Top 5 Canadiens stories for 2023-24 – Hockey Writers – Montreal Canadiens

Entering the final week of another losing 2023-24 Montreal Canadiens season, it's understandable that you want to consider the bigger picture when it comes to rebuilding. However, looking at the small ones, it is possible to determine a sufficient amount of positive events.

Related: Top 5 Canadian feel-good stories of 2022-23

It just happens, it's fair that Coincidentally, the organization as a whole could be moving forward as the Canadiens take the logical next step from a competitive standpoint. Here are the top five:

5. Gignac scores his first NHL goal at the age of 26

In the interest of full disclosure, Brandon Gignac was never in danger of making it to the NHL. Still, his first NHL games in five years were at least a good distraction from the fact that the Canadiens traded Sean Monahan and needed someone to fill in at center when he effectively threw in the towel in early February.

Now, when general manager Kent Hughes made it, trading Monahan was clearly the right move. However, it was clear that signing Gignac to an NHL contract had more to do with filling a roster spot than finding a diamond in the rough, even if he was (and still is) impressively leading the Laval Rockets in scoring.

Gignac's goals in the first four games of his NHL career were a positive touch. However, in the end, there was more to his story than Alex Belzil's story would have led viewers to believe. When the Canadiens claimed Colin White off waivers, he returned to the American Hockey League (AHL) to help the Rockets make the playoffs.

4. Struble comes out of nowhere to push at the defensive position

In contrast, linebacker Jayden Struble has established himself as a quasi-fixture on defense after being called up for the first time following an injury to linebacker Arber Hekaid. After Hekaid was healthy, Struble was left alone. His strong play effectively gave the Canadiens time to hone his skills in the AHL.

After Xhekaj returned to the NHL, the Canadiens felt the need to find a place to keep Struble. Fifty-five games later, he established himself as a mainstay in what everyone thought would be the Habs' defense for years to come, with a total of five left-handed defensemen on the roster (excluding Lane Hutson).

With that in mind, Struble's battle for a spot is far from over. He's still off waivers through 2024-25, which makes him a logical candidate to hone his Hekaid-like skills this year. Still, getting to this point after the organizational brainstorm was impressive, at least for many fans. He is different in age from, for example, Jonathan Kovacevic, who proved himself last season. Kovacevic is still young at 26, but should theoretically be far superior to the 22-year-old Struble. This may be just the beginning.

3. Joel Armia reasserts himself as an NHLer

Maybe the Canadiens cut a veteran like Joel Armia to start the season. However, just three assists in his first 26 games in 2022-23 saw him record a new career high of 17 goals in 2023-24. However, that's exactly what happened.

After taking another hit in the NHL due to injury, Army has re-emerged as a middle-six force for the Canadiens. He didn't go far enough to justify his $3.4 million salary. However, for his success on the ice this season, he has been named a candidate for the team's Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, as well as facilitating a hypothetical offseason trade as he enters the final season of his deal.

It can be the perfect ending to a special emotional event. However, Army has also rekindled its appeal to Canadiens fans, making it far from the worst opportunity for the team in 2024-25.

2. Kayden Prayau will justify the Canadians' faith in him

Goaltender Cayden Prime should have been waived this season, at least according to many pundits. For example, out of training camp, the Canadiens opted to carry three goaltenders instead, reducing the number of spots elsewhere on the roster. Then there was Jake Allen, who had a .934 save percentage (SV%) in his first four starts (at which point the Habs thought they would give Primea just one).

In the end, Primeau had every one of the dubious games he designed. And they were very few. As it turns out, the less you play a goalkeeper, the harder it is to find their consistency. However, since the Canadiens wisely traded Allen at the deadline to the New Jersey Devils, they have been able to play him more. He gave this answer.

Since the deadline, Primeau is 3-3-1 with a .924 SV%. Overall, he is 8-9-3 with a 2.95 goals-against average and a .910 SV%. His performance is even more encouraging when you consider that the league average is much lower than you might think. As a result, he may not be the goalie that all pundits initially thought he would be. It could be significantly better.

1. Yurai Slafkovsky made a big step in his development

When Juraj Slafkowski started the season with two goals and seven points in his first 29 games, the Canadiens were at a crossroads. Logically, they had three choices: continue to deny him a position to succeed statistically by playing him at the bottom of the lineup, give him more playing time in the AHL, or give him more playing time in the NHL.

They selected him wisely by playing him on the front line alongside Nick Suzuki and Cole Caulfield, a spot many thought he would eventually fill. The former first overall pick is starting to reach his potential at lightning speed, scoring 41 points in his last 51 games. If a projected generational talent like Connor Bedard, the number one pick after Slafkowski a year later, had the success of 60 points in 65 games as a rookie, the other is in better shape as a sophomore (despite the opposing fans talking). teams like to push).

At 20 years old (and 6-foot-3, 230 pounds), Slafkowski appears to have just scratched the surface of his potential. That insight inspires confidence that he was not only the right first pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, but the perfect one. Plus, it gives you confidence that Hughes and company know what they're doing.

So, even though the 2023-24 season is coming to a relatively low end, the Canadiens are in the same spot in the standings as they were at the end of 2022-23. First, they improved in terms of points (74 instead of 68, with two more games to go).

Second, they have important pieces as we speak, all of them entering the NHL draft lottery (currently) like last season, when fans felt a real chance to win the right to draft Bedard. Literally the only thing that has changed is that the team is much better, the light at the end of the tunnel is closer than it has been in a long time. It's best to embrace its warmth at least a little…maybe feel warm and fuzzy inside?