I like Max and in his 1st year in montreal he was as productive as any C in Mtl for the last decade. He played with his buddy Drouin and Shaw - which was significant because Andrew kept that line awake. He was also highly motivated playing in a pressure cooker hockey market. Last year wasn't terrible - he still would've finished with around 50 pts, but the team was decimated by injuries - especially his line and Julien didn't like his two-way game. The pandemic hurt him a lot. He was worried his TD1 would be affected by the virulence of Covid (perfectly normal) and he showed up late for camp and never got motivated playing in empty arenas. He said as much during interviews. Was it an excuse? Maybe. He was surpassed by Kotkaniemi who came back from Finland, bigger, stronger and ready.
I hope he turns it around, there were whispers he was pouting in Mtl during his second season and in the bubble. He didn't get on with Julien and I worry he won't with Torts who's even more aggressive and structured in his game planning. I still expect him to. But he does need line mates who can score off his passes - and he has to be able to freewheel off the rush. If he plays with scrubs, he won't be putting up many points in CB. He's not someone who regularly drives a line