Are we heading in the right direction? 2025 Version

[De Montreal]

You realize he just finished his rookie season, right?

Do you think he can become an elite shutdown dman?

I honestly dont see a world where this is possible, I'm sorry.

 

[CHwest]

Do you think he can become an elite shutdown dman?

I honestly dont see a world where this is possible, I'm sorry.

No elite shutdown defensemen contribute the offense he will either.

 

[Habs 4 Life]

Yes, 100% in the right direction. a true #2 center and a top 3 NHL defenseman and as they say "on est en voiture" !!!

 

[the]

As of today I'm happy but I wish the rebuild continued for another year (this season). I feel we are missing another star player to compete.

I don't know if this current roster including our prospects will be sufficient to make us contenders.

I was hopeful that Dach and Newhook would be good top 6 players but they both flopped. I'm hopeful that Laine can contribute and become a good player but he's a question mark as well.

We don't have a 2nd line and we need a top 2 D to round up the roster. Maybe Reinbacher becomes that player but his knee got me worried.

Our front office has done a phenomenal job but I think they got their work cut out for them this summer. I just have a feeling we are exiting the rebuild phase too quickly with this playoff run.

Everything is looking good right now but what happens if we don't make the playoffs next season? Would the sentiment still be positive?

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

My comment is by no means a disavowal of Hutson. I love him. But Quinn Hughes havent led his team to the SCF, Adam Fox have not either. To get far in the playoff, you need a rock solid two-way defenceman and we do not have that. Mayyybe Reinbacher, but he's way too uncertain.

Canucks have never had a team anywhere near a Cup contender. Reinbacher is the big #1 d if he can stay healthy.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

I love him but I highly doubt a team can with the Stanley Cup playing a 5'9' dman 25 minutes a night. If I'm wrong I'll gladly eat crow, the Avalanche won with Makar playing a big role -- but he is, yes, bigger, better defensively, better supporting cast. There is no Devon Toews playing along Hutson neither.

So IMO the most important change is to bring Bowen Byram, Noah Dobson or a guy like them who can take the most of the minutes and let Hutson do his things.

Dobson is terrible defensively. He adds nothing.

 

[JianYang]

Not if they keep going with that D core. I absolutely love Hutson but he doesnt have the acumen to be a no 1 dman. He's more of a no 2 / PP wizard.

Someone like Shea Weber who can munch big minutes. Slavin. Forsling. Seider. Sanderson. Morrissey.

Maybe we can hope Reinbacher become that but I doubt it.

You are talking about holes.

The question is whether the habs are going in the right direction.

 

[BozoTheClown]

Krug was built like a tank, similar to Francis Bouillon.

 

[Runner77]

Before I answer, I just want to know if there are any Quartexx clients added by Hughes, who actually worked out?

Do we have a Quartexx Foxhole as @Kobe Armstrong coined the term yesterday? If so, I just want to know that Hughes can ditch them if needed, without giving them extra rope.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Two years later and I feel better than I did about things before. Some things unfortunately did not go well. Dach looks like he's going to lose out to injuries and that's created a big hole going forward. Newhook didn't pan out as a top sixer. Roy is still in the system but hasn't made the leap.

But so much has gone right. Slaf has developed nicely (even if this year I expected more), Hutson looks like a genuine star. Demidov will show what he's all about next year but I loved the preview. Guhle, Suzuki and CC have all developed well (CC has been hampered by injury but is a much better overall player now.)

Reinbacher is a huge piece. We need to see how he does next year. He SHOULD be an anchor back there with Hutson. That gives us Guhle + ? And Carriere I think would be great on the third pairing.

Needs: 2C and RD. Preferably this offseason. Phase one of the rebuild is done. The playoffs are now a must every year. And to do that we need to fill at least those two big holes.

After that we'll have a hole on the 2nd line wing. That can be filled by any number of players. Laine, Dach, Newhook, Roy... hopefully we get a more permanent solution at some point but we can live with it for next year.

Hage, RB and Demidov... Beck, Engstrom, Roy, Mailloux... some will make it some won't. But that's a nice stable of prospects to work with.

 

[Captain97]

Like 6 or 7? Counting preseason action also. It's not much but honestly what worries me is not his play or his potential but his knee.

Gotcha, because his play suggest he can be a minute munching top RHD. The injury concern is can understand but by all accounts his knee should be fine.

 

[JianYang]

My comment is by no means a disavowal of Hutson. I love him. But Quinn Hughes havent led his team to the SCF, Adam Fox have not either. To get far in the playoff, you need a rock solid two-way defenceman and we do not have that. Mayyybe Reinbacher, but he's way too uncertain.

Even the best players in the world can't win cups on their own.

Gretzky never won after leaving all those hall of famers in Edmonton. Lemieux only started winning in the 90s when the penguins started stacking around him. Why would we expect hutson to win by himself?

It's also not Quinn Hughes fault that their goalie is never healthy anymore, or that pettersson has become a disaster... or that jt Miller was traded.... or that tocchet is not coming back despite hughes' endorsement.

 

[BLONG7]

Before I answer, I just want to know if there are any Quartexx clients added by Hughes, who actually worked out?

Do we have a Quartexx Foxhole as @Kobe Armstrong coined the term yesterday? If so, I just want to know that Hughes can ditch them if needed, without giving them extra rope.

Let's hope he takes a much closer look and thinks real hard before adding another Quartex client......not saying he can't, but he better be very careful on a go forward.

We are very much going in the right direction...........there is work to be done, and surely they know this.

 

[JianYang]

Yes, but now comes the hardest part.
I still consider us in rebuild mode (towards the end obviously). Hughes should not rush or overpay just because we lost against the Caps. I am a firm believer he should keep his picks and keep stockpiling on prospects.
Also must not make the mistake of resigning any of the bottom 6 guys.

I think there was going to be a natural pivot this summer where they get more agressive in finding peices that can help in the present. I was saying this even before the habs turned around their season.

Suzuki will be 26 and represents the oldest peice of that young core so it's getting time to at least focus a little bit more on the present.

I think the young core will continue to have a significant role and they will continue to dictate the success or lack thereof of the team, but i would not be surprised to see hugo at least trying to compliment that core with veterans who are ready to step in... for example at 2C.

This off season should be about surrounding that young core with veterans, and the priority should be 2C.

 

[Naslundforever]

Hard to say no. Ahead of schedule, kids finally pressing for spots, contracts cleaning up, draft choices abound, core getting better with xp

And we have Hutson now.

Even a good mix of patience and “ok gtfo we need this game”..

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

@De Montreal

I agree with your Hutson points in this thread but even you must admit that having a D man like Hutson is not easy to find and can be a very important piece , like a Fox , Karlson , Hughes.

Getting a Makar ,Doughty , Heiskanan , Dahlin , Hedman type of guy who can do both is going to be hard and we will probably need Reinbacher to become a Forsling / Pietro / Slavin type.

Regardless we are lucky to have Hutson but I agree we should not act like the D core is complete and I don't want Hutson to play against top oppositions all alone without a really good defensive dman at his side

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

Dobson is terrible defensively. He adds nothing.

Dobson was excellent defensively this year lmao

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

I love him but I highly doubt a team can with the Stanley Cup playing a 5'9' dman 25 minutes a night. If I'm wrong I'll gladly eat crow, the Avalanche won with Makar playing a big role -- but he is, yes, bigger, better defensively, better supporting cast. There is no Devon Toews playing along Hutson neither.

So IMO the most important change is to bring Bowen Byram, Noah Dobson or a guy like them who can take the most of the minutes and let Hutson do his things.

Byram is terrible, wouldn't touch him with a 10 foot pole.

 

[13 Black]

Yes

For the first time almost 30 years we have a prime versatile 90pts center (Suzuki)
We have young premium talent at F and D (Demidov , Slaf and Hutson)
While i wouldn't consider them premium per say we have lot of intriguing young talent in the pipeline (Reinbacher , Hage , Mailloux , Konyushkov , Beck etc).
We have a potential future #1 starter in Fowler
We may have some potential future size and sandpaper for the 4th line (Xhekaj jr , Tuch , Thorpe)
We have a level headed GM who act on logic instead of emotions
We'll have cap and roster space to make some moves via UFA or trade once all the deadwood is gone
We still have all our picks

 

[nilan30]

I think absolutely they are. My only concern is injuries going forward. This team was incredibly healthy this year with only long term injuries to Guhle, Laine and Dach. I think with this year's squad if any of Suzuki, Caufield, Hutson or even Slafkovsky or Matheson miss extended time the season plays out MUCH differently.

Like everyone else I think a right handed big D to replace/improve on Savard and a 2c are needed. Let Armia walks. Maybe Dvorak. Oddly I'm ok re-signing Pezzetta. He's got a place as a #13 forward. Somehow turn Newhook and Anderson into snipers. With their speed they'd both be amazing if they could finish. I'd be ok with Struble being traded but not Xhekaj.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

My comment is by no means a disavowal of Hutson. I love him. But Quinn Hughes havent led his team to the SCF, Adam Fox have not either. To get far in the playoff, you need a rock solid two-way defenceman and we do not have that. Mayyybe Reinbacher, but he's way too uncertain.

Well, Carey Price didn't lead us to the cup either... but I don't think that's a reflection of Carey Price.

Hutson is Quinn Hughes-ish calibre. That's incredible and with him our chances at a cup go way up. He's a legit Norris contender going forward.

But yeah, we can't just rely on him to win it for us. We need to build a team. I think we're on the way but there are big holes to be addressed.

 

[Cole Caulifield]

First part of the rebuild complete which is trade vets at deadline, maximize draft picks, get some top 5 picks (slaf, Reinbacher, demidov), hit homeruns on some lower picks (Hutson), have them fail once in the playoffs...

The second part is more fun, but it also requires surgical precision by our GM. Like everyone around here I have my opinion on who needs to go, who needs to stay, what type of player we should acquire to fix our problems...

Personally... I like what HuGo have done for the first part, they have been maximizing the value of assets big time but acquisitions like Dach, Newhook are not inspiring for the second part. Carrier was a nice one however.

For me, the 4 things HuGo need to do in order of easiness from easiest to hardest :

1) Not sign the guys we wanted to trade at the deadline (Dvorak, Armia), get rid of Newhook, get rid of Price's deal and I think Laine also.
2) Increase size, grit, defensive acumen and physicality of the bottom 6.
3) Get a big physical RD to play with Hutson
4) Get a solid 2nd line center who can be a good fit for Demidov.

 

[Runner77]

Let's hope he takes a much closer look and thinks real hard before adding another Quartex client......not saying he can't, but he better be very careful on a go forward.

We are very much going in the right direction...........there is work to be done, and surely they know this.

Looking at their website, 9 Habs are Quartexx clients (including 2 AHLers):

Josh Anderson
Alex Carrier
RHP
Lane Hutson
Logan Mailloux
Mike Matheson
Alex Newhook
Michael Pezzetta
Jayden Struble

Quartexx Hockey | Quartexx Management

Quartexx Hockey représente des joueurs renommés de la NHL tels que Taylor Hall, Darnell Nurse, Kris Letang, Mitch Marner et bien d'autres.

www.quartexxmanagement.com

That’s a pretty extensive list. Probably the team with the highest number of players represented by them.

 

[GrandBison]

Bad thing that Monty got hurt but it gave us the opportunity to see that Dobes could also be adequate in the playoffs

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

Before I answer, I just want to know if there are any Quartexx clients added by Hughes, who actually worked out?

Do we have a Quartexx Foxhole as @Kobe Armstrong coined the term yesterday? If so, I just want to know that Hughes can ditch them if needed, without giving them extra rope.

I don't take credit for coining the term, but I do take credit/blame for constantly harping on the issue.

I think it will lead to a conflict of interest when the team actually needs to make tough decisions. Hughes has spoken openly about how much he loves Matheson and Newhook on and off the ice. Those are his real life friends and if you don't think that has any impact on how their situations will be handled, pass the kool aid.

It's not just a cause for concern only with the players but also with his ex colleagues at Quartexx. Vinny's brother has a job there, and just so happens to be Matheson's agent. Do you think Hughes is going to be okay with letting Vinny's bro and Matheson get shafted with a 1-2 year show me deal when he has the ability to secure him $50M+? I seriously doubt it.

The way to make everyone happy is with a sign and trade for Matheson, or a deal with an extension already in place, which is what I expect will happen, even if it nukes Matheson's trade value even further.