Montreal Canadiens defenseman and head coach both make puzzling statements about the team's direction
The 2020-21 Montreal Canadiens were an enigma, first nearly missing the playoffs entirely, but then charging all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals against the eventual Cup winning Tampa Bay Lightning. The 2021-22 Montreal Canadiens not only failed to qualify for the playoffs, but they finished dead last in the NHL standings and secured the 1st overall pick in this year's draft lottery, using the pick on 6'4 winger Juraj Slafkovsky.
The 2022-23 Montreal Canadiens seem destined for more of the same - another early summer followed by another early 1st round pick. That's why when Habs defenseman Joel Edmundson and head coach Martin St. Louis spoke about the team's direction on Monday, it caught people off guard.
The Habs made headlines on Monday when they announced that 23-year-old Nick Suzuki would serve as the 31st captain in the team's storied history. Moments after the captaincy announcement was made on Monday, Suzuki revealed that Brendan Gallagher and the aforementioned Edmundson would serve as alternate captains and all 3 players spoke with the media. Edmundson's comments stood out, as he confirmed that the team's mindset is that not only is the rebuild over, but the Habs are setting their sights on a playoff spot this season.
-Edmundson on the Habs' high hopes for the upcoming season
Head coach Martin St. Louis' comments were much less certain about their expectations of making the playoffs, but he didn't say much to dissuade the idea that the team believes that the rebuild may be over.
-Martin St. Louis on the team's direction
Listen - did the Habs improve this summer? Yeah, probably. Did they improve enough to rack up an additional 53 points? Because they would have needed 108 points in order to pull ahead of the Boston Bruins (107 points) to qualify for the playoffs last season.
I'm all for a competitive Atlantic Division, but I'm not sold on the fact that the Habs are going to be one of the teams competing for a playoff spot with a Jake Allen/Cayden Primeau tandem and the additions of Kirby Dach, Evgenii Dadonov, Sean Monahan, Michael Matheson, Justin Barron and 2022 1st overall pick Juraj Slafkovksy.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 12 | 244 ANSWERS Montreal Canadiens defenseman and head coach both make puzzling statements about the team's direction Will the Montreal Canadiens make the playoffs in 2022-23? | ||
| Yes, anything can happen | 57 | 23.4 % |
| No, not a chance | 108 | 44.3 % |
| LOL!! | 79 | 32.4 % |
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