Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx7N63HCTBWijHpI-qphK3A/join
Montreal Canadiens GM Kent Hughes addressed the media at his mid-season press conference and dropped a headline-making statement — the Habs rebuild is AHEAD of schedule?!
We break down everything Hughes said, including:
🏒 Why he believes the Canadiens are ahead of plan
🤕 How injuries have impacted the lineup and development
🔁 What his trade strategy looks like heading toward the deadline
📈 What this means for the short-term future of the Canadiens
❓ And whether fans should actually believe the rebuild timeline
Is this optimism justified — or setting expectations too high?
Join us as we react, analyze, and debate Kent Hughes’ comments and what’s next for the Montreal Canadiens.
👇 Drop your thoughts in the comments
👍 Like & Subscribe for daily Canadiens coverage
🔔 Turn on notifications so you don’t miss a show
#montrealcanadiens #nhl #podcast
27 Comments
We're back baby! Been missing the live shows see you soon! GO HABS GO!
Marco looks sleepy 😊
We need to stop calling Hage 2c. he just lead the world juniors scoring with 15 points in 7 games and he could’ve had more if he didn’t hit all those posts. If he was drafted this year he would likely go 1st overall so imo he’s a 1st line center hands down
Lehkonen is a prime example, hes playing with Big Mac!! I love kapanens game. Definitely excited for Hage and Zharovsky to find their way onto the starting squad.
the play of our 2nd line an kapinen definitely takes pressure off from acquiring a 2C an considering that market is so dry with requiring teams to overpay…perhaps the top 6 winger market can be more plentiful an less costly an we address filling up suzukis wing instead
When all of these injuries starting piling up I was thinking just limping into the Olympic Break (Feb 6-25th) within a couple point of a wild card spot would be a win.
This team is REBUILT.
Sean’s given up on K’panin.. Marco’s turn…
Marco still not sold on Kappy lol. Kent didn't have to say "without a doubt"
Our best line is the kid line right now! At this point I see Kappy as our first line center, the Suzuki Caufield pairing is not complete.
Hage looks like an over all up grade on Kapanen for the 2C spot. He does have some things to improve on.
Newhook – Danault – Hage is going to become a legit line on the playoff run
If the worst thing that happens is that Kapanen turns in to Carbonneau that's a HUGE win. Think about that, Guy was our C , he played incredible D, shutdown C, perennial Selke nominee, but was never considered a 'top dynamic offensive center'. His best offensive year he scored 26 goals. I'm not saying Kapanen will be exactly the same or reach Guy's level but even if he gets close and has dynamic players beside him (Slafs/DemiGod) he'll eclipse Guy's offensive output and still be a strong defensive center. Players of that type are hard to find and absolutely priceless in the playoffs.
Simply saying a team needs a 'Veteran goalie' to help ensure the kids 'recover' when they are having a bad spot of games is insufficient. You need a 'veteran goalie' with at least a .900 SV%. If you're looking at Monty as our 'veteran', until he shows he has recovered himself how do you expect him to be there to support Dobes/Fowler when/if they hit a bad spell? I like Monty's last 2 games and I really do hope he has righted the ship but he hasn't yet shown he's a Jake Allen or similar. Keeping around a guy just for 'veteran leadership' relies on that guy actually demonstrating he has that leadership skill and Monty hasn't shown it yet. Again I hope he's recovered and that his spate of bad play is behind him, I would be fine with him playing that 'backup veteran role' to Fowler.
Demidov seems to elevate his line mates and make them better .
Just look at Newhook’s game up until he got injured .
Kapanen is a good short term solution for the second line but Hage seems like a better long term fit for Demidov due to his size and offensive skill .
If Hage pans out the can Kapanen 3c and potentially have 3 quality center players if not 4 if you count Evans on the 4rth line .
Depth is key for a team who aspires to make long playoff runs .
The largest gains to be made on this team are not via trade or via free agent pickups, but through the continued growth and development of existing assets – and then the pipeline coming soon. There's far more predictable upside there than on the open market. And that will include getting more playoffs reps for the existing young players.
Why does Marco look sooooo uninterested of the conversation and always looking at another screen for other developments from i don’t know where , the least you can do Marco is pretend that you’re fully engaged with your audience and with shaun ‘ give it up Bro come oooon !!!!!?????… it’s very annoying…
Id be curious as to whom you think would be a better 2C than Kapanen. The names we always hear are Zacha, Kadri, Oreilly, Benniers, McTavish (before he resigned)… Imo, none of them are better than Kapanen right now 9or they are barely better at best) let alone in the futur. He's on his way to a 50 points rookie season ffs the best 2C in the league get what….60pts?
So unless the CH can get a Thomas caliber player, Kapanen will do a more than adequate job.
why not put hage on the first line right wing ?
2:45 why does Marco here look like he smoked a blunt before the show and is now thinking about Oreos and Milk 😂
With a leader like Suzuki, a sniper like CC, a power forward who's barely the only guy on his line who can buy a drink in the US, the 3 sons (Mathe, Dob and Hut) and Demidov, I think we can only look forward to a bright future right now. Oh yeah, Fowler and Hage.
Awesome as usual gentlemen!
Would Kent Johnson fit the Habs roster? What would a trade look like?
Go habs
What are the chances that David Rienbacher could get a call up taste at seasons end .??? 😊 My take is that he would benefit from a look see at his future team mates and staff to carry him into summer training …and motivate him for next training camp ..!!!
If the Habs trade Dobes for nothing i will be pissed. Goalies have little value in trades in the NHL. Dobes has very good potential to be a dominant goalie. Monty is not a good enough veteran to keep over Dobes.
Way I see it with this season's big teachings so far Kapanen can still be the 2C next season, he's both a good finisher and a defensively rather impressively sound player, his F0% for a rookie is also pretty encouraging already. When Hage will be deemed acustomed enough to the NHL (which might only require a dozen games if things go absolutely perfect) I think he'll ultimately land at LW2 which will then make Slaf fully available for the first line again.
Biggest satisfaction with Hage in this world juniors tourno to me was how responsible he was at both ends, seems it was a big factor in what allowed him to provide this many assists.
the reality of the 3 goalies is 2 of them on a lot of nights have mid 80'2 save percentage. Thats the problem