Habs News: Start of Phase 2 for Montreal Canadiens, Jonathan Drouin’s Time for Redemption, Geoff Molson on President of Hockey Operations, Marc Bergevin, Brossard

ROCKET SPORTS MEDIA | LAVAL, QC. — The National Hockey League Players Association (NHLPA) and the National Hockey League (NHL) announced last week that formal training camp for the 24 remaining teams will begin on July 10th if safety conditions allow to do so. It might be premature, but I’m already excited by the thought of hockey returning to our television screens.

The New York Post reported on Saturday that training camp will be for two weeks before teams travel to respective hub city. Each team will play one exhibition game before the start of the qualifying round scheduled to begin on July 30th.

On Thursday, the Tampa Bay Lightning shut down their training facility following positive tests amongst players and staff, and on Friday, it was reported that the Leafs’ Auston Matthews tested positive. The NHL confirmed that through the first week of the second phase, 11 players tested positive and are self-isolating.

Similar news from Major League Baseball as all clubs moved training camp to their home cities after the Philadelphia Phillies shut down their facility following an outbreak and the Toronto Blue Jays ceased operations when a player showed symptoms consistent with the coronavirus.

These events made me question whether NHL training camp or any professional sports will begin as scheduled as part of their respective return to play plan. I trust that league executives and athletes will base their next steps on health and safety, regardless of the economic impact.

For the Canadiens, Complexe Sportif Bell was available to players for phase two last Monday, one week later than the announced start. The delay was due to Canaxor Real Estate, the company that manages the facility, had recently laid off employees after removing the ice.

Jonathan Drouin, Paul Byron, Charles Hudon, Laurent Dauphin, and Michael McNiven skated on Tuesday after being tested the previous day for COVID-19.

Time for Redemption

For the Canadiens to have success in a potential play-in series against the Penguins, Jonathan Drouin will need to make a significant contribution. Since joining the organization, he hasn’t had the impact that Marc Bergevin was looking for when he acquired Drouin three years ago from the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Drouin had a strong start to the season recording 15 points in 19 games before suffering an injury during November 15th game against the Capitals. The injury required him to undergo wrist surgery that forced him to miss action until February 8th.

Drouin’s return was nothing to write home about, as he was kept off the scoresheet for eight matches before having another setback. Drouin suffered an ankle injury during the February 25th against the Canucks that kept him sidelined until the pause of the season.

“I obviously didn’t receive any treatments during quarantine, but I did have time to rest my wrist, which did me good. The timing wasn’t ideal, but at least it gave me a break to heal. I had the ankle and the wrist injuries, but now both are healed, and I don’t have any concerns. I can arrive at work and focus on hockey without needing treatments, which is good news for me,” said Drouin on Wednesday.

Drouin has been inconsistent during his tenure with the organization. He struggled immensely in his first year when the team tried to convert him into a number one center. Last season, Drouin registered 46 points in his first 55 games played, and then followed it up with seven points on the board in his last 26 games

With the Lightning, Drouin had a successful playoff run in 2015-16 collecting 14 points in 17 games. He would need to put up similar production starting in the qualifying round to get back in the good graces of many fans that have lost patience with him.

“My game just goes up in playoff hockey. As a kid, it was at hockey tournaments, and in Junior, it was the same thing; when playoff hockey comes around, there’s a different feeling. I’m not the only one who gets that. We’re not nervous to go into the Qualifying Round – we’re very excited if we do. I usually play well in those moments,” Drouin said when asked about stepping up for the play-in series.

No President

In the June 3rd edition of the Journal de Montreal newspaper, Rejean Tremblay wrote about the changes in Groupe CH’s organizational structure over the last couple of years. He ended his column by stating that he expects Vincent Damphousse will be the Canadiens president within the next year.

The columnist’s statement re-ignited the discussions whether Geoff Molson would hire a president to oversee Bergevin and the entire hockey operations. Exactly one week following the publication by the influential columnist, the Canadiens owner met the media via conference call.

“I have no intention to hire another president of hockey. There are very few teams across the NHL that do so, and there are a lot of reasons why,” addressed Molson in his opening statement of the call. The owner will maintain the role in the organization.

“Marc [Bergevin] is one of the most respected GMs in hockey. He is also now among the most experienced, and he will continue to report to me. He is very well surrounded by people with a lot experience,” added the owner. You can imagine the reaction that this quote caused among fans and experts.

I will leave the lengthy discussion on the validity of this statement for a future column, but with the team potentially missing the playoffs for the fourth time in five years, it’s evident that the organization needs to do something different.

If Molson feels this way about his general manager, it means that he has no short term plans of dismissing him. I also believe that you can’t add a president of hockey operations in the organizational chart as long as Bergevin is the general manager.

Such a decision would be perceived as lack of trust towards Bergevin. At that point, you might as well terminate the general manager and have the president of hockey operations find his replacement.

By Chris G., Senior Writer
All Habs Hockey Magazine
Copyright © 2020 Rocket Sports

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