The Montreal Canadiens remain in the playoff mix as they are back in a wildcard spot. Most people expected them to play meaningful hockey, but many did not expect this. Now the question is, can the Montreal Canadiens make the playoffs?
TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button joined SportsCentre after the Canadiens 3-2 come-from-behind victory on Tuesday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Button was asked if he believed the Canadiens could make the playoffs, and he thought Montreal could.
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
NHL Rumors: Calgary Flames and Montreal Canadiens
Glenn Schiiler: “And Craig, I would say, you got a team in Montreal now that’s starting to believe in themselves more than anything, because despite going down 2-0 here on Tuesday, they battled back. They haven’t lost back-to-back games since mid-December. So, what do you think this run means for the Habs? And I got to ask Craig, are you starting to believe in this team as a playoff-type club?”
Craig Button: “Absolutely. Glen, watching them last week on the road in Utah and Dallas, you could see it. And after the Dallas game, I made the comment. I said, there’s not a team that they’re going to play, a place that they’re going to play where they don’t believe they can win the game. I mean, they were never ahead in the game versus the New York Rangers on Sunday, after that kind of real blowoff in the second half of the game, versus Toronto on Saturday, they find a way to win that game.
They fall behind here to the Tampa Bay Lightning, and they find a way to win that game. They’re resilient. They’re a good team, and now they’re performing. And I keep hearing about rebuild. Yeah, they’re going to continue to build. They’re going to continue to try to climb up and make their team stronger. But working along those lines and being a buyer at the deadline are not mutually exclusive.
NHL Rumors: The Montreal Canadiens Continue to Look at Their Options
Those are things that can be accomplished at the same time. I know they’re trying to sign Jake Evans, but if they can’t sign Jake Evans, don’t trade him. You’re not going to get a player that’s going to come in and help you this year. This team needs to have the ability to taste success. Everybody talks about culture.
Well, there’s two kinds of cultures. There’s culture of winning and knowing what it takes to win, and then there’s culture of losing. Montreal Canadiens have been in that losing culture. You don’t want these young players to continue to be in that spot. So yeah, based on their play, I think they have to be a buyer.
NHLRumors.com Note: The Montreal Canadiens were supposed to be playing meaningful hockey this season. While the season didn’t get off to the best of starts, they are right where they must be. As RG has reported, Jake Evans is on the block, but at the right price. However, the Canadiens want to keep him as well. They have other players on the block as well, but if they keep playing this way and remain in the playoff mix, they could keep these players as their own rentals.
NHL Rumors: The Montreal Canadiens Need to Remain Patient
Again, lots of teams we thought would be sellers, like Montreal, are in the mix. And even with activity picking up heading into Four Nations, there is an emphasis on the playoffs and making them. So it is week to week when it comes to teams looking to add players before the deadline. Montreal could add to make a run to stay in the mix later in the season.
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