After the Montreal Canadiens surprised the league by making the playoffs last season, plenty of analysts believed the Habs would come back down to earth this season and experience a setback. After 11 games, that’s far from being the case as Montreal has 16 points in the standings, just two behind the league-leading Pittsburgh Penguins. While the positive results have been achieved through a team effort, a few standouts have caught NHL.com’s eye and landed on the website’s projected rosters for the Olympics.
On the Team Canada roster, they’ve added captain Nick Suzuki. This addition appears more than logical since he was tied for the most points in the league since the 4 Nations Face-Off (as of October 29, he had 53 points in 37 games played, like David Pastrnak, four points above Nikita Kucherov, who had 49 in 34 games played). He has proven he can perform on the power play, on the penalty kill, and at even strength. Whatever Team Canada needs, he can provide.
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It's not all good news, however, since Samuel Montembeault’s struggles early on might cost him his spot as the third to Logan Thompson. Clearly, NHL.com believes the struggles are serious enough for the coaching staff to get over their differences with the Washington Capitals' goaltender Thompson.
As for Team USA, they do not believe that Montreal will have a single player on the roster; they mention both Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson as potential candidates, but they do not expect either to make it. In a recent interview, Team USA GM Bill Guerin said he didn’t know if it was his time right now.
Patrik Laine was on Team Finland’s roster at the 4 Nations, but his core muscle surgery should keep him out of action for three to four months. He could potentially be ready if it turns out to be only three months, but would he be in game shape by then? That remains to be seen. Montreal could still have a player on its roster; however, since rookie Oliver Kapanen has impressed so far this season, the league has placed him on the Finnish projected roster.
Former Habs Joel Armia, who left as a free agent this past summer, also makes the list, and so does Jesperi Kotkaniemi, despite being a mainstay on the Carolina Hurricanes' fourth line this season.
Juraj Slafkovsky was one of Slovakia’s six players already named to Slovakia’s roster, which wasn’t a surprise given how impactful he was at the 2022 Olympics, leading his country to the Bronze Medal and being named tournament MVP. Former Hab Tomas Tatar was also on the preliminary roster and should even wear the C, according to NHL.com.
Meanwhile, they also seem to think that, despite his lack of international experience, Jakub Dobes could find his way to the Czech roster after his red-hot start to the season. The team has until the end of December to submit their roster, so he will have to keep up the good work to make it, but it does seem likely for now.
There are two ways to see the news as a Canadiens’ fan: thinking it’s a shame because they could all have rested instead of playing in a tournament where they could get injured, or be happy for them as they’ll get to play in a best-on-best tourney, which can only make them better players and boost their confidence. I believe the glass-half-full approach is the best one; after all, how long has it been since the Canadiens had multiple players who could hope to compete in an event that only featured the elite?
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