The CH will need more than just consistent depth this season

Mathis Therrien
The CH will need more than just consistent depth this season
Credit: Mark LoMoglio/NHLI via Getty Images

The Montreal Canadiens will play their second game of the season tonight when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins, who will open their season at home.

Martin St-Louis's squad will once again face a team celebrating its season opener, after defeating the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Tuesday.

It was a great win for the Habs, which, surprisingly, wasn't driven at all by the team's top six.

One might have expected a much better performance from the Canadiens' big names, but in the end, it was the bottom six—along with Alexandre Carrier—who made the game.

It's obviously a real luxury to win an important game without any contribution from your best offensive players, who, all things considered, had a very ordinary game.

And seriously, this is exactly the kind of depth the Habs will need throughout the season to be successful.

Indeed, Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Lane Hutson, and Ivan Demidov were very quiet against the Leafs, but that didn't sink the team as one might have thought.

The other players stepped up brilliantly, with Josh Anderson, Kirby Dach, and Alexandre Carrier standing out.

This is exactly the kind of game and victory the Habs will really need this season, since they won't be able to win every game relying solely on their top scorers, who will obviously be closely marked.

They already were, but they'll be watched even more closely after the seasons they had last year—whether it was Caufield's 50 goals, Suzuki's 100 points, or the brilliant seasons from Hutson, Slafkovsky, and Demidov.

These guys will be under close scrutiny, so the Habs will really need their depth players to step up whenever the big guns seem to be having an off night.

Seeing the top six and Hutson have a quiet game in Game #1 of the season isn't cause for concern, as they have the talent to bounce back as early as tonight.

What would have been concerning is seeing the top players dominate the game, but watching the Habs lose because their only productive lines couldn't find the back of the net.

In short, the Habs' depth got off to a great start, and they'll need to maintain that consistency throughout the season.


In a Nutshell

– Read this.

– Stay tuned.

– No need to panic.

– Note this.

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