For 30 years, the lack of great players in Montreal has, rightly so, often made us jealous to see other teams full of stars while we had to make do with Travis Moen on the first line or Jordan Weal on the numerical advantage.
But I fear that this jealousy prevents us from being fully aware of what a Canadian player is accomplishing, despite this other flat season.
Among 16 NHL teams, he would currently be the top scorer.
He produces more than many players who are never placed in the same discussion: Stamkos, Kopitar, Guentzel, Marchand, Kreider, Scheifele, Hintz, Kyrou, DeBrincat, Horvat or Zibanejad.
He is on track to have the organization’s best offensive season in 16 years. The 29e best in Canadian history. In today’s NHL, it’s pretty solid.
He is in the top 5 in the NHL in pass completions and time of possession in the offensive zone.
He is in the top 5 in the NHL in defensive zone puck recoveries and among the top 20 in one-on-one battles.
He is only 24 years old.
He plays in the center and is also solid defensively.
He is captain.
He works hard.
He is trying to learn French.
He lives in Montreal all year round.
He is a good boy, who seems well brought up and who we would see as our son-in-law.
In short, what more do we want to start believing that we already have our star in Montreal?
Nick Suzuki ticks pretty much all the boxes.
Instead of Cody Glass
But it seems like we don’t realize it that much. As if there were still doubts.
When the Canadian went to get him in Vegas, the Golden Knights preferred to offer him rather than Cody Glass. The latter has 68 career points. Suzuki has 272.
Many fans and commentators have always said that Nick Suzuki cannot be a starting center.
That Dach will be the first center.
That Suzuki will always be a guy around 65 points max. I said that too. I have often written in recent months that CH needs a star player for the next level.
That he doesn’t skate very fast.
That his salary of $7.875 million per year was a big gamble for the Canadian for a good little player, but not that good either.
Ultimately, it’s in the teeth of a lot of people.
Nothing in his progression curve indicates that he will slow down.
Don’t bet against him
So you can continue to believe that he will never be an elite player. But Suzuki continually proves that you can never bet against him.
We get excited by the robustness of Arber what happens to the captain?
No, I don’t have Nick Suzuki’s sweater hanging in my room. Just because he can score a point per game doesn’t mean he should be canonized.
But I find that we always get carried away very quickly with young talents in Montreal, and I have the impression that we are doing the opposite with Nick Suzuki. That we don’t realize the extent of the talent of the player we have. Maybe because he’s not too exuberant or a little flat in interviews. But we don’t really care. Shea Weber was also flat.
Is he the hero, the elite player who will score more than 90 points that we have been waiting for for a long time in Montreal?
As I am able, I got into a lively debate in the hockey room with my garage league club. I felt like I was blaspheming when I dared to ask if you would take Suzuki or Zibanejad, Suzuki or Kopitar, Suzuki or Kyrou. It seems that everyone finds it difficult to recognize that the captain of the Canadiens can begin to be considered a “stud”.
Maybe I’m getting carried away. As someone else would say, we’ll see.
THE 30 BEST SEASONS IN CANADIAN HISTORY (POINTS)
1. 136
● Guy Lafleur
2. 132
● Guy Lafleur
3. 129
● Guy Lafleur
4. 125
● Guy Lafleur (twice)
5. 119
● Guy Lafleur
6. 117
● Peter Mahovlich
7. 110
● Mats Naslund
8. 105
●Steve Shutt
● Peter Mahovlich
9. 97
● Vincent Damphousse
● Jacques Lemaire
10. 96
● Frank Mahovlich
● Dickie Moore
● Pierre Turgeon
11. 95
● Bernard Geoffrion
● Jacques Lemaire
12. 94
● Vincent Damphousse
● Kirk Muller
13. 93
● Frank Mahovlich
● Bobby Smith
14. 92
● Jacques Lemaire
15. 91
● Stéphane Richer
● Pierre Larouche
● Jean Beliveau
● Vincent Damphousse
16. 90
● Jean Beliveau
17. 89
●Steve Shutt
18. 88
● Jean Beliveau
● Brian Bellows
● Keith Acton
19. 87
● Yvan Cournoyer
20. 86
●Steve Shut
● Bobby Smith
21. 85
● Larry Robinson
22. 84
● Dicke Moore
● Alex Kovalev
● Jean Beliveau
● Mats Naslund
● Guy Lafleur
23. 83
● Yvan Cournoyer
● Mats Naslund
24. 82
● Jean Beliveau
● Larry Robinson
25. 81
● Mark Napier
● Jacques Lemaire
● Vincent Damphousse
26. 80
● Mark Recchi
● Frank Mahovlich
● Stéphan Lebeau
● Henri Richard
● Elmer Lach
● Mats Naslund
27. 79
●Steve Shutt
● Mats Naslund
● Yvan Cournoyer
28. 78
● Stéphane Richer
●Robert Rousseau
● Jean Beliveau
● Mark Recchi
29. 77
● Nick Suzuki*
●Steve Shutt
● Kirk Muller
● Jean Beliveau
30. 76
● Guy Lafleur
● Russ Courtnall
● Jean Beliveau
● Guy Lapointe
* Projection of 82 matches as of Sunday
CANADIEN’S BEST POINTER PER SEASON FOR 30 YEARS
2023-2024
● Nick Suzuki: 77 pts*
2022-2023
● Nick Suzuki: 66 pts
2021-2022
● Nick Suzuki: 61 pts
2020-2021
● Tyler Toffoli: 44 pts**
2019-2020
● Tomas Tatar: 61 pts
2018-2019
● Max Domi: 72 pts
2017-2018
● Brendan Gallagher: 54 pts
2016-2017
● Max Pacioretty: 67 pts
2015-2016
● Max Pacioretty: 64 pts
2014-2015
● Max Pacioretty: 67 pts
2013-2014
● Max Pacioretty: 60 pts
2012-2013
● Max Pacioretty: 39 pts***
2011-2012
● Max Pacioretty: 65 pts
2010-2011
● Tomas Plekanec: 57 pts
2009-2010
● Tomas Plekanec: 70 pts
2008-2009
● Alex Kovalev: 65 pts
2007-2008
● Alex Kovalev: 84 pts
2006-2007
● Saku Koivu: 74 pts
2005-2006
● Alex Kovalev: 65 pts
2004-2005
● Season canceled
2003-2004
● Mike Ribeiro: 65 pts
2002-2003
● Saku Koivu: 71 pts
2001-2002
● Yannic Perreault: 56 pts
2000-2001
● Saku Koivu and Oleg Petrov: 47 pts
1999-2000
● Martin Rucinsky: 49 pts
1998-1999
● Mark Recchi: 47 pts
1997-1998
● Mark Recchi: 74 pts
1996-1997
● Vincent Damphousse: 81 pts
1995-1996
● Pierre Turgeon: 96 pts
1994-1995
● Mark Recchi: 43 pts****
1993-1994
● Vincent Damphousse: 91 pts*****
* Projection of 82 matches as of Sunday
** Season shortened to 56 games
*** Season shortened to 48 games
**** Season shortened to 48 games
***** 84-game season