Habs Mailbag: Goalie controversy would be a good thing for Canadiens

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What’s the probability of another Canadiens goaltending controversy this season? The emergence of Sam Montembeault and Cayden Primeau last season occurred while sharing the net with Jake Allen. Do you think the two-goalie system will lead to a goalie controversy — Part Deux — as Primeau gets more opportunity?

Scott Hinckley
Port Saint Lucie, Fla.

I think management would embrace a goalie controversy because that would mean both Montembeault and Primeau are playing well. Montembeault will start the season as the No. 1 goalie, but management will want Primeau to push him. Having said that, I don’t think the plan will be for either one to play more than 50-55 games. Primeau is entering the final season of his contract, earning US$890,000, and will be highly motivated to prove he is a legitimate NHL goalie. Montembeault will be entering the first season of his three-year, US$9.45-million contract and will want to prove he’s a legitimate No. 1.

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“We push each other,” Primeau said at the end of last season. “I’ve been saying it all year. We have a friendly competition, a friendly competitive spirit. We want to see each other succeed. But, at the end of the day, we both want the net. We’re both pushing each other and it’s a good camaraderie and relationship.”

Do you foresee Alex Burrows continuing to start next season running the power play?

Tony Martins

We should find out soon whether Burrows will be running the power play again and whether he will even be back with the Canadiens. His contract expired at the end of last season. The Canadiens also need to find a new head coach for the AHL’s Laval Rocket after Jean-François Houle left to become head coach at Clarkson University, his alma mater. There’s no salary cap on coaches and I think it would be a good move for the Canadiens to bring in another coach as a power-play specialist.

I know Montreal has one of the stronger prospect pools in the league, but I was curious who you believe is a prospect that doesn’t get as much attention that could surprise in a few years.

Matthew Mazzalonga

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Florian Xhekaj did get some attention after the Canadiens selected him in the fourth round (101st overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft, mainly because he’s the younger brother of Arber. Nick Bobrov, the Canadiens’ co-director of amateur scouting, described Xhekaj as a “unicorn” after he posted 13-12-25 totals and 76 penalty minutes in 78 games to go along with a minus-17 differential two seasons ago with the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs. Last season with the Bulldogs, who moved to Brantford, Xhekaj had 34-31-65 totals in 63 games to go along with 81 penalty minutes and a plus-17 differential. At 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds, Xhekaj could develop into a legitimate power forward with the Canadiens and would be a steal as a fourth-round pick. It will be interesting to see what he can do with the Rocket next season.

Although this is unlikely to happen, I thought it would be fun to explore if Habs management would consider moving Lane Hutson to forward. He could possibly be a top-six forward they need. I’ve been a Habs fan since the late 1960s and I don’t recall them ever converting a defenceman to forward. I believe the Leafs converted Wendel Clark, which worked out quite well.

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