Canadiens’ Suzuki Proves Clutch In Crunch Time
Last season, Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki put the team on his back after the Four Nations Face-Off and almost single-handedly carried it to the playoffs. This season, he’s getting some help, but he’s once again doing some tremendous work of his own. With the Habs needing to qualify for the playoffs, the centerman has recorded a whopping 26 points in his last 15 games.
With 91 points in 73 games, the 26-year-old is on pace for a 102-point season. No Canadiens player has reached the 100-point milestone since Mats Naslund in 1985-86, and even before then, there weren’t very many. Naslund is one of only four Habs to reach the milestone. The other three members of the exclusive club are Guy Lafleur who accomplished the feat six times (1974-75, 1975-76, 1976-77, 1977-78, 1978-79 and 1979-80), Pete Mahovlich who did it twice (1974-75, 1975-76) and Steve Shut who did it once (1976-77).
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Three of the four players who made it to 100 points in a season did so as part of the Canadiens’ dynasty in the 70s, while this year’s Canadiens are a good side, but they are nowhere near as strong as those 70s editions. If Suzuki reaches the century mark, it will be all the more impressive, as he will be the only one to do so. For three seasons in the 70s, the Canadiens had two players reach the mark.
Right now, Suzuki has a 12-point lead over the second most productive Canadiens’ player, Cole Caufield and an 18-point lead over the third-place player, Lane Hutson. He also tops the team in plus-minus ratings with a plus-32 (tied with Hutson), and his elite play at both ends of the ice could very well see him be one of the finalists for the Frank J. Selke trophy as the best defensive forward.
At this stage, it wouldn’t even be a shock if he won it. The ringing endorsement he got from Team Canada coach Jon Cooper at the Olympics certainly won’t hurt; it made the other markets take notice of what the Canadiens’ captain is doing this season. It’s also worth mentioning that at $7.875 million cap hit for the next four years, he’s tremendous value for money for the Canadiens.
Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.
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