Life changes quickly.
At the end of last season, the Canadian had a completely different defensive brigade than at present.
For the penultimate game of the campaign, which was played in Detroit, the blue line alignment looked like this:
That evening, Lane Hutson played his very first game in the National League.
But what catches the eye when we look at the photo is that we see three defenders who are no longer part of the Montreal organization at the moment.
Justin Barron, Jordan Harris and Johnathan Kovacevic have all been traded in the last eight months.
And that also means that half of the defenders who played that night left.
It's crazy the same…
There have been a lot of changes in the last few months, but the current defensive lineup could see a lot of time in town.
After all, here are the defenders who will be used tonight:
- Matheson, Guhle, Hutson, Savard, Carrier et Xhekaj
There is a world where in eight months, Mike Matheson is no longer here. And there is also a world where in eight months, David Savard will not be there either.
I can't see Kent Hughes trading his two veterans before the deadline and according to what's circulating, it's mainly Savard who could leave shortly.
But if Savard leaves (let's say Mailloux takes his place) and the others are still there, which should technically happen barring an injury… The defense will be almost intact.
There will be some stability if that happens and that's not bad in my eyes. It's in these moments that the guys understand their role perfectly and that means there are fewer guys mixed up in the lineup.
You will have noticed that I haven't mentioned Jayden Struble, but his case seems to be a little different. He must now go through waivers before being sent to the American League, which limits CH's options… But he seems to be in the same boat as Michael Pezzetta, who has only played three games this season.
To be continued, therefore.
In burst
– Tyler Johnson still wants to play.
– Effectively.
– Yeah… Things are going bad for Roman Josi.
– Déjà?
