Habs Depth Signings Propelling Team Forward

Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin has cultivated a reputation of acquiring/signing players who aren’t considered to be anything special, yet still receiving great effort and production from these players. We all know about one of the earliest deals that he pulled off and has been a great player for the Habs, Raphael Diaz for Dale Weise. It was that deal that we started to see what kind of GM Bergevin is and 3 years later, nobody can really complain. We’ll take a look at some of the Habs depth signings he has brought on for this year and just how much they’ve helped them get a 11-2-0 start this season.

Alexander Semin.

Semin was signed on a one-year contract worth 1.1 million dollars in July 2015 after being bought out from his contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. His final year with the Canes was a total disaster, scoring only 6 goals and 19 points in 57 games. Semin was quickly released from his contract with 3 years remaining.

Many teams opted to steer clear of the one time 40-goal scorer but Bergevin obviously saw something in the enigmatic Russian and decided to take a low-risk, high-reward shot with the forward. The Habs are just hoping that he can be a regular contributor to the top six.

So far in 10 games, his numbers don’t look the best. It’s concerning especially because he has been known to have great starts to the year within the first 10 games, hitting as high as 15 points in 10 games in 2008-09. Obviously those days are behind him but in the past 4 seasons, he’s hit 3, 5, 7, 6 in the first 10 games. So the fact that he’s matched last years horrible start does have a cause for worry. However, that alone doesn’t warrant a consecutive 3-game scratch.

It’s not like Semin has been the best player on the ice but he certainly hasn’t been the worst. Once he starts getting comfortable and shooting more, then the goals will come.

Tomas Fleischmann.

The Flash had a weird downward trajectory in points after suffering from pulmonary emboli in the halfway mark of the 2010-11 season, where he was on pace for career numbers. He eventually returned to playing and put up a career high 61 points with the Florida Panthers in 2011-12. But since then his numbers have consistently declined, from 35 points in the lockout year, to 27 last season split between the Panthers and the Anaheim Ducks.

Regardless, those days seem to behind him for the 31-year old Czech Republic native. In 13 games he has racked up 10 points playing alongside David Desharnais and Dale Weise, both of whom are playing well. Along with his great offensive play, he has also been defensively sound.

This signing was only for one year at 750K, so it doesn’t matter if he puts up 30 points or 60 points, the contract is an obvious win. Plus we get to see some great hockey being played by a guy who has twice faced an illness that could have ended his career yet is still playing.

Devante Smith-Pelly.

Smith-Pelly came to Montreal in the deal that many Habs fans irrationally hated, the Jiri Sekac trade. Now I’ll admit I wasn’t a huge fan of the deal when it went through, but Smith-Pelly has played much better this year than Sekac has been. A huge factor in that recent turnaround was that he shed a ton of weight over the summer. The Ducks had him over 220 pounds, which made him extremely slow and affected his play. He’s now dropped down to 214 and he’s never looked better.

The potential for Smith-Pelly may have been a bit over hyped but he’s still a solid bottom six forward with the capability of scoring the odd goal and demolishing the opponents with hits. For a 23-year old with an 800K cap hit, you can’t ask for much more. If he can improve on his offensive game, it’s an added bonus. But for right now, he’s fitting in perfectly with the team and is a great addition by Bergevin. Especially seeing as how Sekac is still having trouble putting up consistent numbers, it’s clear the Habs won that trade.

Paul Byron.

Montreal picked up Byron from the Calgary Flames when they had put him on the waivers in October. He has spent the past 4 and a half years in the Flames system and only started playing full time with them in 2013-14. He has missed some time due to injuries and healthy scratches, but he’s still put up respectable bottom six numbers.

One of Byron’s strengths is his unbelievable speed, evidenced by his two breakaway goals versus the Flames (redemption?) and the Winnipeg Jets. He also owns a decent shot and some good puck handling skills. Furthermore, his defensive play has been stellar thus far in the 3 games he’s played. Byron becomes a UFA this summer but if he can continue playing well and impressing the coach, he may be signed on for another year. Either way this waiver pick up is a solid win for Bergevin in the bargain bin department.

Mike Condon.

Condon has one heck of a story, which was covered by AATH and can be read here. He’s worked his way up to this stage and now he’s showing no signs of letting up. Since de facto number 1 goalie Carey Price is injured for the next week, it will be up to Condon to ensure the Habs get some points to keep their spot as top team in the NHL.

He’s done a superb job so far with a 4-0-0 record, a .944 SV%, and a 1.51 GAA. It’s unsure which of the 3 games in this remaining week Condon will play but the Habs face the Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders, and Boston Bruins all at home. Condon has already played the Senators, coming out with a 3-1 win and stopping 20 shots. Dustin Tokarksi will be the back up but with how he played in the preseason with the Habs, it wouldn’t be surprising if he only got the Bruins game or none at all. Or maybe Carey Price can borrow some of Max Pacioretty’s healing factor and be ready to play by then.

Condon has one more year remaining on this contract that pays him the bare league minimum, 575K. If he can keep up this production in a back up role and play 15-20 games, it would most likely be one of Bergevin’s best and cheapest signings.

All of these signings/acquisitions by Bergevin, including Torrey Mitchell, Brian Flynn, Tom Gilbert, Weise, and so on have been brought on for almost nothing. Mitchell and Flynn were acquired for two late picks and an enforcer, who was never going to make the NHL. Weise for a defenseman who’s scored 4 goals in 73 games since being traded, whereas Weise has scored double that in his last 44 games played. Sekac has struggled to stay consistent with the Ducks while Smith-Pelly has been playing some great hockey. Moreover, they all cost less than $2.8M each, Gilbert being the most expensive. It’s safe to say that Bergevin has done an excellent job of getting players to low risk, high reward contracts and succeeding.