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Montreal Canadiens’ waiver eligibility impact on roster decisions
A quiet off season suggests the Montreal Canadiens will focus on internal competition to decide which players will start the season in the NHL. Adding
A quiet off season suggests the Montreal Canadiens will focus on internal competition to decide which players will start the season in the NHL. Adding expensive free agents to the mix may feel like a better approach when it comes to planning the next stage of the rebuild in which the Habs will be expected to elevate their results beyond the bottom five teams in the league.
However, the short term gains that would result from adding an aging player to the mix would run contrary to the philosophy put in place by General Manager Kent Hughes. Banking on internal growth is the way forward that carries the most potential, even if it may not provide the team with a shortcut to success as some have requested. It’s a strategy that could lead to decisions that aren’t entirely based on present-day talent. Waiver eligibility will play a part in some roster moves, just as it did last season when the Canadiens decided to send defenceman Arber Xhekaj to the AHL despite the fact that he led all defencemen in most key possession metrics.
Montreal Canadiens Forward Impact
Rafael Harvey-Pinard’s injury opened the door to the possibility some younger players will receive a significant uptick in ice time and opportunities. One of the first players on the cusp that comes to mind is one of the most well-rounded prospects in the system, Owen Beck. His defensive acumen is beyond reproach, and his final year in the OHL confirmed he also has the offensive know-how to score when he’s put in a position conducive to producing. He’s also riding the confidence-boosting wave that comes with securing Saginaw’s first ever championship while also taking home Memorial Cup MVP honours in the process.
And it doesn’t hurt that he rates as one of the best faceoff experts in the entire hockey landscape.
Simply put, there’s a lot to like about Beck’s chances to make the team, but we also have to recognize he is one of the younger candidates to fill the Harvey-Pinard void, which means he’s not yet eligible for waivers. This also connotes there’s a possibility he ends up starting the year in Laval regardless of his performance at camp.
There are several other prospects that do not have to be put on waivers who are bound for Laval, including Sean Farrell, Florian Xhekaj, Luke Tuch, Filip Mesar, Riley Kidney, and Emil Heineman, though you’d be hard-pressed to convince anyone they have the inside track on the job opening that resulted from the Harvey-Pinard injury.
Montreal Canadiens Defenceman Impact
The real impact of waiver eligibility is likely to be felt on the defensive side of things. The unfortunate possibility that most Habs fans won’t want to hear is that Lane Hutson is not guaranteed to start the season as a bona fide member of the top six. In terms of raw talent, few, if any defencemen can match Hutson’s skill set, but that doesn’t mean there’s no value to giving him ample minutes in the AHL before he’s tapped for crucial NHL ice time.
We also have to keep in mind the left side of the defence is the position that features the most players with NHL aspirations. Mike Matheson and Kaiden Guhle are essentially guaranteed to absorb heavy minutes, even if Guhle is not eligible for waivers and may end up playing on his offside once again.
Then there’s Arber Xhekaj, Jordan Harris and Jayden Struble, a trio of players who provide have all enjoyed some success while playing very different roles. Some will suggest Xhekaj and Struble are similar, but beyond their affinity for physical play, there’s not much in their numbers that suggest they’re remotely close to being the same player. Xhekaj’s possession numbers are leaps and bounds better than Struble, which isn’t particularly shocking since Struble was expected to spend most of the season in the AHL due to his lack of professional experience. There was a brief period that resulted in strong possession numbers for Struble, but unlike the popular narrative on social media, it was Struble’s penchant for quickly collecting and redistributing pucks that drove his strong start, whereas Xhekaj has always produced better defensive numbers. The Canadiens hardly justified sending Xhekaj to the AHL last season, and they’d be hard-pressed to convince anyone who has been paying attention that he needs yet another minor-league assignment. As for Harris, he isn’t an elite play starter, nor is he a clear-cut shutdown defenceman, but what he lacks in flashiness he makes up in efficiency in all three zones.
MUST READ: Montreal Canadiens Defensive Situation – Depth Chart Analysis
The final two blue liners who play on the left that do not have to go through waivers, Adam Engstrom and William Trudeau, will also attempt to earn a roster spot and play their first career NHL games, but seeing as they’re below all the aforementioned defencemen in the depth chart, smart money says they’ll be wearing a Rocket jersey by the time the Canadiens host the Toronto Maple Leafs for the 2024-25 season opener.
Shifting to the right, things are a little less hectic. On that note, one of the players who spent significant time in the AHL due to his lack of waiver eligibility, Justin Barron, is no longer exempt from the waiver wire. Fortunately, the Canadiens made room on the blue line by trading Jonathan Kovacevic to the New Jersey Devils, essentially confirming Barron’s presence in the lineup. Unless the Habs make another trade, which doesn’t seem like a likely outcome, David Savard will be the lone veteran on the right side of the blue line.
This means the final spot will come down to two of the most interesting defencemen in the system, David Reinbacher and Logan Mailloux. I’m not convinced either is ready for NHL action, but given that they do not require waivers, it may end up being the internal battle that is purely based on their performance at training camp.