by Mathieu Chagnon, Staff Writer, All Habs Hockey Magazine

Here we are for the second part of the series on the Canadiens players points predictions. In part one of this series, we looked at the number of points for the following players: Max Pacioretty, Thomas  Plekanec, Ales Hemsky, and Karl Alzner. If you missed it, you can read part one here.

On this piece, we will feature Jonathan Drouin, Brendan Gallagher, Andrew Shaw, Mark Streit and Torrey Mitchell.

Here’s how to read the charts below.

For each player, you will prominently see my points prediction that they will record in 2017-’18, their statistics for 2016-’17 and their eSAT score.

If, you aren’t familiar with eSAT, it is a new predictive metric that I developed. You can read about it in detail in this in this article.

eSAT FAR: Shot Attempts For Above Replacement
eSAT AAR: Shot Attempts Against Above Replacement

I welcome your own predictions in the comments section.

67	2016-17	GP	G	A	eSAT FAR	eSAT AAR
	JONATHAN DROUIN	73	21	32	60.5%	52.5%

 
Jonathan Drouin is a versatile forward who can be deployed at any of the forward positions. He can even be placed on the point of the power play. The Canadiens will certainly give him a chance to play centre during at the training camp due to a lack of depth up the middle. The last time Drouin played centre was with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL.

“Drouin deserve to have a shot at centre. He played that position many seasons.Training camp will determine many things, we have to give the opportunity to the players to prove themselves, we got many options and it’s encouraging.” – Claude Julien

It is very likely that Claude Julien will use Drouin as a fourth forward on the power-play to fill the void of the departure of Andrei Markov. With his elite vision, the ‘General’ was a key piece of the Canadiens power-play. In fact, Markov had 41.5 percent of his points on the man advantage over the last three seasons.

The newly acquired Drouin had 26 of his 53 points on the power play last season. Like a superstar quarterback, his above-average play-reading ability helped him to make the perfect pass.

This playmaking quality will benefit the likes of Max Pacioretty, Alex Galchenyuk and Shea Weber on the man advantage.  Drouin is not just a playmaker as he possesses a quick and precise shot as well. Drouin will hit the milestone of 100 career points this season (he is just five away), and he could reach the 60 to 70 point mark in 2017-18.

 

43	2016-17	GP	G	A	eSAT FAR	eSAT AAR
	BRENDAN GALLAGHER	64	10	19	55.4%	62.2%

 

Known to be a pest in front of the opponent’s net, Brendan Gallagher‘s offensive production has been greatly affected by major hand over the last two seasons.

His hand injury aside, Gallagher’s play has changed. While still a courageous forward, he is not driving to the net as often. After missing so many games, he has seemed frustrated at times adjusting to the pace.

If Gallagher returns to his trademark style he should be able to return to the success he previously enjoyed. The Canadiens could benefit from the level of production Gallagher enjoyed prior to his injuries.

33	2016-17	GP	G	A	eSAT FAR	eSAT AAR
	ANDREW SHAW	68	12	17	57.1%	57.9%

 

Andrew Shaw had his worst season in terms of discipline culminating in a career-high  110 minutes in the penalty box. It was a situation that raised the ire of Michel Therrien which led to Shaw warming the bench.

Since Julien’s arrival behind the Canadiens bench, Shaw began to meet expectations for the first time since his acquisition from the Blackhawks. It’s unclear which lever Julien pulled but following the coaching change, Shaw collected five goals, five assists and just 15 minutes in penalties in the last 24 games of the regular season.

If the Julien-magic continues, we can expect 15 goals and 20 assists from Shaw. But his main contribution to the team will be staying out of the penalty box.

22	2016-17	GP	G	A	eSAT FAR	eSAT AAR
	MARK STREIT	68	6	21	52.3%	53%

 

As a 40-year-old veteran, Mark Streit is another low-risk signing from Bergevin this summer. It will be Streit’s second stint in Montreal. He arrives with a great deal of experience and a Stanley Cup ring. As a depth defenseman, don’t expect to see him play  82 games.

“He’s a guy with a good shot, he could really help us on the power play, because he as a good vision, he moves the puck well … when you got many young players in a dressing room, you need veterans.” – Claude Julien.

Depending on injuries and the play of others, Streit may dress for half the season and could reach a milestone of 100 goals (currently 96) in the NHL.

18	2016-17	GP	G	A	eSAT FAR	eSAT AAR
	TOREY MITCHELL	78	8	9	42.8%	49%

 

Torrey Mitchell will start his third season with the Canadiens. Used as a defensive specialist, the veteran centreman will be expected to contribute a little offense. As a fourth liner, Mitchell maintained a ratio of .23 points per game throughout his career.

There will be a great deal of competition for a fourth line spot at this upcoming training camp. Many young players like Charles Hudon, Jacob De la Rose and Michael McCarron will be vying for a roster position. Others like Andreas Martinsen and Peter Holland will look to earn a regular seat too.

Mitchell was the third most used forward on the penalty-kill last season.  Being a right-shooting centreman combined with his experience may give him an edge over his competitors.