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Since we’re still waiting for the Canadiens’ decision on the Kotkaniemi offer sheet, everyone is wondering what will happen if the Canadiens decide not to match the offer. Today, Pierre Houde brought a suggestion forward: Jonathan Drouin. It was Drouin’s golf tournament today and even though he didn’t officially speak to the media, Houde asked him if he’d be willing to play center, he answered with a resounding yes, but I’m not so sure that would be a viable solution.
While Drouin has kind of become surplus to requirement as a winger in the top 6, he’s still technically a talented player that should be able to produce offensively. Fresh off from taking a break from the team last season, one has to wonder if Drouin would be able to deal with the pressure of being a center. After all, his first year with the Canadiens as a center didn’t exactly go smoothly, he ended the year with a -28 rating and that made Bergevin trade Alex Galchenyuk for a replacement center in Max Domi, that worked…for a season and Drouin ended up on the left wing.
Drouin says that’s he heathy and happy, ready to get back to work, but no one knows what hailed him last season since he hasn’t addressed the subject. While he’s within his rights not to reveal what it was, Phillip Danault seemed to hint last season that the Montreal pressure had gotten to his teammate. If that’s the case, would making him play in a position in which he struggled the first time around really be a viable solution?
Granted, there aren’t many other in-house solutions. Jake Evans has shown that he can be a good defensive center, but ideally, you want an offensive 2nd center. That’s not Ryan Poehling either… Could Mathieu Perreault be the answer? With the back issues that have plagued him taking a truckload of draws probably wouldn’t be the best idea and at 33, his best offensive years are behind him. Cedric Paquette has played at center before, but in his most productive season he produced just 19 points.
Call me pessimistic if you like, but the fact remains, there is no good or even appropriate solution to fill-in as 2nd C internally should Jesperi Kotkaniemi be allowed to leave for Carolina. I’m not saying match the offer, I’ve been clear that I don’t think it’s a good idea for the Canadiens to retain his services with that price tag. No, for me, the solution has to come from the trade market, but we all know that’s not as easy as it sounds…
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