Five things the Canadian lacks

The NHL playoffs are in full swing without the Canadian. Can the Montreal club compare itself to the clubs that are fighting at the moment? Not quite, and here’s why.

1– You need productive supporting players

Who set the tone for the Rangers in the first game of their series against the Capitals? The fourth trio. Who is the Avalanche’s second scorer? Artturi Lehkonen (we’ll come back to that). Who is the Carolina Hurricanes’ leading scorer? Seth Jarvis. Of course, it’s also very pleasant to be able to count on top forwards, but that doesn’t guarantee happy results (see: Toronto, Maple Leafs). What we’re seeing more and more is that the best teams are the ones that can get points from all lines, and the biggest challenge for the Canadiens management, in the immediate future, will be to ensure that all offensive production will no longer have to go through the first line.

2– You just need productive players

It couldn’t be clearer: in today’s hockey, it’s the teams that know how to score that have the advantage. Since the beginning of the current series, some of the final marks that we see remind us of the good old days when the guys from Platinum Blonde were at the top of the charts. Thus, before Monday night’s games, a total of 31 playoff games had been played. Of those matches, 22 were won by a team that scored four or more goals. It is worth remembering here that this season, the Canadian scored 236 goals in his 82 matches, placing the club in 28th place^e rank of goals scored in the circuit. Only six teams scored fewer goals than the Canadian in 2023-2024, and only one, the Washington Capitals, was able to sneak into the playoffs. With the results we know.

3– We need a winning culture

All life coaches will tell you: in this world, it is impossible to win something without having the right culture. We can take a quick look at the Toronto-Boston series to better understand what it means; while the stars of the Leafs have tantrums on the bench, the Bruins players behave like guys who know what it takes and like guys who have been there before. It is a reminder that endless reconstructions can have the perverse effect of normalizing defeat, of making it comfortable, acceptable. The Canadian has missed the playoffs six times in the last nine seasons, including the last three. There are starting to be a lot of players who don’t really know what it’s like to play a match with real stakes.

4– It takes more than simple emotion

The series between the Islanders and the Hurricanes is certainly not over, but with a very nice 3-1 lead, the Carolina club is in full control. This is yet another reminder of the often disproportionate importance given to the emotional factor in the world of hockey. The arrival of Patrick Roy at the helm in January alone should have carried this team, and in a way, Roy succeeded in leading his club to the playoffs. But emotion alone does not allow you to win series, and it cannot be considered in the same way as talent and discipline, which are much more important elements.

5– We need Artturi Lehkonen

The Canadian’s professional scouts had to be really convincing to put Justin Barron’s name at the top of a list. At only 22 years old, the young defender certainly has time to prove things to us, but right now, he looks above all like an American League player. Meanwhile, the guy the Canadiens traded to the Avalanche two years ago to get him, Artturi Lehkonen, looks like the guy the previous administration was hoping for when they drafted him in the second round in 2013. From the start of the playoffs, the 28-year-old Finn collected 4 goals and 3 assists for 7 points in 4 games. It’s not complicated, he seems like the type of player the Canadian could really use. To quote Alanis Morissette: Isn’t that ironic?