Skip to content
Y
o
u
r
 
d
a
i
l
y
 
d
o
s
e
 
o
f
 
h
o
c
k
e
y
News

Nick Suzuki was the third choice of Marc Bergevin: thanks to the Golden Knights
Félix Forget
Nick Suzuki was the third choice of Marc Bergevin: thanks to the Golden Knights
Credit: Getty Images
Right now, Nick Suzuki is one of the main reasons the Habs are at the top of the playoff run. The captain is playing huge hockey… and unless there’s a huge surprise, he will become the first since Alex Kovalev to score 82 points in a season with the Habs.

And that, Kovalev did in 2007-08. That’s almost 20 years ago.

Naturally, therefore, the Tricolore wouldn’t be where they are now without their captain. By the same token, they wouldn’t be there without the trade that sent Max Pacioretty to Vegas… but they also wouldn’t be there if Marc Bergevin hadn’t been a bit lucky.

Since the trade, we’ve repeated many times that Bergevin had Cody Glass in his sights, and that he had to settle for Suzuki. However, what Jean-Charles Lajoie reminds us of tonight on the TVA Sports website, is that initially, Glass wasn’t even the Habs’ first target.

The first target was Erik Brannström.

Clearly, when we look at the three players, we realize that Bergevin was a bit lucky. The one he had to settle for is having a much better career than the other two… and the Habs wouldn’t be where they are now without this stroke of luck.

Imagine if Brannström, another left-handed defenseman, had been in town. Already there’s congestion, it would have been something.

Instead, the Habs now have their captain and number one center, who is demonstrating this year that he truly belongs to the NHL elite.

And on top of that, we’re talking about a player who has serious arguments to be in the Selke Trophy race this season.

Meanwhile, Brannström is playing in the AHL, while Cody Glass is a support player for the New Jersey team after a trade that saw him leave Pittsburgh last month.

If it were to be done again, I imagine George McPhee wouldn’t have had any problem letting Brannström go… but that’s not the Habs’ problem, and they certainly won’t complain about it.


Overtime

– Speaking of the captain. Very nice gesture from him.

– Mike Matheson: few defensemen eat as many minutes as him.

– That’s good.

– That’s classic.

– Well done.

facebook icon Share twitter icon Tweet linkedin icon Share
More Content