The New York Islanders face the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, Dec. 3 in a game that both teams need to essentially save their seasons. The two teams are similar, near the bottom of the standings, and playing bad hockey, especially on the offensive end of the ice. If you thought the Canadiens averaging only 2.83 goals per game was bad, well, the Islanders average only 2.56 goals per game.
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One notable difference between the two teams is on the defensive end of the ice. The Islanders’ defense had its struggles but it’s stepped up as they allow only 2.96 goals per game. The Canadiens, on the other hand, are a mess on defense, allowing 3.74 goals per game. The contrast between the two teams is in part because of how general managers (GMs) Lou Lamoriello and Kent Hughes have operated, not just recently but since taking over their organizations.
Lamoriello Keeps Adding to the Unit
The Islanders lost Devon Toews and Nick Leddy in the 2020 and 2021 offseasons but since then, Lamoriello has only added to the defense one way or another. In the 2022 offseason, he acquired Alexander Romanov during the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, a trade that ironically enough ties into how the Canadiens think as well about the position. The move paid off big time for the Islanders as Romanov’s been one of the best defensemen on the team since joining.
It’s not just the Romanov addition. Lamoriello has added and kept key defensemen on the unit with the hopes of it remaining a strength. He extended Scott Mayfield in the 2023 offseason and in the middle of the 2023-24 season, he added Mike Reilly to the lineup. Reilly is out indefinitely but was a key part of the playoff push last season. Mayfield meanwhile had a 2023-24 to forget but is one of the reasons the defense is a strength this season.
The overall additions have kept the defense from falling apart. Sure, the unit isn’t great or one of the best in the league and the lack of a scoring presence always leaves the team a step behind the top one, but it’s good enough to limit opponents and win low-scoring games.
Hughes Keeps Trading Blue Chip Defensemen
The Canadiens are in a rebuild and have been since the 2021-22 season but some moves Hughes has made have set them further back, especially on the defensive end of the ice. It starts with…
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