Last season, Alex Newhook played the first 17 games alongside Oliver Kapanen and Ivan Demidov, but then he got injured, and the Montreal Canadiens faced a dilemma. Martin St-Louis first tried to put Kirby Dach on that line, but the experiment was short-lived; after just one game, he paired Juraj Slafkovsky with the two rookies, with great results. It worked because that line needed some grit, some forecheck, a big body that didn’t fear going into traffic.
However, taking Slafkovsky away from the first line wasn’t great, and Dach, Samuel Bolduc and Alexandre Texier all had the opportunity to play with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, but none of them play the game like Slafkovsky does, and the results weren’t great. Shortly after Newhook returned, the big Slovak was put back on the top line because that’s the combination that gets the best out of the team’s best players.
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However, the fact that Slafkovsky worked so well on the second line made Kent Hughes look for another big-bodied top-six forward. He reportedly tried to acquire Matthew Knies from the Toronto Maple Leafs, but it didn’t work. This summer, he set his sights on Kirill Marchenko from the Columbus Blue Jackets, but Don Waddell doesn’t want a package centered on futures for his top player, and the price tag promises to be hefty.
Then, when the Anaheim Ducks found themselves in salary cap hell thanks to the Philadelphia Flyers signing Leo Carlsson to an offer sheet, they were forced to cut ties with Chris Kreider. Why? Because they needed more than $9 million to sign RFA Cutter Gauthier. While Kreider is already 35, he’s still a productive top-six forward in the NHL and one who plays exactly the style of hockey the second line needs. Kreider is the low-cost solution to the fact that Hughes and co. can’t clone Slafkovsky. Details on the bonus linked to the contract have now emerged on Puckpedia, and it’s important to remember that the bonus money can carry over to next season if the Habs are short on cap space.
Would it have been better to get Knies or Marchenko? Of course, they would have been long-term solutions, but with training camp right around the corner, Hughes decided to pull the trigger, which likely means that he came to the realization that Marchenko wasn’t happening, at least not right now. Sportsnet’s Eric Engels believes Hughes is still working hard, though, and that Kreider may not be his only move this offseason, but time will tell.
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As things stand, the Canadiens still have $7.6 million in cap space, but they still have to unsigned RFA in Zach Bolduc and Arber Xhekaj. With Kreider now signed, could the Canadiens entertain the idea of trading Bolduc in a deal for Marchenko? Yes, they could, but would an offer that includes two roster players like Bolduc and center Oliver Kapanen be enough to tempt Waddell? Both have potential, but do they have enough to convince Waddell to roll the dice and part with his prized asset? That’s far from certain.
In the meantime, however, the Kreider signing is great news for Canadiens fans. Not only does he fill a need in the lineup, but he’s a free agent who chose to come to Montreal, despite the fact that he has long been hated by the fan base for events that need not be discussed again. Kreider wanted to be back in the Eastern Conference, and he wanted to join a team with a legitimate chance to win the Stanley Cup; for him, that’s the Canadiens. Hughes, Jeff Gorton, and St-Louis have made Montreal a destination free agents want to come to. Despite the taxes, the weather, and the language, if you build it, they will come. That doesn’t just apply to the baseball movie Field of Dreams; it also applies to a winning team.
As for those worried the Canadiens are holding a grudge over what happened in 2014, none of the players from 2014 are still with the team. Brendan Gallagher was the last one. It’s been 12 years, and if Hughes, Gorton, and St-Louis feel bringing Kreider on is the right move, it means they believe it’s time for fans to move on from what happened. Bringing Kreider on is not akin to bringing in Mark Scheifele, who once destroyed Jake Evans with a dangerous high hit. Evans is still on the team, and so are many players who skated in that 2021 series against the Winnipeg Jets.
Montreal fans know their hockey well enough to move past the grudge. According to our instant poll, which only had 95 voters, 85% of the fans polled were happy with the move last night, and that was before they had time to process it. They can appreciate what Kreider brings to the table, even though he cost them a chance to reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2014. Besides, would there be a better way to make amends than signing with the Habs and helping them to move past the last hurdle? Like him or not, Kreider is a proven playoff performer, one who can elevate his game in the spring and lead the young Canadiens into battle. The Habs lost Brendan Gallagher this summer, so an influx of experience and leadership certainly won’t hurt.
Karine Hains (@karinehains.bsky.social)
Karine Hains (@karinehains.bsky.social)Habs fans, are you happy about the Kreider signing? Please explain why in the comments. #GoHabsGo #CH #Habs #Canadiens #THN
Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.
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