HF Habs: The official 2023-2024 tank thread

[The Last Red]

Next year is another tank year unless we get lucky and get Celebrini. Just not enough difference makers coming in.

I don't think next year is an intentional tank year - it could happen organically, however. HuGo will likely trade one of the d-men + draft picks or prospects for an "established" younger top six forward to play with a hopefully healthy Dach (and maybe Newhook) next season. There's also the fact that it will be year 4 of HuGo's five year contracts, Molson is not giving them Buffalo-type latitude regarding comepetiveness . . . I think a top 10 pick next season is unlikely.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Aiden Celebrini is overrated he is not that good don't think we should trade for him.

Ryder Halak and a 2nd?

 

[Colezuki]

I don't think next year is an intentional tank year - it could happen organically, however. HuGo will likely trade one of the d-men + draft picks or prospects for an "established" younger top six forward to play with a hopefully healthy Dach (and maybe Newhook) next season. There's also the fact that it will be year 4 of HuGo's five year contracts, Molson is not giving them Buffalo-type latitude regarding comepetiveness . . . I think a top 10 pick next season is unlikely.

I thought this year we'd be 7-12 with a healthy Dach and Monahan, I still think next year we're fighting for a playoff spot

Edit; To explain why,
- 1st line took a step this year and with some extra support will likely be more consistent next year
- our center corps will be better, while people all point to Dach let's not forget that Dvo is out as well thats two centres back just by entering the season and means we can slot newhook where he belongs and put Evans on 4C duties while putting white or gignac in the A it's also a contract year for DVo so he'll likely be working
- The Defense will be a year older for Xhekaj, Barron, Guhle, Mailloux, Harris, Struble, while one of Reinbacher and Hutson could surprise out of camp.
- to the above we likely acquire another top 6 F by trading one of the above come the offseason

I feel confident

 

[Andy]

You forgot Stanley Cup Finals. Suzuki, Mailloux, Caufield, Xhekaj, Roy, Guhle, Montembeault,

I think we can acknowledge that the stanley cup run was fun and amazing, but that the team was ultimate shit and poorly constructed. They are not mutually exclusive.

The team got progressively worse each year that MB moved away from the inherited core and we got some fun under very lucky circumstances.

 

[DAChampion]

Don’t forget,

We’ll have Cellebrini too.

I don't expect Celebrini to be an impact forward as a rookie.

He just might break even relative to the cost of MSL needing to shelter an 18 year old.

 

[teamfirst]

You forgot Stanley Cup Finals. Suzuki, Mailloux, Caufield, Xhekaj, Roy, Guhle, Montembeault,

Yup, people acting like MB is the only GM getting fire after 10 years leaving some dead woods on the beach

 

[Spring in Fialta]

What badges of honour. How this man still has a position of authority in the NHL is surprising. Or, perhaps not so.

Friends and experience.

I don't think he ever GMs again though. He was godawful. I have no idea how Molson gave him that long of a leash and I'm glad he's taken far more of a background role now.

 

[Adam Michaels]

I thought this year we'd be 7-12 with a healthy Dach and Monahan, I still think next year we're fighting for a playoff spot

Edit; To explain why,
- 1st line took a step this year and with some extra support will likely be more consistent next year
- our center corps will be better, while people all point to Dach let's not forget that Dvo is out as well thats two centres back just by entering the season and means we can slot newhook where he belongs and put Evans on 4C duties while putting white or gignac in the A it's also a contract year for DVo so he'll likely be working
- The Defense will be a year older for Xhekaj, Barron, Guhle, Mailloux, Harris, Struble, while one of Reinbacher and Hutson could surprise out of camp.
- to the above we likely acquire another top 6 F by trading one of the above come the offseason

I feel confident

I see it the same way. I believe this off-season, Hughes will trade for another young forward with Top-6 potential a la Dach & Newhook. Then it will depend where they draft and who they select and how soon they will be ready.

On defense, other than Reinbacher and Hutson possibly earning a spot out of camp, I'll add Mailloux to that list.

So next year might still be a development year, but barring an unforseen incident, the Habs should be closer to a Wild Card spot than the bottom of the standings.

 

[HuGo Burner Acc]

Right, but next year's Habs don't have Monahan. They may have Dach, but there will likely be other players injured.

He's an improvement but sure let's go with your assertion and say everything remains neutral. They were still a point per game team with Monahan. So between 80-90 points is not tanking

 

[HuGo Burner Acc]

We don't deal with hypotheticals. Dach was injured just he was 2 years ago. At this point, penciling him to miss at least a chunk of the season is the realistic thing to do based on history.

Gallagher, Armia, Dvorak, Anderson still with the team next year. It will be same old with maybe a couple more youngsters.

His injury was not linked to previous injuries. It was completely unlucky. It's like if I break my hand, have reoccuring hand injuries and then one day rip my Achilles. Also hypotheticals are fine if they're realistic. For example, there's a 75% chance it rains tomorrow, but what if it's sunny tomorrow. But there's still a point is discussing the hypothetical of it being sunny and what chances in that scenario

 

[KevSkillz4]

Right now, I focus to secure a bottom 6 finish, that's a top 8 guaranted.

8 players I really like in this draft:

1 - Celebini.
2 - Lindstrom.
3 - Demidov.
4 - Leshunov.
5 - Parekh.
6 - Buium.
7 - Dickinson.
8 - Catton.

Not in order's except Celebrini, but that's the 8 players who have high end top talent, amazing qualities, that would be perfect for the Habs future to grab one of them.

The fact that bottom 4-5 finish is a possibility, that's really cool aswell.

The lottery day will decide where Habs will be picking. Maybe top 3?! Who knows?!

 

[eklund the clown]

He's an improvement but sure let's go with your assertion and say everything remains neutral. They were still a point per game team with Monahan. So between 80-90 points is not tanking

Don't be too sure Monahan won't be back.Just saying it is very possible especially if we can get rid of Dvorak

 

[lamp9post]

Don't be too sure Monahan won't be back.Just saying it is very possible especially if we can get rid of Dvorak

I'd be very surprised. Monahan is in position to cash in due to his resurgent season and I don't think we'll be in position to bring him back given that we will likely still have guys like Dvorak, Armia, Anderson, Gallagher, Evans, etc. taking up cap space and roster spots up front.

I'd ballpark Monahan's contract in the 3yr, $5M AAV range, which I think is too long and too rich for where we are as a team right now.

 

[schwang26]

I don't expect Celebrini to be an impact forward as a rookie.

He just might break even relative to the cost of MSL needing to shelter an 18 year old.

Or he stays in school.

4th pick is a real possibility! Let’s see if we can help Arizona break their winless record!

 

[Lshap]

I don't think next year is an intentional tank year - it could happen organically, however. HuGo will likely trade one of the d-men + draft picks or prospects for an "established" younger top six forward to play with a hopefully healthy Dach (and maybe Newhook) next season. There's also the fact that it will be year 4 of HuGo's five year contracts, Molson is not giving them Buffalo-type latitude regarding comepetiveness . . . I think a top 10 pick next season is unlikely.

I thought this year we'd be 7-12 with a healthy Dach and Monahan, I still think next year we're fighting for a playoff spot

Edit; To explain why,
- 1st line took a step this year and with some extra support will likely be more consistent next year
- our center corps will be better, while people all point to Dach let's not forget that Dvo is out as well thats two centres back just by entering the season and means we can slot newhook where he belongs and put Evans on 4C duties while putting white or gignac in the A it's also a contract year for DVo so he'll likely be working
- The Defense will be a year older for Xhekaj, Barron, Guhle, Mailloux, Harris, Struble, while one of Reinbacher and Hutson could surprise out of camp.
- to the above we likely acquire another top 6 F by trading one of the above come the offseason

I feel confident

I see it the same way. I believe this off-season, Hughes will trade for another young forward with Top-6 potential a la Dach & Newhook. Then it will depend where they draft and who they select and how soon they will be ready.

On defense, other than Reinbacher and Hutson possibly earning a spot out of camp, I'll add Mailloux to that list.

So next year might still be a development year, but barring an unforseen incident, the Habs should be closer to a Wild Card spot than the bottom of the standings.

I see it the same way. After three seasons of outright tanking you expect to see progress, not necessarily playoffs, but concrete signs your young core will be able to compete amongst the top teams. How much progress? When? I won't even guess, because so much is riding on kids who've barely started and others who haven't yet played in the NHL.

If Dach is healthy and one or two kids break out, we could be a Wildcard team as early as next season.

 

[Nicko999]

Dach injury this year has nothing to do with his previous injuries. It's not a niggling injury or a wth is going on injury. It's badluck like Markov. Means nothing for the future.

His injury was not linked to previous injuries. It was completely unlucky. It's like if I break my hand, have reoccuring hand injuries and then one day rip my Achilles. Also hypotheticals are fine if they're realistic. For example, there's a 75% chance it rains tomorrow, but what if it's sunny tomorrow. But there's still a point is discussing the hypothetical of it being sunny and what chances in that scenario

I hope for the best I really do but his injury was not "luck". How comes Suzuki never get injuries? It comes down to body type and genetics. Some people break bones easier than others.
Hence my expectation for another Dach injury next year. Like I said I hope I am wrong but simply being realistic here.
Maybe he will be like Markov and play 82 games the next 2-3 years but can't ignore his injuries throughout the years.

 

[Lshap]

Tis the season for pipe dreams, where we seriously think we're going to win the lottery or out-tank (almost) every team in our way.

Won't happen. I'm accepting the reality we're picking 6th to 8th. Let's hope we make the best of it.

 

[BergevinBurner]

Tis the season for pipe dreams, where we seriously think we're going to win the lottery or out-tank (almost) every team in our way.

Won't happen. I'm accepting the reality we're picking 6th to 8th. Let's hope we make the best of it.

I'm not even allowing my brain to envision what our line up would look like with Celebrini.

I'm laser focused on who's going to be available in that 5-7 range to avoid disappointment lol.

 

[Michelangelo]

Tomorrow is the most important game in the season so far

We cannot blow this

 

[Nicko999]

I don't think next year is an intentional tank year - it could happen organically, however. HuGo will likely trade one of the d-men + draft picks or prospects for an "established" younger top six forward to play with a hopefully healthy Dach (and maybe Newhook) next season. There's also the fact that it will be year 4 of HuGo's five year contracts, Molson is not giving them Buffalo-type latitude regarding comepetiveness . . . I think a top 10 pick next season is unlikely.

I think we are looking at another top 5 pick next season. Chicago especially if they Celebrini will make a big jump. Could be better than MTL depending on how Bedard develops.
Columbus have some awesome young pieces. They should improve next season.
Anaheim has some great D prospects. They should also improve dramatically.

While some bottom teams will pass us, others might finish behind us like the Caps. So all in all, we will be fighting for a top 5 pick yet again. Rebuilds take more than 2-3 years especially when you don't have gamebreakers.

 

[Lshap]

I hope for the best I really do but his injury was not "luck". How comes Suzuki never get injuries? It comes down to body type and genetics. Some people break bones easier than others.
Hence my expectation for another Dach injury next year. Like I said I hope I am wrong but simply being realistic here.

I get where you're coming from, but expecting Dach to be seriously injured again isn't 'realistic' (although it's possible). Players go through bouts of injuries, then recover to play full seasons. No question Dach's early track record sucks, but we're a long way from declaring him to be brittle.

 

[Koivu11]

Why do we keep starting Monty against teams we’re trying to outtank? Not smart.

 

[MTL Dirty Birdy]

I think they should mix Mailloux in as well. Get all three of these guys some exposure to the bigs, so we can have a baseline of where they are at and what they need to work on.

Would be an awesome to motivate them going into summer traning

 

[HuGo Burner Acc]

I hope for the best I really do but his injury was not "luck". How comes Suzuki never get injuries? It comes down to body type and genetics. Some people break bones easier than others.
Hence my expectation for another Dach injury next year. Like I said I hope I am wrong but simply being realistic here.
Maybe he will be like Markov and play 82 games the next 2-3 years but can't ignore his injuries throughout the years.

Suzuki is an anomaly but it's more dude to his play style and IQ than anything. He never puts himself in those situations to begin with and he slows down the game to the point where even when he does get hit, it's not extreme. But yeah dude also has some thick bones

 

[red devil]

Why do we keep starting Monty against teams we’re trying to outtank? Not smart.

Because players and coaches want to win. St Louis chooses the goaltender for the game and as a competitor he wants to win every game and if he didn't I wouldn't want him to be the coach.