HabsWorld.net -- 

The Habs recently passed the three-quarter mark of the season and find themselves squarely in the mix for a playoff spot.  Our writers have issued their third-quarter grades, beginning with the goalies and defencemen.

Goaltenders

Samuel Montembeault: Writer Vote Average: 7.6

Montembeault continues to play solid hockey for the team. He is setting a new career best in GAA at 2.87 for the season to date, with his best performances coming in the second and third quarters when he played fewer games. His previous personal best in games played was 41 (set last season) so he’s already set a new record this season and is on pace to play over 60 games. I think this is too much for Montembeault and if management doesn’t give him proper rest, we’ll see a drop in performance. In the meantime, Montembeault gives his team a chance to win most nights.

Stats: 14 GP, 2.78 GAA, 0.903% SV%, 7-6 Win/Loss, 1 SO

Jakub Dobes: Writer Vote Average: 6.8

Dobes cooled off from his sizzling start when he went 4-0, with one shutout and well over 0.900 SV%. Like the rest of the team, he struggled through the end of January and early February which really impacted his personal stats. Over the last three games, he played much better including in a 1-0 loss to Calgary where he made numerous saves he had no business making to keep the team in the game. As with any rookie he needs to work on his consistency, but overall Dobes is doing his part contributing to the team’s success.

Stats: 7 GP, 3.44 GAA, 0.89% SV%, 3-2 Win/Loss, 0 SO

Defencemen

Lane Hutson: Writer Vote Average: 9.2

Hutson has continued his dynamic play all season and shows no signs of slowing down even though teams have started to adjust to his playing style. Despite being a rookie on a bottom-dwelling team and playing against top lines, Hutson is playing surprisingly good defence in his own end. He expertly uses his speed and agility to maintain good position which limits the amount of times his small size and strength are exposed. In the neutral and offensive zones, he is dynamite, providing a type of offence Habs fans have never seen from a defenceman. With fewer than 70 shots on goal at the end of the quarter, Hutson will need to work on this to round out his play but that will come as the 21-year-old gains more experience and physically matures.

Stats: 20 GP, 1 goal, 16 assists, 17 points, -8 rating, 10 PIMS, 21 shots, 21:49 ATOI

Alexandre Carrier: Writer Vote Average: 7.6

Carrier is currently the only Habs blueliner with a positive plus/minus. While it’s not a huge value (+6 on the season for the Habs) it’s a strong indicator of his play when all other defencemen are in the negatives. He’s brought stability and a higher level of play to the side of the defensive roster and he makes everybody he plays with better.

Stats: 20 GP, 2 goals, 6 assists, 8 points, +4 rating, 12 PIMS, 26 shots, 20:37 ATOI

Kaiden Guhle: Writer Vote Average: 7.6

Guhle is missing another significant chunk of a season due to injury which is limiting his value to the team. When healthy, he is a key member of the team and has demonstrated his ability to play big minutes against opponents’ top lines. Without Guhle in the lineup, the second pairing is exposed and is forcing the coaching staff to play others (i.e. Matheson) more than you’d want. Durability will be something to keep an eye on as he starts his $5.5M six-year contract next season.

Stats: 9 GP, 1 goal, 3 assists, 4 points, 6 rating, 4 PIMS, 19 shots, 21:22 ATOI

Mike Matheson: Writer Vote Average: 7.4

Matheson is 9th in the NHL in minutes played and plays almost 3.5 minutes more than any other defenceman on the Habs. All while playing against opponents’ top lines and often while playing on his off -ide. He’s improved massively on the defensive side of things as he’s only -8 on the season which more than makes up for his significant decrease in production from last year (currently 0.46 pts/game compared to 0.76 pts/game last season). Matheson is doing all that can be asked of him, eating big minutes, playing reasonable defence, and contributing offensively. If management could make some roster moves to be able to play Matheson on his natural side on the second pairing, I think there’s significant upside to be gained.

Stats: 20 GP, 3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points, -4 rating, 10 PIMS, 22 shots, 25:12 ATOI

Jayden Struble: Writer Vote Average: 6.4

Struble has struggled this season with consistency and level of aggressiveness. His play improved this past quarter – perhaps due to more regular playing time since Guhle was injured, but I’m not sure he’s done enough to earn himself a full-time spot next season.

Stats: 9 GP, 0 goals, 3 assists, 3 points, -1 rating, 13 PIMS, 5 shots, 16:06 ATOI

Arber Xhekaj: Writer Vote Average: 6.4

Xhekaj has taken a big step forward in his development over the second and third quarters of this season, providing consistency and stability on the third pairing while still being the sheriff when required. The coaching staff doesn’t seem to fully trust him though as he’s not getting much in the way of penalty-killing time (0:39 per game). He doesn’t block many shots (only 57 on the season) so perhaps learning a thing or two from Savard might help get him more shorthanded time.

Stats: 20 GP, 0 goals, 1 assist, 1 point, -6 rating, 32 PIMS, 19 shots, 14:32 ATOI

David Savard: Writer Vote Average: 5.0

Savard’s deployment has been steadily dropping all year.  He started the season playing over 18 minutes a game but is now down to roughly 16 minutes as he’s dropped down to the third set of pairings with the arrival of Carrier. Despite his slowing foot speed, he continues his strong shot blocking ranking seventh in the NHL. With an expiring contract and lots of promising young talent needing NHL experience, it was a surprise that Savard didn’t get moved at the deadline.

Stats: 20 GP, 0 goals, 2 assists, 2 points, -8 rating, 4 PIMS, 14 shots, 16:06 ATOI