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The Players
Youth replacing age. That seemed to be the prevailing theme during the summer of 2011 and early in the 2011-12 campaign. Last year, Montreal was the 10th oldest team in the league. This season, they are the 13th youngest. In the summer, blueline veterans such as Roman Hamrlik, James Wisniewski, Brent Sopel, Alexandre Picard and Paul Mara were allowed to leave the fold. In their stead, Swiss star Raphael Diaz and the long coveted Alexei Emelin were brought to Montreal while Chris Campoli was signed during training camp. Unfortunately for Campoli and the organization, he was sidelined indefinitely with a hernia injury in his first game. Although veteran power forward Erik Cole was acquired during the summer, youth was also largely allowed to permeate the forward units. Jeff Halpern, Benoit Pouliot, Nigel Dawes and Dustin Boyd departed over the summer, which in turned allowed for some less experienced players to potentially crack the roster. Andreas Engqvist, Aaron Palushaj, Brock Trotter and newly acquired Michael Blunden were, at the opening of camp, considered as favourites for one of the final forward spots. However, as has often been the case in recent years, injuries played a significant role in management's decisions. Three of the four above players suited up for the Canadiens early in the season while the other, Trotter, was sent to Phoenix in exchange for Petteri Nokelainen. Likewise, on defence, Raphael Diaz, Alexei Emelin and the undrafted Frederic St. Denis have all been called upon. While health remains a permanent concern in Montreal, the team appears to have the depth and youth to keep its head above water. Carey Price, P.K Subban and Max Pacioretty are emerging young leaders while others, such as Lars Eller, David Desharnais and Yannick Weber, appear to have promising futures. Intro written by Louis Moustakas - November 2011 Current Injuries: H. Bishop (upper body), indefinite Brian Gionta (bicep), indefinite Andrei Markov (knee), indefinite Travis Moen (upper body), DTD B. Nash (shoulder), indefinite P. Nokelainen (rib), DTD Ryan White (hernia), DTD
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