Pat Hickey: The Canadiens didn't want Jeff Petry

Article content material

The Canadiens’ defence might need been higher within the brief time period if the group had held on to Jeff Petry.

And, in the event that they waited to commerce him on the deadline, they could have acquired a greater return than journeyman defenceman Gustav Lindstrom and a late fourth-round draft selection.

Article content material

However the renovation agency of Gorton and Hughes by no means had any plans for Petry 2.0. The three-team commerce that introduced Petry again from the Pittsburgh Penguins was all about getting winger Mike Hoffman’s contract off the books and it was much less about saving cash than clearing a spot for a youthful participant. In truth, by retaining a portion of Petry’s wage over the following two seasons, they’ll spend practically $200,000 greater than they saved on Hoffman’s $4.5 million wage.

Article content material

Any temptation to retain Petry for short-term achieve — the defence would have benefitted from the presence of a top-four defenceman with an offensive contact on the proper facet — was straightforward to withstand as a result of the Canadiens have 9 defencemen with NHL expertise and a pipeline that features 2023 first-round draft decide David Reinbacher, Logan Mailloux, Swede Adam Engstrom and Lane Hutson.

Transferring Hoffman offers younger gamers like Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Jesse Ylonen a greater likelihood to play usually, however essentially the most fascinating battles in what shapes up as a extremely aggressive coaching camp shall be on the blue line.

Veterans Mike Matheson and David Savard are assured spots within the high 4 and they need to be joined by Kaiden Guhle who, when he has wholesome, was the group’s greatest defenceman as a rookie.

Jordan Harris, Justin Barron, Johnathan Kovacevic, Chris Wideman, Arber Xhekaj, Lindstrom, Reinbacher and Mailloux shall be preventing for 3 or 4 spots.

As for Petry, Basic Supervisor Kent Hughes saved his promise to discover a a mushy touchdown spot for the veteran and he’s headed residence to Detroit.

Article content material

Article content material

It’s unhappy that Petry’s tenure in Montreal led to controversy. He was as soon as the poster boy for an unrestricted free agent embracing life in Montreal., However the COVID-19 restrictions made life tough for Julie Petry who was pregnant with the couple’s fourth little one when the borders had been shut. Their dad and mom had been unable to journey right here to assist and he or she finally moved again to Detroit with the children.

Returning to Detroit ought to make life higher for all involved and Montrealers ought to want Poetry the very best — besides, in fact, on these events when the Crimson Wings meet the Canadiens.

Canada faces uphill climb in tennis

Canada made historical past final yr when it received the Davis Cup, a males’s group occasion emblematic of world supremacy.

Defending that title shall be tough if not inconceivable.

Canada should first survive a qualifying spherical Sept. 12-17 in Bologna. It can play in a spherical robin towards host Italy, Sweden and Chile with the highest two finishers advancing to the eight-team knockout stage in November. Canada and Italy ought to transfer ahead however all bets are off as a result of Canada shall be lacking its high two singles gamers, Montrealer Félix Auger-Aliassime and
Denis Shapovalov.

Article content material

Auger-Aliassime wasn’t on the listing of gamers introduced by Tennis Canada earlier this week as a result of he’s dedicated to assist Workforce World defend its Laver Cup title, Sept. 22-24 in Vancouver. Shapovalov was nominated however he withdrew from the upcoming U.S. Open with a knee harm and it’s unlikely he’ll be match for Bologna.

That leaves 21-year-old Montrealer Gabriel Diallo as Canada’s top-ranked participant at No. 132. He’s joined by Alexis Galarneau of Laval and doubles specialist Vasek Pospisil.

The one hope is Auger-Aliassime modifications his thoughts. That’s what occurred final yr after he was bounced within the second spherical of the U.S. Open. He beat No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz to steer Canada over Spain within the Davis Cup qualifying spherical after which beat Novak Djokovic to clinch the Laver Cup.

However even Auger-Aliassime might not be the reply. After ending 2022 as one of many hottest gamers on the tour, he has struggled with accidents and flagging confidence this yr. He has a 3-9 file since he final received a couple of match in a event at Indian Wells in March.

[email protected]

twitter.com/zababes1

Article content material

Article content material