Biondi May Have Choices To Sign Elsewhere
When we last left this conversation, I wanted to see how Blake Biondi’s season was going with Notre Dame. He’s a long way from Hermantown High School, in Minnesota, not mileage-wise but time down the road and years into his career. The pivot still has time on his side since he’s 22.
Biondi has a really good wrist shot and a better one-timer. He used that to beat Minnesota in Overtime. He’s coming through much more with key goals. His skating is good and he’s winning puck battles. According to InStat, he’s at 49%. For a center, I’ll take it.
Biondi is averaging 5.1 shots per game. He’s getting 30% defensive zone starts. He’s clearly ready for the next step. His 19 points in 26 games are solid and his all-around game has improved. It’s not there yet, but that is what the AHL is for.
The Canadiens need to build up their center depth. Teams can’t have enough and in the next few years, Montreal will have to graduate a few of their centers from the AHL. The problem with this player is that they have to sign him before he becomes a free agent this summer. He should be the top priority regarding college free agents. He’s better than Luke Tuch in my estimation.
The Canadiens have to continue to fill the pipeline and work with these players. Player development is very important for the prospects and the Canadiens have done a decent job with that but there’s room for improvement for sure.