The Habs closed up 2024 on a high note with some big victories to get themselves closer to the playoff picture. Along the way, they had some different contributors than normal, some of whom received enough votes from our readers to land in our three stars.
1st Star: Jake Evans
Is a 50% shooting percentage (his mark for the month) remotely sustainable? Of course not. But that’s not a concern for this purpose. Last month, Evans didn’t shoot often but when he did, good things usually soon followed. He had three shorthanded goals and three game-winners, leading Montreal in both categories. He also was his typically strong self defensively, did relatively well at the faceoff dot, and helped lead a surprisingly strong fourth line. Perfect timing with it being a contract year and the trade deadline now less than two months away as Evans is showing he can be an important piece for the Canadiens, earning him nearly half the first-place votes.
Stats: 14 GP, 6 goals, 6 assists, 12 points, +9 rating, 0 PIMS, 12 shots, 51.8% faceoffs, 14:54 ATOI
2nd Star: Lane Hutson
After a couple of solid months to start his NHL career, Hutson didn’t hit the rookie wall as many generally do approaching midseason. Instead, he did a bit better (which was a pretty high bar to clear). He picked up his first two NHL goals and established himself on the top pairing alongside Mike Matheson. On top of that, he also took over running the top power play from Matheson, a unit that had a bit more success last month (though largely due to someone else we’ll get to shortly). Hutson has quickly shown that he’s one of Montreal’s long-term core pieces while many hope there’s still more to come.
Stats: 14 GP, 2 goals, 11 assists, 13 points, -1 rating, 10 PIMS, 19 shots, 13 blocks, 21:17 ATOI
3rd Star: Cole Caufield
Early in the season, Caufield was scoring goals but that was about it. Granted, if you’re only going to do one thing, scoring would be it but he showed in the past he can be an all-around offensive player and he was that in December. He did well adapting to the changes on the power play that saw him move across the ice from his usual spot while he helped the front line to a solid showing as well. A 40-goal season is well within reach if he can keep this type of performance up.
Stats: 14 GP, 5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points, +1 rating, 6 PIMS, 46 shots, 16 hits, 17:06 ATOI
Honourable Mention: Patrik Laine
Expectations were relatively high for Laine despite missing the first two months of the season with a knee injury. However, he managed to exceed those by scoring early and often. Laine helped get the power play back going and is already among the league leaders for power play goals despite barely being in the lineup. At five-on-five, it’s definitely a work in progress in terms of getting him up to speed but when you’re making that much of a difference on the power play, you get a well-deserved long leash to get the rest of your game up to par.
Stats: 13 GP, 8 goals (all PPGs), 2 assists, 10 points, -5 rating, 4 PIMS, 37 shots, 12 blocks, 14:50 TOI