Laine's Path To An Extension May Be Easy With Canadiens

Patrik Laine & Nick Suzuki, Montreal Canadiens

Patrik Laine has been his normal inconsistent self since becoming a member of the Montreal Canadiens. In his first 20 games with the team, he scored 12 goals and recorded 18 points in helping the team go 13-6-1. He was an instant fixture on the top power play with his shot as he just couldn't seem to miss. Then Laine things happened.

He then went goalless in eight straight games and the Canadiens had a record of 1-6-1 during that stretch. It's definitely not all on Laine and his production, but he is paid $8.7 million AAV to score goals at the very least. His +/- is poor, whether he's producing offensively or not, so he better be producing. Over the course of the remainder of his season, he had eight goals and 15 points in 24 games, which is more like him, but it wasn't without inconsistency as Laine had one goal and no assists in the final nine games.

He was moved down the lineup and even scratched during the playoffs, playing just two games and just over 23 minutes combined. But even though he's headed into the final year of his contract, he might have an easier path to an extension in Montreal despite everything. I think it's worth it if the price fits. He may be a former high pick, but injuries and inconsistency hurts his value a fair bit.

It was revealed on The Rebuild: Behind The Scenes that general manager Kent Hughes consulted Nick Suzuki before acquiring Laine. Suzuki is of course the captain and best player on the team and he is signed for five more years.

Laine is only 27 years old and has 224 goals and 421 points in 532 games. He definitely has to be protected defensively as he is a liability, but Suzuki wanted the Canadiens to make the deal and acquire Laine then and should continue to be as the two are training together and hanging out this summer. The captain of the team and someone in the room has a great feel of how things are going, so I like the decision to include Suzuki in certain decisions as there isn't as much of a disconnect between players and management. If Laine is hot, he will win games for the team, so it is worth the bad games and the gamble as goals aren't easy to come by in the NHL.