At the break: Shea Weber

MONTREAL - With the Habs off for both the All-Star break and their bye week right afterwards, we took the time to look back at some of the key players on the roster and how their seasons measure up to where they were a year ago. Today: Shea Weber.

Three hundred and forty-six. That's how many days passed without Shea Weber playing a game in the NHL. The veteran rearguard, hampered by injuries to his foot and knee which each required their own surgical procedures, sat out nearly an entire calendar year between games against the Ottawa Senators (December 16, 2017) and Carolina Hurricanes (November 27, 2018), and a lot happened in between.
The Habs played out the remainder of their challenging 2017-18 season, they drafted Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the third overall pick in 2018, and they named Weber the 30th captain in team history after Max Pacioretty was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights in the fall.
Although Weber made his presence felt in the room throughout his absence, his teammates were more than happy to have him back onto the ice as well. And less than a year to the day after he last did it, the 33-year-old blue-liner delivered a two-goal performance in just his second game back, a 5-2 win over the New York Rangers at home.

Of course, Weber's impact on the team is not just measured in numbers, as evidenced by his being nicknamed "dad" in the room by his teammates. It was he who introduced the infamous cape worn in the room postgame by a player selected by his peers for a notable performance.
But stats-wise, Weber ranks second behind Jeff Petry in scoring among defensemen with 16 points (7G, 9A) - in just 27 games, no less. He's also tied with Artturi Lehkonen and Jordie Benn for third on the team with a plus-11 differential.

Perhaps more importantly, however, Weber has eaten up huge minutes on the backend. Save for the January 7 game against Minnesota when he got hit in the face by a puck (he played the following night in Detroit, don't forget), Weber has yet to log fewer than 20 minutes in a game. Head coach Claude Julien was able to rely on the veteran defender right off the hop, and continues to deploy Weber in any number of situations: power play, penalty kill, late-game situations, you name it.
It's likely that no other Hab has enjoyed Weber's return more than goaltender Carey Price. Before his fellow British Columbian teammate came back, Price had posted a 3.17 goals-against average and .897 save percentage. Post-return, Price's numbers jumped up to 2.05 and .932, respectively.

Overall, Montreal as a team benefitted from the Sicamous, BC native's return. The Canadiens have been playing strong hockey all season, but with Weber's return, their Corsi jumped up nearly three percentage points which, at 54.98%, puts them second overall in the League from November 27 onward, up from sixth place pre-Weber. (Stats courtesy of naturalstattrick.com)
Tangibles, intangibles, and everything in between. That's the impact that the captain has had on the Canadiens. And barring any health issues, there's no reason to believe Weber won't continue to power the Habs through their push towards the playoffs as the spring slowly, but surely, approaches.
Notable quotables
"I don't want to give him too much credit. He plays too well at the other end, he might steal my job if he keeps doing that." -Brendan Gallagher on Weber's two-goal performance on December 1 at home against the New York Rangers
Highlight of the year so far

Social status