The bosses of Montreal assessed the past year as a success. The Canadiens finished in fourth place in the regular season in the Eastern Conference and occupied the same position in the playoffs, where they fought their way into the top four.
The owners and fans of the most famous Canadian club were pleased above all by the fact that the Canadiens were able to do it thanks to an attractive game and collective performance.
The youngest team in the competition was the only one that had five players with at least a 60-point season.
Captain Nick Suzuki had a balance of 29 goals, 72 assists, Cole Caufield added 37 assists to 51 goals, defender Lane Hutson had 12 goals, 66 assists, Juraj Slafkovský improved his personal records to 30 goals and 43 assists, and Russian rookie Ivan Demidov (19 + 43) also crossed the 60-point mark.
“It was a great season. We were not far from reaching the finals for the Stanley Cup. If the team continues to progress further, I have no worries about us,” says Montreal head coach Martin St. Louis.
Unprecedented season of the captain
The quality performance of the Canadiens this season was primarily defined by the play of the first attack with the center Suzuki and the wings Caufield and Slafkovský.
They were helped by the move of coach St. Louis, who split the trio in November and moved the current best Slovak hockey player to the second formation. Slafkovský started in it with the youngsters Demidov and Oliver Kapanen, and he liked the previously unknown role of the leader.
After the Olympics in Milan, where journalists selected him for the best team of the event, his healthy self-confidence grew even more, and when St. Louis returned to the elite attack, the Canadian-American-Slovak trio became one of the best in the competition.
The past season was a breakthrough for all three, but Suzuki made the biggest progress. From an average center forward, he became an elite center with quality performances at both ends of the rink.
“I have improved, I believe more in myself. I start with excellent teammates who make my task easier. Being a captain is a responsibility, I want to lead our team as best as possible,” he said during the season.
His versatility and intelligence made him one of the best hockey players who dominate both offense and defense. Therefore, no one was surprised when the NHL announced him as the holder of the Selke trophy for the best defensive forward a few days ago.
His qualities at both ends of the rink are known, after all, that was one of the reasons why he was a member of Canada’s silver selection at the Olympics in Italy. However, Suzuki has played amazingly this season.
If we look at the holders of the Selke trophy from the past years, this category was dominated by the duo of Aleksander Barkov and Patrice Bergeron. Barkov won it three times, the former support of Boston twice. However, neither had the same offensive numbers as Suzuki. Bergeron had 65 points in one season, Barkov did not exceed the 60-point mark even once.
Suzuki had 101 points and emulated iconic names. Only the star Doug Gilmour in the 1992/1993 season and the Russian legend Sergei Fedorov (1994, 1996) managed to win the Selke trophy and achieve 100 or more points in a season.
“It should not be forgotten that he was only 25 years old last year. He is still a young player who is developing and improving. He already belongs to the absolute elite of the competition,” coach St. Louis.
A short gentleman
Suzuki wasn’t the only one from the Montreal team to end the season with an individual trophy. The striker, who most often benefited from the captain’s accurate passes, was also happy.
Photo: BRUCE BENNETT / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP / Profimedia
sweetie Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovský enjoy a goal in the Carolina Hurricanes net.
Cole Caufield was a write-off a few seasons ago. The young striker did not live up to expectations, he struggled with shooting, and the Canadiens bosses considered exchanging him for another club.
The turning point occurred in February 2022. The sacked head coach Dominiqua Ducharme was replaced by St. Louis, who knew exactly what the unawakened forward needed.
The former Tampa Bay elite gunner encountered similar prejudices as Caufield during his career, with his 171 centimeters he was able to empathize with the hockey player, who was underestimated due to his physical parameters.
“I’ll never forget that. He told me he wasn’t going to teach me how to score goals, but he was going to show me how to get into situations and spaces where he could score more often. And he did. It’s an honor to play under a coach like him. He’s great at always getting the most out of players,” Caufield said recently.
Under the leadership of St. Louisa is gradually improving. He scored 28 goals in the season before last, 37 in the previous season, and this year he fought for the position of the best gunner of the competition until the last games of the regular season. Finally, his goal tally stopped at number 51. Only Colorado’s star forward Nathan MacKinnon was better in this statistic.
Caufield received the Lady Byng Trophy for his performances. It is intended for the hockey player who best combines a high level of play with exceptional sportsmanship and gentlemanly behavior (least penalties, fair play, respect for opponents and referees).
“Not fouling is an art. Players who don’t weaken their team needlessly are very valid. And moreover, when they can score so many goals,” hockey journalist Tony Marinaro said in his podcast about the forward, who had only 14 penalty minutes in 82 games of the regular season.
A surprise for both of them
This year, the NHL combined the presentation of trophies with a moment of surprise.
When Andrei Vasilevskiy received the award for the best goalkeeper, representatives of the profiliga “rigged” the Vezina trophy into his car and involved the police in the skit, which was investigating a “mysterious” object in the Russian’s Porsche.
The professional league prepared a nice scene for Suzuki and Caufield. Teammates and good friends handed the award to each other without knowing that they would both receive the trophy.
This happened during the 2nd round playoff series in which the Canadiens faced Buffalo. Suzuki and Caufield were presented with trophies in the team booth after the third fight, which Montreal won and took an important step towards promotion. The entire Montreal team applauded their surprised colleagues.
Photo: Jared C. Tilton / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP / Profimedia
Slafkovský NHL Juraj Slafkovský in the Montreal Canadiens jersey.
“It hit us both hard. We didn’t even think that one of us could win the award. We thought we’d both just pass it on.
Great job everyone for keeping it a secret. “It’s special to be able to present Cole with his award for all the effort he’s put into our performances this year, for everything he’s done for our team,” Suzuki said.
Both first thanked the team that helped them to the awards. Although it had been more than three weeks since they learned of the victory and had only shared the secret with their families, their words about the trophies were more about where the Canadiens are headed than about their personal accomplishments.
“With this team and where we came from early in our careers, we want to gain more experience every year. I’m very excited and happy to be where we are. It’s been a really special year and I’m looking forward to what the future holds,” Caufield responded.
Hockey expert Brendan Kelly from the Montreal Gazette agrees with the assumption that the talented Canadiens team has a bright future and soon an attack on the Stanley Cup.
“The Canadiens have a real chance to become a contender for the Stanley Cup in the next few years. They have a great young core led by Suzuki, Caufield, Slafkovski, Hutson and Demidov.
All but the Russian striker have long-term contracts for acceptable money, and it is almost certain that the club’s bosses will sign a similar favorable contract with Demidov in the coming weeks,” Kelly told us.
Elite Swiss
In order for Montreal to rise to the next level, it needs to complete a few pieces in the player’s puzzle. He lacks one or two tall defenders with a tough, physical style and, above all, a creative center for the second attack.
Oliver Kapanen held this position for most of the season, sometimes Jake Evans or Alex Newhook stepped in, but all of them were only a temporary solution.
The Canadiens bosses know very well that they need an elite center in the second attack. Several overseas experts have reported that Montreal has turned its attention to Nic Hischier.
The New Jersey captain’s 7-year contract for 50 million dollars ends after next season, if it has not yet been extended. Over the past season, there has been speculation that Devils management is unhappy with Hischier, as the club has made the playoffs just twice in the last six seasons.
Some experts blame the Swiss for lack of productivity (three seasons in a row he had below 70 points) as well as lackluster leadership
Canadiens fans agree that Hischier would be an ideal fit in Montreal. In the second attack, he would be an ideal mentor for the young Demidov.
“Creating an attacking pair of Hischier – Demidov would be an ideal step for the young Russian, which would push him forward in all aspects of the game.
Although the cooperation with Evans or Newhook worked solidly in the playoffs, in the demanding rhythm of the regular season, Demidov will need a more creative and offensively oriented center. Hischier can be exactly this player – an elite striker who can dominate in front, but at the same time does not slack off in his defensive duties,” says the mentioned Marinaro about the possible cooperation.
Acclaimed hockey analyst Pierre LeBrun from The Athletic portal has a similar opinion.
“Hischier would be the best choice for the Canadiens. There is no doubt that Montreal is monitoring the situation around him very closely. Hischier is the left-handed Nick Suzuki. If he did not come to an agreement with the Devils, he would be perfect for the Canadiens,” says LeBrun.
While the most likely scenario still remains for Hischier to stay with the Devils and sign a new contract, Montreal fans believe the opposite will happen. If the Swiss would extend his cooperation in New Jersey, the situation will also affect Šimon Nemec.
The Slovak defender still does not have a new contract with the Devils after the expiration of his rookie contract, and it is possible that the club will trade him to another organization.
If Hischier, who will ask for 10-12 million per season, will be the main priority for New Jersey, it is possible that there will be no money left for the German, and the Slovak defender, if he wants to stay in the club that drafted him to the NHL, will have to accept a less lucrative offer.
