The Montreal Canadiens solidified their ship with the signing of Jeff Petry yesterday. Acquired at the 2015 trade deadline, Petry immediately added size, depth and skill to the Habs' defense corps. His value on the ice is that at 6'3, he can skate, move the puck and plays with a nice physical edge. At 27 years of age Petry is primed to spend his best years slotted right behind PK Subban on a potentially deep Canadiens' blueline. #26's value goes beyond simply what he brings to the table in terms of skill. Petry's arrival allowed Montreal to slot players not suited for full time duty in their top 4 into the bottom pairing. Tom Gilbert, Alexi Emelin, Greg Pateryn and Nathan Beaulieu all had solid playoff runs. They were aided by the fact that Petry, Subban and Markov ate the toughest minutes and the toughest assignments. Petry's arrival allowed Coach Therrien to give Pateryn and Beaulieu sheltered minutes and lessened the load on Gilbert and Emelin. It's no coincidence that even on his off side, Gilbert played his best hockey after Petry arrived.

Right now this would be Montreal's depth chart on the blueline (opening day age in brackets):

Markov (36)/ Subban(26)
Beaulieu (22)/ Petry (27)
Emelin (29)/ Gilbert (32)
Tinordi (23)/ Pateryn (25)

This is a nice group. Subban is one of the league's absolute best. Entering his 6th season, Subban will need to anchor this group. He does not need a Hal Gill or Josh Gorges to mentor him any longer. Instead, PK will be looked upon to help mentor young guns like Beaulieu and potentially Tinordi this coming season.

Andrei Markov had a 50 point regular season before running out of gas in the playoffs. Perhaps being paired full time with Petry will allow #79 to skate some easier miles and minutes before the 2016 playoffs begin. "The General" has always played a cerebral game. The emergence of Beaulieu and the addition of Petry should allow Therrien to give him optimal zone starts. Dan Boyle played 3rd pairing minutes for the best team in the league this season. Montreal needs its youngsters to take the reins and allow Markov to make a similarly smooth transition.

Nathan Beaulieu is also in need of a new contract. A RFA, Beaulieu will need to be paid on either a bridge deal or signed to a long term contract. It hasn't been the smoothest ride to this point, but Beaulieu has shown enough in the last 2 playoff runs to suggests he is capable of holding down a top 4 slot. An excellent skater who is sneaky tough and mean, Beaulieu played a few shifts with a cracked sternum against Ottawa. Both Therrien and no doubt his teammates made note of this. The Habs need him to continue to elevate his game in 2015/16.

Alexi Emelin made his bones in Montreal as "The Lucic Whisperer". No one can get Milan Lucic off his game quite like #74. Emelin's first problem is that he makes $3.9, $4.2 and $4.4 million in the next three seasons. That is a lot of money for a guy who is in your bottom pairing. The second problem is Emelin cannot play in the top 4, especially with Markov signed for two more seasons. He is like a Russian Josh Gorges in the sense that he has been part of the fabric of some great playoff runs, but his performance and his paycheque may pave the road right out the door. Emelin, countless times in this playoff run, started out of his end gingerly with both time and space and proceeded to laser a puck down to the other end for an unforced icing. While he plays with a edge and can deliver big hits, Emelin struggles to make a good first past and gets caught in no man's land a lot in his own end. A trade would lessen the Habs cap burden as well.

Tom Gilbert started this campaign as a whipping boy for Habs fans and finished as a real solid performer. He took hits to make a play repeatedly in both series and scored 5 points in 12 playoff games. Sometimes a player can show his toughness by absorbing punishment to make plays as opposed to dishing it out. Gilbert did that effectively as well as playing wherever and whenever Therrien needed him. He jumped in on his off-side to pair with both Petry and Pateryn at points and did an admirable job. Gilbert has one more year at a very reasonable $2.8 million. He can stay and play the bottom pair and allow Tinordi and Pateryn to battle it out for the 6th spot or he can potentially be moved for a pick to create space.

Jarred Tinordi can finally see some daylight on his path to securing a regular NHL job. At 6'6, Tinordi is a good skater for a big man. He can hit, make a first pass and drop the gloves. It is the latter skill that has given him the most problems. Tinordi is big enough to deal with some heavyweights and that has been his undoing. Tinordi was knocked unconscious last season by a tough customer named Andery Pedan. Tinordi either fancies himself as, or believes he must be, a Sheriff for his team. He would be wise to learn from Larry Robinson who made an impression early as a force not to be messed with. Robinson played the rest of his career with the threat of what he could do being a bigger deterrent than anything he actually did on the ice. Here is a great excerpt from Ken Dryden's 'The Game':

"More than just an outstanding player, Robinson became a presence. It had to do with being so big, so strong, so tough, so agile, that no one knew how good he was and no one wanted to find out. He had a numbing reputation, an imperial manner, and the goods to back them up, a game rooted in defense ... limited, economic and dominant."

Tinordi has already been marked by being one punched. He should take a step back and make his presence and the threat of what he can do loom large in player's heads. He has handled himself well in a number of fights, but to me, he projects as a rich man's Hal Gill. Someone who can patrol the blueline for 10 years as an effective shutdown guy. As Mike Komisarek found out, it is better to have a player fear what you can do, than to fight you and find out what you can't.

Ultimately, The Petry signing will allow Montreal to continue to ice one the league's top units from the net out. It may well be time for Therrien to loosen the reins and allow the Canadiens to play the possession game they are built to play. Subban, Petry, Beaulieu and Markov all have the skill and the smarts to skate or pass the puck out their end and into the opponents. Habs fans were frustrated by a chip and chase style that took the Habs to 110 points. Unfortunately, Montreal's tight checking ways lead to their demise when they could not generate enough offense, or perhaps more accurately, enough finish to win games.

Montreal was not good enough to win in 2015. The first domino was signing Petry to keep the depth they need on the back end. Next up are are the contracts for Alex Galchenyuk, Beaulieu and Tinordi. Finally, decisions will have to be made on players like Emelin, Gilbert, Tomas Plekanec, Lars Eller and David Desharnais. Can a package of some of these players and some prospects bring the sniper that Habs need to bring their game to the next level? Jeff Petry signed with Montreal because he believes they are close to competing for Stanley Cup. Marc Bergevin has some work to do to take them the rest of the way.

Quick hits:

Would the St. Louis Blues be a nice trading partner for the Habs? These two teams have dealt extensively over the years. The Blues need some guys with playoff experience. Montreal has a surplus of centres and left handed defensemen who have played some big games. Could they pry a top 6 guy from the Blues?

Who is you call for the bottom pairing for the Habs next year? Gilbert, Emelin, Tinordi or Pateryn. Pick two. Can Tinordi make the jump and if so, will it be in Montreal?

Dan Bylsma was on the airwaves advocating the benefits of the chip and chase the other day. He stated that is was very taxing on the opponents D-men, forcing them to turn and chase all night or all series. Montreal has a fast team with a great goalie. Has Therrien fit this system to his players? Is this the best way for them to win? Or is it time with Chicago and Tampa playing for the Cup to look at playing a style suited to keeping the puck rather than chipping it into a safe area and chasing it?

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