Byron’s grade is high not due to his production, but his dedication to his two-way game playing in all situations. He will also play on any line without ever changing his demeanour or approach. I think that Byron exemplifies the type of attitude necessary to be one of the leaders in dressing room.
Tomas Tatar: A-
Having come into town as a “throw in” in the Max Pacioretty trade likely wasn’t an easy situation. Yet Tatar waived his no-trade clause and since day one of camp, he has embraced the fresh start he was offered in a traditional hockey market.
Tatar is on pace for a career record season in points and as many as 30 goals. His ability to play a full 200-foot game is highly appreciated by Claude Julien, as he is on the ice in key defensive moments as well. His grade reflects his work ethic and production as well as his attitude.
Phillip Danault: B+
Danault is being groomed as a defensive specialist at center, taking over that role from Tomas Plekanec. He is on pace for a career best in points, all while facing the NHL’s best forwards every night. He is also relied upon to take defensive face-offs as one of the team leaders in that category.
Danault is not considered an ideal top six center, though if he were to finish the season with close to 50 points while playing his defensive role, he will please his coach. His game is still growing which means any defensive mistakes are amplified and must be avoided. He also needs to find a more consistent offensive game. His grade reflects his inconsistent offence alongside his defensive acumen.
Brendan Gallagher: A+
Gallagher is the heart and soul player that every team desperately wants to have. There is never a question as to his desire to win or his work ethic. He rarely takes a shift off and is always agitating the opposition. He is on pace for another 30-goal season which helps a team that is in need of goals. His grade reflects his dedication, his passion, his productivity and overall value to the team.
Artturi Lehkonen: B-
Lehkonen is another productive, all around winger. He is consistently in pursuit of the puck, wins one-on-one battles more often than not, has very good defensive skills, and is always in the proper position offensively. His problem is that he should have already doubled the seven goals he scored in the first half based on his high danger chances alone. He may never be a 20-goal scorer in the NHL, but his style of play is ideally suited to a middle six on any NHL team. His grade reflects his drive and his refined two-way game but also his lack of production based on his opportunities.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi: A-
Kotkaniemi is the youngest player in the NHL this season. His attitude and smile are pretty mint too. Playing center for Julien means you must play well defensively, and so far he has shown he is capable of that which is no small feat at 18 years old.
Kotkaniemi has worked hard to improve his game and it shows, as he has made massive leaps in his progression almost weekly. He is a coach’s dream, as he is a very intelligent player who is highly coachable. He has become only the third Habs player to produce 20 points as an 18 year old and is on pace for about 40 points this season.
It could be many more if more of the chances he generated could be converted into goals. His grade reflects his ability to play as a productive top nine center who improves every night.
Joel Armia: C+
Armia has played much less than the team had hoped. His knee injury limited him to 15 games in the first half of the season. When he was dressed, he played a mentorship role with Kotkaniemi as well as a key puck retrieval and forecheck role.
Armia brought his western style of play with him from Winnipeg and showed he was a highly capable top nine winger. His grade reflects more his lack of play time and inability to finish some good setups from Kotkaniemi.
Andrew Shaw: B-
Shaw found his game and was on pace for his best season statistically. When he moved up to the top line, his physical grinding style helped Domi and Drouin. Unfortunately, he suffered another injury which is always a point against this player. This is unfortunate because he is the type of player any team needs to win. His grade reflects his great season but also his tendency to take bad penalties.
Nicolas Deslauriers: D-
He had an unfortunate injury that kept him out of the lineup to start the season. Once he did play, it wasn’t the same player from the season before. He was slower, tentative and less effective and as a veteran fourth liner, that makes him highly replaceable. The only part of his game that keeps him in is his size. His score reflects his inability to stay consistent in his physical cycle game.
Micheal Chaput, Kenny Agostino, Matthew Peca: D+
These three are interchangeable players to the fourth line. Agostino provides the most offence and forechecking of the three. Overall, they provide exactly what is expected. None are seen as players that will progress further and make good plug-ins based on the scenario.
Charles Hudon: F
After a 30-point rookie season, the expectation was for him to earn a permanent top 9 role. The issue is his inconsistent work ethic and defensive errors. His play and subtle trade demand is the reason he is likely not going to be in Montreal by the trade deadline. He earned the only failing grade due to his inability to play a consistent game and stick in the lineup.
Coaching: C+
Claude Julien unexpectedly changed his approach to the game and reinvented his system. He saw the way the NHL was trending and instead of staying with what won him a Stanley Cup, Julien installed a system based on speed in transition and scoring off the rush.
He still focuses on the defensive zone, but instead of a static defensive scheme, he has the defence activated and mobile. Offensively there is still a focus on puck movement but it isn’t all about the physical, grinding cycle along the boards. His system has turned the Habs into one of the top five on five teams, which would be highly effective in the playoffs.
So why is the grade so low? Two words: special teams. The grade would be much higher if the power-play and penalty-kill weren’t both near the bottom of the NHL statistically. Teams are not afraid of taking penalties to slow down the Habs as the power-play has been unable to gain the zone and when it does, they can’t sustain any pressure. The penalty-kill has been improving, however at under 80 percent, it does make the lack of discipline hurt that much more at times.
There is time to get his grades up, but it all rests on the special teams. If Julien can drag both the power-play and the penalty-kill to the middle of the pack statistically, that alone would be worthy of adding him to the mix for candidates for coach of the year.
Edited by Cate Racher, All Habs Hockey Magazine