The general manager of the Arizona Coyotes, Bill Armstrong, dared a few weeks ago to advance a timeline for a reconstruction: seven or eight years.
Colleague Alexandre Pratt was slightly more optimistic for that of the Canadian, ruling six years. The CH, if all goes well, would become an NHL powerhouse in 2027, since the youth shift began last year.
Kent Hughes also still advocated patience, during his mid-season report on Wednesday, without however promising a date for delivery.
Six years does not mean six years of misery, in the cellar of the classification, to sink voluntarily. But five or six years without compromise, without shortcuts, with no doubt great battles for a place in the playoffs, without compromising the future.
It’s continuing to exchange veterans in their late twenties, early thirties, for another year or two, accepting the mistakes of young people, before being ready to race.
To become a power is to finish among the ten teams of the NHL, the same five, for several consecutive seasons, and to have the numbers to hope to win the Cup.
Tampa Bay finished in the top ten seven times in the past nine seasons, three times in the top five between 2017 and 2020, and won two Cups.
Chicago finished in the top ten in eight out of nine seasons between 2008 and 2017, twice in a row in the top five between 2015 and 2016, and won three Cups.
When you think about it, the Canadian has only finished five times in the top ten of the NHL since 1994, three times in the top fivein 2008, 2013 and 2015, but only once in the top five two consecutive years, between 2013 and 2015, under the reign of Marc Bergevin.
Montreal was also excluded from the top fifteen overall 15 times over the past 26 seasons.
What is six years of waiting when the Montreal fan has just spent almost 30 years without living the same aspirations as the supporters of Denver, Tampa, Chicago and Pittsburgh?
There are obviously risks. Edmonton and Buffalo have struggled with it a few times over the past few decades and the Oilers, despite McDavid, still find themselves in an uphill battle for a playoff berth this season, eight years after McDavid’s arrival.
PHOTO JEROME MIRON, USA TODAY SPORTS ARCHIVES
Connor McDavid
In both cases, there have been poor draft decisions, the inability to find top goalkeepers and a lack of patience, essential to the survival of a club.
This danger awaits our neighbors, the Senators, among others. Ottawa is in its fifth year of rebuilding since the departures of Karlsson, Stone and Duchene. At the dawn of the fourth, DG Pierre Dorion declared his club ready to move on to the next stage. The Senators finished 26the rank in the general classification.
Last summer, to speed up the process, Dorion traded his seventh overall pick for Alex DeBrincat and offered Claude Giroux $19 million for three years.
Despite the offensive contribution of these two players, the Senators are only marginally better. They find themselves eight points from the last place giving access to the series and occupy the 25e rank in the general classification, two points ahead of Montreal.
They come from elsewhere at 25e ranks the NHL in goals scored per game with an average of 2.95, despite a 25.6% power play efficiency, third behind Edmonton and Boston.
Ottawa was 16-24-4 for 36 points after 44 games last year. They are 20-21-3 for 43 points this season. Four more wins.
Goaltenders Cam Talbot and Anton Forsberg’s save percentage is below .905.
Whatever the formula, you have to make the right decisions. So far, Kent Hughes has proven he can be trusted. He will have to be faithful to his plan and not cut corners. Will you be patient too?
The realism of Darryl Sutter
Calgary Flames head coach Darryl Sutter was blunt and forthright as usual Wednesday night after his club lost 4-1 to the Colorado Avalanche. “We had a small idea of our value, we are among the middle teams, and we are not of their caliber. We prepared as best we could, but they are the champions. »
The champions are approaching elsewhere. They find themselves two points behind the Flames and the last place giving access to the playoffs… with three more games to play. Calgary is two points behind the Oilers and seventh in the West.
For a club that sold the Canadiens a first-round pick to get rid of Sean Monahan’s salary and thus snatch their second center, Nazem Kadri, 32, from the Avalanche, at a cost of 49 million for seven years, who will pay 84 million for eight years to Jonathan Huberdeau, 29, from next year, and 50 million over the same period to MacKenzie Weegar, that was not the planned scenario.
We must wish them at least a place in the series …