The Montreal Canadiens’ season is over, and the players have cleaned out their lockers and headed to their summer homes. There were no playoffs this season, as expected, but there was still plenty to be hopeful for. One of those positives is the abundance of NHL-ready defencemen in the Habs’ system. Some, if not most, are talented enough to be in the top four. This is excellent, except you usually only dress six defencemen in a game and carry seven or eight on a team. If the Canadiens want what’s best for the team, some players must be moved to make room.
Canadiens Have a Few Young Defencemen on the Rise
In the 2022-23 season, the Canadiens were forced to dress five rookie defencemen and at least four in the lineup at any time. This was the proverbial throwing of the babes to the wolves as some players like Kaiden Guhle were getting top-four minutes from the start. The kids were also alone because veterans David Savard, Joel Edmundson, Mike Matheson and Chris Wideman dealt with numerous long-term injuries. Young players like Arber Xhekaj, Jorden Harris, Jonathan Kovacevic, Justin Barron, and Ghule got to play in the NHL by default in their first pro season. Some excelled and improved as the season went on, and some played well in spots but still needed work in the American Hockey League (AHL).
This season, the Canadiens were able to balance the veteran presence with the young players. The young defensemen, having a good portion of NHL games under their belt, are now used to the speed and toughness of the league. Guhle, Xhekaj and Kovacevic have come into their own and remain significant parts of the defensive core. Even when Xhekaj was sent to the Laval Rocket after his injury, he worked on his defensive game and returned as a much better player. Harris is a bit behind the other guys but has high potential in his game plus the confidence of the coach to be a full-time player. Rookie Jayden Struble, who replaced Xhekaj when he was injured, played so well that Montreal sent Xhekaj to Laval to work on parts of his game after he was healthy. Barron is still trying to figure things out but has shown signs he can be an effective offensive defenseman.
The Canadiens also have a handful of promising young players in the minors playing for the Rocket and other leagues. Logan Mailloux was one of the top defensemen in the AHL this season, representing the Rocket in the All-Star game and finished third in scoring for defensemen with 47 points in 72 games. He was also the highest-scoring rookie defenseman and was eighth in rookie scoring overall. Lane Hutson played for Boston University (BU) in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) the past two seasons and blew the door off all the defensive scoring records. He was not just the best defenseman but one of the top players in the NCAA for two seasons. 2023 fifth-overall pick David Reinbacher had a tough time in Switzerland with Kloten in the Swiss National League (NL), dealing with injuries and a terrible team. When he got to Laval and had some stability, he showed why he was picked so high in the draft with his steady defence and sneaky offensive ability, scoring five points in 11 games.
Canadiens Have Defensive Talent Still Overseas
The Canadiens not only have an overabundance of defensemen in North America, but also have a few quality defenders playing in Europe and Russia. Adam Engstrom has been playing with Rogle BK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) since he was drafted by the Canadiens in the third round of the 2022 draft. He had 16 points in his rookie season as a 19-year-old and followed that up with a 22-point season this year, ranking him 20th in the league for scoring amongst defensemen in the SHL. He has shown strong offensive and defensive abilities in the U20 national tournament in Sweden. He scored 13 points in seven games, which led his team to the gold medal. Engstrom’s play was so strong that many believe he could find his way to Laval next season and challenge for a spot on Montreal’s roster shortly after.
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The Canadiens also have two defensemen in Russia who are making waves and showing potential: Bogdan Konyushkov and Dmitri Kostenko. Konyushkov plays for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He has quickly become one of the best defensemen in the league; he finished 13th in scoring amongst defensemen with 28 points. Drafted as an over-ager last season, Konyushkov has steadily improved his play on both sides of the ice and showed his offensive flair, with many of his six goals from last season being highlight-worthy. It is unknown when he will start playing in North America because he still has a contract with the KHL for two more seasons. Kostenko played in the Russian Supreme League (VHL) and was drafted in the third round in 2021. After a slow start with Khimik Voskresensk, scoring only five points in 20 games, he was moved to Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk and exploded offensively, scoring 20 points in 22 games. He expected to move to the KHL next season. If the Canadiens don’t bring him over with all the defensemen already in the system, it might be best to keep him in Russia for another season or two if they can.
Canadiens Have Too Many Defensemen and Not Enough Spots
As we’ve explored, the Canadiens have many young, skilled defencemen, but we’ve only mentioned the ones with medium to high potential. So far, they have 15 NHL-ready or close to NHL-ready players, and after adding Mike Matheson and David Savard, there are 17 to fill seven NHL spots. We know the Russian players won’t join the team next season, and Engstrom probably has a chance, but if he comes to North America, he will likely play for the Rocket. Montreal is now down to 13 players for seven spots, but each of those 13 players is more than likely deserving a spot in the NHL. The right side is a little easier to handle with only five defencemen for three spots, but the left has seven for three spots and probably the extra seventh defencemen. Even if the Habs dress four lefts and three rights, they will have five NHL-ready defensemen going to Laval or to risk losing on waivers.
Choosing the players to make the team gets more complicated when Matheson, Savard, Guhle and Kovacevic are shoo-ins. Xhekaj, Harris, and Hutson are probably making the Canadiens roster too, leaving Struble, Barron, Reinbacher and Mailloux to battle it out for the final spot. Reinbacher and Mailloux could start in Laval as both are waiver-exempt and would need a better training camp than two or three others to make the Canadiens. Reinbacher would probably be better off playing an entire season with the Rocket, while Mailloux would be a product of insufficient room on the main roster. Struble and Hutson are also waiver-exempt; Struble showed he could play at the NHL level, but as time passed, there were some signs he could use a little more development. Hutson played two games and proved he could handle himself in the NHL, but a two-game sample size is very small, and next season’s training camp and exhibition games will determine more if he’s ready.
The Canadiens will have some significant decisions to make next season with Savard and Kovacevic on the last season of their contracts; General manager Kent Hughes will have to determine if he can get the best value for them in the offseason or at the 2025 Trade Deadline. Barron is another case of someone playing well in flashes at the NHL level but yet to put a complete package together. Barron, like Xhekaj, is a pending restricted free agent. Xhekaj will probably re-sign with no issue, but management might try to move Barron instead of re-signing him. With Reinbacher and Mailloux almost ready to make the NHL, Barron could be the odd man out to make room for them.
Whatever Hughes does, the defence logjam needs to be addressed by the end of next season if he wants to make big moves in the 2025 offseason. Savard and Kovacevic will be gone by at least the end of next season, but one or two more would also need to move. The question is, who and when? Hughes has much to evaluate as he determines his defence and starts marching toward the Stanley Cup.