Confirmed Signing with Link: [MTL] Canadiens sign Nate Thompson (1 yr 1 way 1M)

[jfhabs]

One-year, one-way contract for forward Nate Thompson

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[VoluntaryDom]

how was he for the habs?

edit: looked up some numbers. good god. gl with that one habs

 

[jfhabs]

how was he for the habs?

edit: looked up some numbers. good god. gl with that one habs

Didn't start very well, but he finished very well with us. Had some dominant times on the PK.
It's a one year deal and he could be flipped again if we're out of it come trade deadline.

 

[Vitto79]

Should be cheap ?

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Didn't start very well, but he finished very well with us. Had some dominant times on the PK.
It's a one year deal and he could be flipped again if we're out of it come trade deadline.

habs have so many forwards coming up that imo this is a bad move. they already have tatar gallagher danault domi drouin shaw byron lehkonen kotkaniemi peca armia weal hudon deslauriers thats 14 guys not named nate thompson, and i didnt even mention poehling who has to make it right and suzuki etc who has a shot. idk why habs are keeping thompson when they are already so deep at F

 

[Kotkaniemi15]

Similar to the Folin signing. It can't hurt when you have nearly 20 million in cap space. If the kids are good enough, they will beat out the veterans. KK beat out Plekanec last year. Poehling could beat out Thompson.

 

[jfhabs]

habs have so many forwards coming up that imo this is a bad move. they already have tatar gallagher danault domi drouin shaw byron lehkonen kotkaniemi peca armia weal hudon deslauriers thats 14 guys not named nate thompson, and i didnt even mention poehling who has to make it right and suzuki etc who has a shot. idk why habs are keeping thompson when they are already so deep at F

Peca didn't do very well this year and isn't suited for defensive duties. Deslauriers wasn't very good either. Yes, we do have too many forward and I'm not exactly sure what the idea of signing Thompson is, but it's not like cap space is an issue. I could see the habs trading Hudon and Peca for peanuts and starting both Poehling and Suzuki in the AHL. If they beat the veterans out of camp, guys like Deslauriers and Thompson can be sent down...

 

[MXD]

habs have so many forwards coming up that imo this is a bad move. they already have tatar gallagher danault domi drouin shaw byron lehkonen kotkaniemi peca armia weal hudon deslauriers thats 14 guys not named nate thompson, and i didnt even mention poehling who has to make it right and suzuki etc who has a shot. idk why habs are keeping thompson when they are already so deep at F

They're keeping Thompson because none of the players you listed before Peca will possibly be occupying his roster spot, because he's better than Peca and Weal for his projected role (4th line C having LOTS of D-Zone Starts) and because having guys like Poheling or Evans in that role doesn't make much sense.

But yeah, if he plays more than 12 mins/game, we're in trouble.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Peca didn't do very well this year and isn't suited for defensive duties. Deslauriers wasn't very good either. Yes, we do have too many forward and I'm not exactly sure what the idea of signing Thompson is, but it's not like cap space is an issue. I could see the habs trading Hudon and Peca for peanuts and starting both Poehling and Suzuki in the AHL.

im aware peca sucks defensively and deslauriers sucks overall, but thompson is awful too. poehling had a hatty in his first game you have to start him in the NHL.

if im them i trade drouin for d help and go:
TT-danault-gallagher
domi-poehling-shaw
lehkonen-kotkaniemi-byron
hudon-weal-armia

or something like that

 

[VoluntaryDom]

They're keeping Thompson because none of the players you listed before Peca will possibly be occupying his roster spot, because he's better than Peca and Weal for his projected role (4th line C having LOTS of D-Zone Starts) and because having guys like Poheling or Evans in that role doesn't make much sense.

But yeah, if he plays more than 12 mins/game, we're in trouble.

thompson isnt better than weal at any aspect of hockey

 

[BLNY]

No problems with this. Let Poehling and Evans play key minutes at center in Laval.

 

[MXD]

thompson isnt better than weal at any aspect of hockey

That's irrelevant because Weal projects to be playing as well (and Weal is a better fit on the wing).

 

[Baksfamous112]

Can’t see what’s wrong with that deal. He’s most likely going to be our 13th forward and there in case there’s too many injuries. Worst case scenario he’s waived and either picked up or sent down and it would only cost Habs 100k in cap space.

Best case scenario, he wins ~55% FO, stay in positive +/- and put up ~10 points next year.

I don’t see what’s the big deal with this signing. He was decent last year.

 

[Rebels57]

No problems with this. Let Poehling and Evans play key minutes at center in Laval.

Poehling is NHL ready now.

 

[izzy]

im aware peca sucks defensively and deslauriers sucks overall, but thompson is awful too. poehling had a hatty in his first game you have to start him in the NHL.

if im them i trade drouin for d help and go:
TT-danault-gallagher
domi-poehling-shaw
lehkonen-kotkaniemi-byron
hudon-weal-armia

or something like that

whats that have to do with thompson then?? hes still better than weal for that 4th line spot. having poehling play is irrelevant to thompson, especially with that lineup you are projecting.

 

[jfhabs]

im aware peca sucks defensively and deslauriers sucks overall, but thompson is awful too. poehling had a hatty in his first game you have to start him in the NHL.

if im them i trade drouin for d help and go:
TT-danault-gallagher
domi-poehling-shaw
lehkonen-kotkaniemi-byron
hudon-weal-armia

or something like that

I prefer Thompson to Weal as a fourth line centerman. Why do you say he's awful? Have you watched the last 10-15 games? He was very good on the PK, very good on faceoffs and added some sand paper to the line up.

 

[Captain Mountain]

habs have so many forwards coming up that imo this is a bad move. they already have tatar gallagher danault domi drouin shaw byron lehkonen kotkaniemi peca armia weal hudon deslauriers thats 14 guys not named nate thompson, and i didnt even mention poehling who has to make it right and suzuki etc who has a shot. idk why habs are keeping thompson when they are already so deep at F

Weal is UFA. This contract can be buried in the minors.

And Montreal isn't shy about waiving veterans (they terminated Plekanec's contract and sent Alzner to the AHL last season). I think organizationally they want to load up on depth. It becomes easier to potentially lose guys you don't need or want on waivers that way.

Thompson is a bit of a black hole offensively, but he's a good face-off guy and has a clear positive impact defensively and on the PK. He was a positive GAR player. As long has he's mostly used on the 4th line and PK, and not all the time (which is likely what will happen), its not a big deal.

 

[MXD]

Poehling is NHL ready now.

Let him prove it with a sample size bigger than, you know, one game.

Also, it's not about being ready or not, it's about playing 18 key minutes instead of 11 fourth-line minutes (or be the 13th forward). I wouldn't have much problems with either, but I can see why the Habs brass would prefer Poehling to play more minutes.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Weal is UFA. This contract can be buried in the minors.

And Montreal isn't shy about waiving veterans (they terminated Plekanec's contract and sent Alzner to the AHL last season). I think organizationally they want to load up on depth. It becomes easier to potentially lose guys you don't need or want on waivers that way.

Thompson is a bit of a black hole offensively, but he's a good face-off guy and has a clear positive impact defensively and on the PK. He was a positive GAR player. As long has he's mostly used on the 4th line and PK, and not all the time (which is likely what will happen), its not a big deal.

he was a -11 rel xg dude in montreal thats not salvageable.

 

[Captain Mountain]

he was a -11 rel xg dude in montreal thats not salvageable.

Montreal was a top-5 xG team in the NHL last season, I don't think they care that their forward that finished 12th in ES TOI/GP is a black hole offensively. What they do care about is that he can win face-offs and be have a positive defensive numbers while being buried in the defensive zone. And that if the need arises, they can make his cap hit fully disappear.

 

[BLNY]

Poehling is NHL ready now.

I love that he scored in his first game, but it was the last game of the season. If he blows the doors off at camp, great. You can bury Thompson or make him the 13th forward. However, Nate played well and took some of the load of Danault. Not sure Poehling is ready for the PK duty that Thompson will take.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

Montreal was a top-5 xG team in the NHL last season, I don't think they care that their forward that finished 12th in ES TOI/GP is a black hole offensively. What they do care about is that he can win face-offs and be have a positive defensive numbers while being buried in the defensive zone. And that if the need arises, they can make his cap hit fully disappear.

45% raw tho. literally 1.92 xgf/60 this season combined in his LA and MTL time. theres offensive black hole and then theres that

 

[Captain Mountain]

45% raw tho. literally 1.92 xgf/60 this season combined in his LA and MTL time. theres offensive black hole and then theres that

As a 4th liner. That plays so infrequently that random variance could make that largely irrelevant.

Teams generally tend to go through anywhere from 5-8 players on their 4th line in a given season. Getting one that can be a positive impact in specific areas of the game, on a line that tends to be used as a sacrificial lamb, one a one year contract that can be buried is never bad.

 

[VoluntaryDom]

As a 4th liner. That plays so infrequently that random variance could make that largely irrelevant.

Teams generally tend to go through anywhere from 5-8 players on their 4th line in a given season. Getting one that can be a positive impact in specific areas of the game, on a line that tends to be used as a sacrificial lamb, one a one year contract that can be buried is never bad.

most 4th liners arent massive offensive drags though

 

[Alklha]

Good for Thompson.

It doesn't affect Montreal. If he doesn't make the team, then it isn't like his contract has any cap implications. Not that it would matter much for Montreal anyway. It isn't like they are cash poor and that $1m might be better spent in a few months.

If Montreal like him, then it's a good signing from their perspective.