However, the fans have short memories. As recently as last week, the vast majority of them were assigning pole position in goals to Samuel Montembeault.
Armed with a strong end of the season and, above all, an excellent World Hockey Championship, the Quebecer seems to have taken a big leap in his progress this year.
Mathias Brunet, a journalist for La Presse, is one of those who always gives the lead to Montembeault, compared to Hart. Here's why, and his statement is very clear:
It's true that the grass is always greener on the other side, but does that necessarily mean it's better? Not necessarily.
Hart, for whom hopes were very high upon his arrival in the NHL, has had an acceptable, if not more, start to his career. In his first two seasons in the NHL, he had an efficiency of .917 and .914, but has never been able to do as well since. In 55 games this season, which was his 5th in the NHL, he accumulated an average of 2.94 and an efficiency of .907.
Acquiring Hart is also acquiring his contract, which still has another season to its credit, at $3.979M. The goalie will then become a restricted free agent.
Could Hart return to being the goalie he once was? Maybe, but it's a huge risk to take.
Kent Hughes will therefore have to choose between a goaltender he already owns and knows very well in Samuel Montembeault, and acquiring one, with no certainty of what the future holds. Trading for Hart could be costly, while Montembeault will only cost a contract, which will be roughly the same as Hart's, or even less.
Do you agree with Brunet's statement?
Here it is, in full:
More details will follow.
POLL | ||
JUIN 11 | 529 ANSWERS Breaking bold statement on the next number one goalie of the Montreal Canadiens Considering the price to pay, which one do you prefer? | ||
Carter Hart | 120 | 22.7 % |
Sam Montembeault | 409 | 77.3 % |
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