2023-24 season preview: Trusting the process

Buckle up, Habs fans – it’s October.

Last year was the start of a new era in Montreal.

A fresh crop of young talent was welcomed to the roster and the Canadiens played a brand of hockey that felt different. It was exciting, it was free, and for the first time in a long time, it felt like the players didn’t have any pressure weighing them down.

Around the city, fans’ anticipation remained but their expectations tempered in support of the team’s changeover. The squad was in a transition phase and their style of play reflected it.

It was a step in the right direction for the Canadiens. Considering the standings, that might sound ludicrous, but last year’s success was never going to be measured in the wins and loss columns. Rather, it was defined by advancing the youth movement, finding an identity, and developing a culture that would benefit the team’s success for years to come.

The foundation has been laid in Montreal. Now it’s time to build off last year’s framework.

“This year, we’re not starting at zero,” head coach Martin St-Louis said. “We’re more advanced in our development. Last season, the team was like a child, a baby. What you ask of a baby and what you ask of a seven, eight-year-old are different […] You need to take care of a baby, whereas an older child is capable of more responsibility.”

The accountability that St-Louis speaks of is a direct product of experience, something that nearly every Hab is looking to bank on from last season.

For starters, look no further than the captain, Nick Suzuki. When considering responsibility, none lies larger than on the shoulders of the 24-year-old, who’s entering his second year with the “C” on his chest.

The mark of a good leader is their ability to lead on the ice but perhaps more importantly, outside of the rink too. That, Suzuki has done. Most recently, the London, ON native was named an ambassador of the Asista Foundation, a rescue dog organization, while also contributing to the Breakfast Club of Canada.

His on-ice production has been equally impressive. In 2022-23, Suzuki recorded a career-high 66 points and eclipsed his previous personal best in goals with 26 while playing all 82 games for the Canadiens. What’s to come from the Habs’ No. 14 this year remains to be seen, but if there’s one player the team can rely on for consistency, it’s Suzuki.

Next, Cole Caufield, who the Canadiens re-signed to an eight-year, $62.8 million contract on June 5.

The 22-year-old, who tallied 26 goals in 46 games last year (a 46-goal pace) is coming off a shoulder surgery that ceased his sophomore campaign prematurely, but the forward says he is fully recovered and “feels 100 percent.”

Few players have a natural knack for the net like Caufield, but the American is poised to round out the rest of his game in his third full year in the professional ranks. Should he do so, there’s no denying his status as one of the League’s elite talents.

Typically, where there's a Suzuki and a Caufield, there's a Kirby Dach. And while last year he was widely considered a natural fit to complete the 14-22 trio, this season the 22-year-old will likely be called on to pilot his own line.

Dach, who struggled prior to his arrival in Montreal, began realizing his potential under St-Louis last season, posting career highs across the board. That considered, the Canadiens head coach feels the forward – who can play both the wing and at center – is ready to fulfill the role as a lead player.

Speaking of second chances, Mike Matheson got his when the Canadiens traded for the defenseman prior to last season, and he capitalized on it in more ways than just his on-ice performance. Then on Sept. 11, the organization named him an alternate captain for the upcoming campaign.

Matheson will continue to patrol the Canadiens blue line this season and look to build off the career-high 36 points he produced in only 48 games (61-point pace) last year.

Sticking to the thought of fresh starts, Alex Newhook is another player hitting the restart button this year. Newhook, acquired from Colorado in June, faced his fair share of adversity with the Avalanche – not for a lack of talent but rather a lack of opportunity. This season, the world is the 22-year-old’s oyster and it’s up to him to decide how much ground he can cover as he continues to develop in the League.

Meanwhile, the Canadiens have a wealth of talent already accustomed to the Bell Centre atmosphere. Seasoned veterans, like Brendan Gallagher, Jake Allen, Sean Monahan, David Savard and Josh Anderson will again act as a lighthouse for sophomores Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris, Juraj Slafkovsky and Arber Xhekaj, guiding them through the fog of a full 82-game season.

On another note, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Johnathan Kovacevic and Samuel Montembeault will look to solidify their status as bona fide players in the League. Last year, the trio proved their worth. This season, they'll look to cement their names as everyday NHLers.

Training camp brought 72 faces to the CN Sports Complex in Brossard this September and unlike last year, unreserved roster spots were few and far between for the season opener. But no matter the 23 names that cracked the final roster, the fight for a spot in the lineup will go on beyond Oct. 11.

“It’s always a battle. Even after training camp, it’s always a battle,” said St-Louis. “As an athlete, you need to convince others where you belong. You always need to search for the best chair available […] it’s about finding a chair and playing the role of that chair, while always trying to earn a bigger chair.”

On the Canadiens’ bench and inside their locker room, there are no individual chairs. It’s one seat that unifies the team, bringing the group of 20-odd players together as one. That, St-Louis says, is the root of winning.

“The success on the ice sometimes starts so far from the ice,” said the Habs bench boss. “That locker room; that’s usually where it starts."

A new season presents new opportunities, and as the Canadiens proceed in their transition phase, they enter this year with elevated standards and greater expectations. All that’s left is for St-Louis’ contingent to go out and meet them.

An article written by Evan Milner