by Blain Potvin, Staff Writer, All Habs Hockey Magazine

During the course of this season, the Canadiens have been struck hard by the injury bug. Unlike the 2015-16 total collapse, this edition of the Habs have displayed resiliency by their ability to overcome hardships. This is, in part, due to the experience of last season. Another reason for the resilency of the team is that depth players on the roster have been able to effectively step up into larger roles.

As the injured players return to the lineup, they will take time to shake off the rust. An issue will arise, as some of the depth players that have stepped into the larger roles will naturally return to their former roles. Meanwhile, some, having grown in to their new roles, will keep them.

This readjustment period could cause a let-down in overall team performance, simply due to the large number of injuries.  That said, these players will now know they can step their game up and will begin to do so again.

In this group, we find the diminutive speedster, Paul Byron. The former 2007 sixth-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres, and waiver wire pick up from the Calgary Flames has put together a career season thus far.

At the 47-game mark of the season, he has the most goals (13), assists (15), and points (28) of any season in his career. He has been a reliable player at even strength (5v5), on the power-play (PP) and especially on the penalty kill (PK).

Byron has been attacking the puck carriers with speed to keep opposition defenders honest. He uses that speed to create time and space for himself to generate offence either with a breakaway, or by crashing to the net from the side walls.

Another key contributor to the Habs is NHL rookie, Artturi Lehkonen. He also rounds out the top nine on the left wing. The 2013 second-round pick of the Canadiens came off of an SEL championship in which he broke Daniel Alfredson’s Frolunda playoff points record.

Lehkonen is on pace for a 24-goal rookie campaign over 82 games. He has also been highly reliable defensively, so much so, that it is a regular occurrence to see Michel Therrien use him in the last moments of a game to protect a lead. He is proving that he can be capable of filling a top-six role already in his young NHL career.

Center is where the Habs truly needed someone to step into a top-six role after Alex Galchenyuk and David Desharnais fell to injury.

Enter Phillip Danault. The former 2011 first-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks has been making a case for a larger role. He was able to fill in as the number one center and provide the team with a career high 10 goals, 15 assists for 25 points.

Danault’s defensive play is still a work in progress, but has greatly improved. His ability to win face-offs, as his 53.5 percent success rate after 48 games indicates, has been a welcomed addition. He has slowly been earning more defensive responsibilities facing opposition top lines, showing that he may be capable of filling some of Thomas Plekanec’s  responsibilities.

The right wing is set with Brendan Gallagher, who has had a very difficult season despite his constant effort. Andrew Shaw is still slowly adjusting to Montreal, but it is evident that he is the type of player that will be valuable in the playoffs.

This isn’t to say there aren’t holes in the roster that need to be filled. To compete with teams like Pittsburgh and Washington, the Canadiens will most likely need to add to the team.

The largest issue once everyone has returned from injury is found at center with Desharnais and Plekanec. In my opinion, time has caught up to Desharnais, as he is no longer capable of competing for a roster spot on a contending roster.

Plekanec has been a defensive cornerstone at center, yet his six-million-dollar cap hit is much too high for what is essentially the role of a defensively responsible third-line center. This is a role that can be taken over in part by the less expensive Danault. Plekanec’s offensive production simply does not meet the level needed of a top six centerman any longer.

With Galchenyuk as the top center and an internal competition between, Danault, Torrey Mitchell, Shaw and Mike McCarron, the Canadiens have more than enough NHL bottom-six capable centers. The gap in the lineup is obvious. The need is an offensively capable second line center that won’t be a defensive liability.

Will Marc Bergevin fill this need before the trade deadline? He has recently stated that he’d like to add more help on defense, but he plays his cards close to his chest. The eventual return of a healthy Andrei Markov sometime by the deadline is essentially the same as trading for a rental top-four puck-moving defenseman. That said, Mikhail Sergachev gives the Canadiens the defensive centerpiece for the future that was desperately needed.

With the number of depth players, picks, and prospects in the system, Bergevin is finally in a position to make a move to add to the team’s core group. A center would be the most likely target, and assuming he does find a center, who could be a fit?

Martin Hanzal has been rumoured to be on the market and also rumoured as a potential target for Montreal. He has the size that NHL teams covet, and is a good two-way center that is excellent in the faceoff circle. However, he is injury prone and isn’t an upgrade offensively from what is currently in the lineup. That said, he may be a good choice as an inexpensive rental to add more center depth.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins could be an excellent buy low, sell high choice. He has been passed in the Oilers depth chart by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. He has mostly been used in a checking center role, which he is not suited for. He is given second wave power-play time which ups his average time on ice to just above 18 minutes.

Playing in a checking role, even with Draisaitl on his line, Nugent-Hopkins has had a hard time producing offensively. He has a hard time in the faceoff circle as well, giving way to Draisaitl. This lowers his defensive effectiveness.

Nugent-Hopkins is more suited to the role as a play-making center and could excel in the less physical, and more fleet of foot Eastern Conference without the checking responsibilities. Acquiring the former 2011 first overall pick would be expensive, but his current situation and production could mean he is available.

Bergevin is known for making surprise moves out of left field. One such move could be to complete a sign-and-trade with Chicago for the rights to six-foot-four-inch, 212-pound Russian center, Maxim Shalunov. This late bloomer has a puck protection and power game that is well suited to the NHL.

With 18 goals and 33 points in 40 games, Shalunov’s improving offensive numbers give a favourable view to his offensive abilities. Shalunov is known to Bergevin, as he was part of the management team that selected him.

Shalunov could fit in well with the Canadiens’ play style and in the locker room with several of his countrymen already on the roster. While he is in the KHL, his contractual situation as a team-controlled prospect would make it possible to bring him in this season without exposing him to waivers.

Any trade that adds more offence that can spread out opposition defenses, and not hurt the team defensively would push the Canadiens closer to their end-goal. This season is well timed, as the Canadiens have the assets to add. Thanks to that depth, Bergevin was not forced to make any deals on the fly to prop the team up. This also has the added benefit of adding value to these depth players.

The Eastern Conference is one that can be won. The Habs have the core that can make that deep run, if supported properly. The depth is there to add the needed offensive and defensive support, as well as to be used to make deals if necessary. There will be peaks and valleys in team play over a long season, but this is a very deep team whose time has arrived to make the push to Cup contention.