Five Questions at the Habs Open Training Ground

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A trip to this year’s Stanley Cup final is nothing more than a happy memory when the Canadiens meet on Wednesday for the start of training camp.

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The players will undergo physical exams and fitness tests before their first sessions on ice at the team’s training facility in Brossard on Thursday. The first preseason game will be played on Saturday in Toronto and there will be questions for coach Dominique Ducharme in his first camp as NHL head coach:

What can we expect from goalkeeper Carey Price? The 33-year-old underwent arthroscopic knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus this summer and also had to deal with a sprained hip and concussion last season. It returned to the ice last week, but we’ll have to see how it holds up when people start running into it. Much has been made of Jake Allen’s presence to ease Price’s workload, but Allen needs Price, too. When Allen had to shoulder the load down the stretch last season, he had a not-so-stellar 6-9-0 record.

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Who will replace Shea Weber? General manager Marc Bergevin said no one can replace the Canadiens captain and top defender, who will miss the entire season with knee, ankle and foot problems, but someone will have to take his place in the top four. Free agent David Savard is written on paper, but don’t be surprised if Bergevin is buying a Plan B. The Canadiens could turn to the highly touted Alexander Romanov, but that would mean asking the 21-year-old southpaw to play right. winger and would require a leap of faith from Ducharme, who was not confident enough to dress the Russian in the playoffs.

Is Weber being Kucheroved? It has been speculated that the Canadiens will borrow a page from the Tampa Bay playbook and bring Weber back for the playoffs in the same way that Lightning brought Nikita Kucherov back after he missed the regular season with injury. There is that possibility, but it depends on the Canadiens making the playoffs, and that is far from a fact. The reality is that we may have seen the last of Weber. While there is no question of Weber’s bravery and dedication to the game, there are fewer financial incentives for the 35-year-old to play beyond this season. The 14-year, $ 110 million contract he signed with Nashville in 2012 was anticipated and he will earn just $ 3 million in 2022-23 and $ 1 million in each of his last three seasons. Once you take out the taxes and the escrow, you must ask yourself if your health is worth risking.

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Is there enough force in between? Canadians are stronger in the band, but we go back to where we were a few years ago, wondering about the center position. Replacing Phil Danault is on the same level as replacing Weber, and his defense will be missed. Nick Suzuki will take on additional responsibilities and, at least in the short term, Christian Dvorak is an improvement over Jesperi Kotkaniemi. Jake Evans will be asked to grow into the role of Danault and Officer Cédric Paquette will fight Ryan Poehling for a spot on the fourth line.

Who will be the captain? This should be the easiest question to answer. Brendan Gallagher checks all the boxes. He is a Canadian player for life, his work ethic is exemplary and his teammates love and respect him. It interacts well with the media, which should be an advantage, although it may not be for an organization that takes a moderate approach to information sharing.

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