When the Montreal Canadiens traded Alex Galchenyuk for Max Domi in June, a lot of fans were devastated. For a team starved for goals, how could they possibly trade their second best goal scorer for a playmaker who scored only nine goals last season? Four of which were on an empty net. General manager Marc Bergevin spoke of intangibles, character and attitude, to which most fans mocked. Now, after the first 18 games, Canadiens fans are starting to understand exactly what Bergevin was talking about.

Max Domi Proving to be the Player the Canadiens Needed

As soon as Domi got the news he was headed to Montreal he was ecstatic. “I haven’t been able to stop smiling. I’m really, really pumped,” Domi said as he met the media in Brossard for the first time. Domi is a big market type of player. He loves being in the spotlight in Montreal, something that shouldn’t come of as much of a surprise. Max’s father Tie Domi played 11 seasons and retired as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, so Max is well accustomed to being under the spotlight.

Perhaps more important than watching his father deal with the pressure of playing in a media market, is the fact that Max Domi directly dealt with his own pressure. The son of an NHL player, Domi would have been looked at as a superstar at every step of his minor hockey journey. Other players and parents would have looked to his genes and put expectations on the youngster. This would have happened from basically the first time he ever put on equipment.

His tenure with the Habs got off on the wrong foot, however, as in his first pre-season game, Domi laid out Aaron Ekblad with a punch, and was suspended for the rest of the pre-season. While it may not be Domi’s finest moment, the feistiness is something the Canadiens have been missing.

Fitting Right in at Centre

One of the biggest questions marks the Habs had in the off-season was who was going to play centre. Jonathan Drouin slotted in as the number one centre last season but didn’t perform the way he would have liked to. Although he was ready to take over the position again this year, Julien elected to try Domi at centre to start training camp. It’s a move that has paid off for the Habs coach.

Domi’s speed allows him to cover a lot of ice. He’s able to get back quickly in order to defend in his own end but then use his speed to break out in transition and instantly put pressure on the opposing defence. In this play against the Washington Capitals, you can see his speed on full display.

Adding Some Much Needed Grit to the Lineup

While Domi is a very skilled player, he’s not afraid to mix it up. Domi continuously goes to the rough areas of the ice. He isn’t afraid to engage with the other team’s defence in the corners and in front of the net despite usually giving up a lot in the size department. He also has seven career fights under his belt in three seasons. Although teams usually don’t want their star players fighting, you have to love Domi’s willingness to stand up for himself and his teammates. Not that it should come as much of a surprise, considering who his father is and all.

Domi proves here that it’s not about the size of the dog in the fight. It’s the size of the fight in the dog.

Instant Chemistry with Jonathan Drouin

The acquisition of Max Domi has proved beneficial to Jonathan Drouin as well. Drouin got off to a slow start not registering a point in his first three games. After a 3-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings, Julien decided to shake things up and moved Drouin onto a line with Domi and it paid off instantly. Drouin went on a five-game point streak as well as registering a powerplay point in each of those games. Both are very creative players and although both are known as playmakers, they have combined for 29.4% of the Habs goals since being put together. The two have also combined for a total of 33 points in 15 games.

Looking to Build off a Quick Start

Domi is enjoying his early success with the Canadiens. In 18 games Domi has scored 10 goals and added 12 assists. His 10 goals already surpassed his total from a season ago. Also, his 22 points are almost half of what he scored in 82 games last season. He also sits 10th in the entire league in scoring, just four points behind arguably the best player in the world Connor McDavid. Domi’s shooting percentage of 26.3% is also tied for third in the league amongst players who have put at least 20 shots on goal. Domi’s play has helped propel the Habs into the top 10 in goals for this season, sitting just five goals behind the league-leading Toronto Maple Leafs. Just another expectation shattered by the Habs this season.

No one expected Domi to produce at this rate entering the season. Nor do fans expect him to keep up this pace for the entire season. However, Habs fans will certainly enjoy it as long as it lasts. No one expected William Karlsson of the Vegas Golden Knights to keep up his scoring pace last season either. He too proved the naysayers wrong and finished with a career-high 43 goals and 78 points. Domi will look to prove those naysayers wrong as well.

One thing is for sure. Max Domi is earning every penny of the two-year $6.3 million deal he signed with the Canadiens this summer.

Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images