Canadiens: Tough Choices Had To Be Made And Will Be Made Again

After missing just six games, Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki will return to the lineup against the Utah Mammoth, and so will Kirby Dach, who has been under the weather. As a result, Florian Xhekaj and Owen Beck will be healthy scratches. It’s not surprising that Xhekaj gets the chop, not that his fight with Adam Lowry caused the Habs defeat on Tuesday, but dropping the gloves was a bad decision. Arber had already fought and won. After that bout, the Bell Centre erupted; all the players went by the penalty box to congratulate him, and the Habs had a dominating shift. That was enough extracurriculars; there was no need for another fight. The youngest Xhekaj will learn to pick his spots, just like the older did.

Scratching Beck, however, must have been tough. He has played very well of late, and his arrival on the fourth line has given it an identity. The energy and the pace he brought made the unit a real pain to play against. Of course, F. Xhekaj and Oliver Kapanen also played a part, but it feels like things clicked when Beck joined them. Dach is now healthy, and since he was playing good hockey before he fell ill, it makes sense to put him back in the lineup; he didn’t lose his spot.

Game 16 – Canadiens vs Mammoth: Forgetting About Tuesday’s Humiliation
Big Update By Dan Milstein: Demidov Back In A Few More Weeks Or So
Canadiens: About That A

However, if Dach fails to deliver, Martin St-Louis will need to act. Beck made his fourth line much more useful, and if the Albertan comes in and makes the line less useful, the coach will be forced to go with merit. Granted, Beck has only 33 NHL games of experience and is only 22; he’s yet to carve out a spot in the lineup, but if you think long-term, he’s more likely to be with the Canadiens going forward than Dach.

Dach has a one-year deal after which he will be free as a bird to test the market, and that’s likely what will happen considering how his last contract negotiations went. Meanwhile, Beck is in the last year of his ELC and will be a restricted free agent come July. Dach might have been drafted higher, and the Habs paid a hefty price to acquire him, but so far, he has not lived up to his potential. Even though the former third-overall pick says he knows what kind of player he is, the jury is still out, and it’s been so long that it could end up being a mistrial. It’s time to let Beck plead his case and show what he could bring to this lineup if some veterans (such as Dach, for instance) aren't brought back next season.

When Ivan Demidov returns, providing no one else gets injured, Dach may end up in the press box, especially if St-Louis wants to put Demidov in winning circumstances with players he’s used to playing with, such as Oliver Kapanen and Alex Newhook. Kapanen hasn't been a difference-maker so far this season, but unlike Dach, he’ll be here long-term. The Canadiens have reached the point where they are chasing wins, but they need to think about the future too; sooner or later, roster decisions will need to reflect that.

Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.

Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.

Join the discussion by signing up to the Canadiens' roundtable on The Hockey News.