Why it wouldn't make sense for Montreal to make the playoffs

The same team that went 9-0-0 to start the season now faces desperation for a playoff spot in the standings. The Montreal Canadiens were 20-4-3 in their first 27 games of the season, leading the Atlantic division by 9 points. Fast forward 27 more games and the Canadiens currently sit in 5th place in the Atlantic division, 12th in the Eastern Conference and 22nd in the league. Since December 3rd, Montreal has gone 6-20-1, giving them the worst record in the league. A lot of the blame has been on Michel Therrien and the coaching staff, as well as the general manager Marc Bergevin. How can you not blame Therrien for this mess? For the past 3 years he has been incapable of setting consistent line-ups and has developed the younger players poorly. Not to mention this disastrous stretch goes to show you how great Carey Price is when he is healthy.

Another factor that plays a role in this equation is the lack of leadership and heart coming from the players. Captain Max Pacioretty hasn't showed up when his team needed him the most. He hasn't picked up the load nor taken his game to the next level in order to lead by example. Losing Price to injury for the most part of the season has hurt them as his leadership and skill is missing in the locker room and on the ice. The Canadiens have become a fragile hockey team and have lost their confidence and swagger. Crushing the Edmonton Oilers 5 to 1 Saturday afternoon may have brought the players spirits back, but a playoff birth is useless at this point in time.


Making the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs wouldn't be the Canadiens ideal situation moving forward for years to come. They currently sit in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, 5 points out of a wild card spot with 29 games remaining. Now, if the Canadiens were to make the playoffs, they would most probably just squeeze in, giving them a top vs bottom seed match-up in the first round. Hypothetically speaking they would face cup favourites, the Washington Capitals or the Florida Panthers, depending where they finish. Now imagine facing the Capitals, without home ice advantage and worst of all, without Carey Price. Let's face it, Montreal does not have a cup contending roster as it is and without Price, winning the cup is out of the question.

As terrible as it may sound, the best thing for the Canadiens right now is to continue losing games. In a strong draft class that includes another generational talent in Auston Matthews (who is predicted to go number one on draft day), along with other studs such as Matthew Tkachuk, Jesse Puljujarvi and Patrik Laine, it only makes sense for the Canadiens to scrap this season and look forward to pick in the top 10 come draft day on June 24th in Buffalo. GM Marc Bergevin should also look to be a seller rather than a buyer this coming trade deadline. Moving older and expendable players such as Andrei Markov, Tomas Plekanec (who has rumoured to have asked for a trade request), Tomas Fleischmann, David Desharnias and Tom Gilbert to playoff teams in retun for picks and prospects is the way to go. Furthermore, Michel Therrien and staff should be letting the younger players from the minors see some NHL action as well as increasing Alex Galchenyuk's ice time as a centerman and not as a winger. We'll just have to wait and see what decision management will take within the next couple of weeks.

(Paul Chiasson/The Canadian press)