2010-11 NHL Season Preview: Montreal Canadiens

People laughed when the Montreal Canadiens signed undersized forwards Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta prior to the 2009-10 NHL season. By the end of the season, people were no longer laughing but looking on in awe as the highly underrated Canadiens slipped past the Presidents' Trophy winning Washington Capitals and defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins in the first two rounds of the NHL Playoffs.

The miraculous run was due largely in part to now departed goaltender Jaroslav Halak, though Montreal also got amazing production out of Mike Cammalleri, who led all goal scorers for most of the playoffs. Will the Montreal Canadiens be able to replicate their success from the 2009-10 NHL season?

True Number One
For the past two seasons the Montreal Canadiens have struggled in decided who their number one goaltender was. After a very successful rookie season it seemed as though Carey Price would be the starting goaltender for some time to come, but the high expectations got to the young goalie. Price's game slipped, leaving the door wide open for Jaroslav Halak to steal the reigns.

Halak proved his worth in the 2010 NHL Playoffs, seemingly making the decision on Montreal's goaltending future all by himself. Surprisingly, Jaroslav Halak was sent to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for prospects leaving the Canadiens with only Carey Price in net. If Carey Price can regain the form that brought him to international attention, the Montreal Canadiens will be perfectly fine. If he cannot, the Canadiens have one long season ahead.

More of the Same
Aside from that blockbuster move in net, the Montreal Canadiens are essentially fielding the same team as last season. The most notable departures come from depth forwards Dominic Moore and Sergei Kostitsyn, both of whom were liabilities at some point, as well as defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron. Bergeron was signed to fill in for an injured Andrei Markov early last year, so his absence is not surprising.

What might (again) make the Montreal Canadiens a hidden threat in the NHL is a very strong farm system. Maxim Lapierre, Max Pacioretty, Mathieu Darche, PK Subban and Ben Maxwell all played excellently in their NHL games last season, and each one will be looked to fill a larger role in 2010-11.

Playoff Heroes, Round 2?
So it all comes down to the question: can the Montreal Canadiens play spoiler to the NHL's top teams two years in a row? Unfortunately for Habs fans, the Canadiens will be lacking Jaroslav Halak in net, effectively losing their ability to steal games that they should have lost.

The so-called "Smurf Line" of Mike Cammalleri, Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez will also not be underrated this year, with Cammalleri in particular becoming a huge target due to his goal scoring prowess. The Canadiens will have to play both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins six times, and both feature some of the biggest and most aggressive defensemen in the NHL. Montreal added some sandpaper in the form of Dustin Boyd, but any game they play without the first change leaves the Canadiens at a serious disadvantage.

Predicted Standings
Northeast Division: 5^th
Eastern Conference: 13^th
NHL: 27^th

Depth Chart

Forwards
Mike Cammalleri - Scott Gomez - Brian Gionta
Benoit Pouliot - Tomas Plekanec - Andrei Kostitsyn
Travis Moen - Maxim Lapierre - Dustin Boyd
Max Pacioretty - Lars Eller - Mathieu Darche
Tom Pyatt - Ben Maxwell

Defense

Andrei Markov - Jaroslav Spacek
Hal Gill - Josh Gorges
Roman Hamrlik - PK Subban
Alexandre Picard - Ryan O'Byrne

Goaltenders
Carey Price
Alex Auld
Karri Ramo

Sources

http://www.nhl.com
http://www.tsn.ca
http://www.espn.com
http://www.hockeydb.com
http://www.nhlnumbers.com