Brief lapses lost Game 28 for the Habs

December 8, 2025 On Sunday, the St. Louis Blues were at the Bell Centre and the Montreal Canadiens were finishing their second back-to-back of the week. The Habs played well with the exception of a problematic start to the second period. The result was a 4-3 loss. Here’s some things worth noting. A couple ofContinue reading “Brief lapses lost Game 28 for the Habs”

In this draft window, the Habs accelerated their ascent to a contention window

June. 29, 2025 We should not be surprised. HuGo has been active in every draft window since their arrival, beyond simply drafting at their designated spots, to improve the Montreal Canadiens. But their Friday trade to acquire Noah Dobson, and then sign him to a contract that covers his entire prime years, was a stepContinue reading “In this draft window, the Habs accelerated their ascent to a contention window”

Approaching the 4N break, key Habs storylines could become business

February 2, 2025 The Montreal Canadiens have just 5 games between now and the Four Nations break. 51 games into the 2024-25 season, the Habs have a record of 24-22-5 and have already been on a roller coaster of storylines. From high hopes in training camp to heartbreaker injuries, from giving up on one rookieContinue reading “Approaching the 4N break, key Habs storylines could become business”

Montreal Canadiens Predictions for 2025

January 1, 2025 Fans of the Montreal Canadiens woke up on the first day of 2025 feeling pretty good. 2024 ended with the Habs having won their three final games – contests where they were serious underdogs. With a 17-17-3 record, the Canadiens are ascending through the standings and fans who were despondent just weeksContinue reading “Montreal Canadiens Predictions for 2025”

In the Carrier deal, the Habs chose predictability over potential

December 19, 2024 The pending Christmas roster freeze for the 2024-25 season has felt a little like trade deadline, and the Montreal Canadiens got in on the action. On Wednesday night, the Habs traded Justin Barron to the Nashville Predators for Alexandre Carrier. Carrier is currently in year one of a three-year contract that carriesContinue reading “In the Carrier deal, the Habs chose predictability over potential”

Should the Habs be in the trade market this early in the season?

October 30, 2024 The Montreal Canadiens ended their third week of play in the 2024-25 NHL season with a 4-4-1 record, a .500 clip that has them tied with several other teams for third place in the Atlantic Division. But the third week also saw the Habs smack dab in the middle of trade rumourContinue reading “Should the Habs be in the trade market this early in the season?”

The second week of action for the Habs was a disorganized mess

October 20, 2024 The Montreal Canadiens played three games in the second week of action for the 2024-25 season, and it was a disorganized mess. On Monday they lost 6-3 to Pittsburgh, on Thursday it was a 4-1 loss to Los Angeles, and on Saturday night they finally salvaged one point from the week inContinue reading “The second week of action for the Habs was a disorganized mess”

With the crazy preseason done, HuGo shouldn’t pull any punches

October 7, 2024 The Montreal Canadiens played their last preseason game on Saturday night, and not a minute too soon. From losing off-season acquisition Patrik Laine to injury, to the coach refusing to play his top line in the final preparation match fearing the same outcome, the preseason was a bit of a shit show.Continue reading “With the crazy preseason done, HuGo shouldn’t pull any punches”

Critical storylines as we transition to the Habs main training camp

September 17, 2024 The annual golf tournament is a sure sign that a new season for the Montreal Canadiens is about to kick off. On Monday, players, coaching staff and management teed off in Laval, and we can almost smell the rink. The rookie tournament is done and there were no major surprises. Lane HutsonContinue reading “Critical storylines as we transition to the Habs main training camp”

Checking in on the Habs progress against the McGuire Profile

August 24, 2024 On April 20, 2023 I wrote an article assessing where the Montreal Canadiens were in their development against what I named the McGuire Profile. The McGuire Profile is a 7-player profile which hockey analyst Pierre McGuire says was developed based on conversations with Scotty Bowman. The profile identifies seven essential pieces toContinue reading “Checking in on the Habs progress against the McGuire Profile”