All season we’ve been asking you to vote on who played well and who didn’t after games, and these are the results 41 games in.
| Player | Up | Down | % favourable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Galchenyuk | 8971 | 963 | 90.31% |
| Carey Price | 7880 | 1002 | 88.72% |
| Jiri Sekac | 6974 | 1029 | 87.14% |
| Brendan Gallagher | 7277 | 1522 | 82.70% |
| Tomas Plekanec | 6558 | 1549 | 80.89% |
| Lars Eller | 6280 | 1515 | 80.56% |
| Sven Andrighetto | 2128 | 532 | 80.00% |
| Michael Bournival | 964 | 250 | 79.41% |
| Nathan Beaulieu | 4371 | 1171 | 78.87% |
| Max Pacioretty | 6862 | 1892 | 78.39% |
| Jarred Tinordi | 1721 | 528 | 76.52% |
| Andrei Markov | 5643 | 1939 | 74.43% |
| P.K. Subban | 6887 | 2413 | 74.05% |
| Dustin Tokarski | 1017 | 438 | 69.90% |
| Manny Malhotra | 4534 | 2229 | 67.04% |
| P.A. Parenteau | 4607 | 2389 | 65.85% |
| Brandon Prust | 4939 | 2583 | 65.66% |
| Sergei Gonchar | 2985 | 1594 | 65.19% |
| Dale Weise | 4432 | 2626 | 62.79% |
| Tom Gilbert | 4217 | 3035 | 58.15% |
| Christian Thomas | 90 | 68 | 56.96% |
| David Desharnais | 4566 | 3808 | 54.53% |
| Mike Weaver | 2077 | 2041 | 50.44% |
| Alexei Emelin | 3310 | 3902 | 45.90% |
| Drayson Bowman | 204 | 276 | 42.50% |
| Michel Therrien | 3558 | 5310 | 40.12% |
| Rene Bourque | 947 | 1438 | 39.71% |
| Eric Tangradi | 407 | 660 | 38.14% |
| Travis Moen | 529 | 1088 | 32.71% |
| Bryan Allen | 186 | 930 | 16.67% |
Fan favourites
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Now available!
It’s become increasingly obvious that Alex Galchenyuk and Jiri Sekac can do no wrong. Both are having very good seasons, but neither have been carrying the Habs by any real stretch, and even in games where they play poorly, they’re always among the highest positively voted players. On Eyes on the Prize at least, these two are fan favourites on this team.
Carey Price
Everyone and their dog has recognized this season that Price has been the MVP of the Habs’ season, though even with how well he has played, he’s still not the highest voted player. Being a goalie is a tough gig, and even when everyone knows you’re the best, sometimes you don’t get the benefit of the doubt.
Bergevin moves out the unwanted
Five of the six least liked players have been taken off the team either by sending them to Hamilton or a trade away. The lone remnant in that bottom six of those least approved of? Michel Therrien. Ahem. Oh and Alexei Emelin is right there as well. If you’re wondering what the fans think the Habs need to do to get to the next level, look no further than there.
Newer is better
Young players get a huge boost from fan voting. Andrighetto is chugging along at 80%, while Sekac, Beaulieu, and Tinordi all get a ton of positive reviews compared to their peers, even those that regularly outperform them.
Playing defense is a thankless job
There are no defensemen in the top five most liked players, and only one in the top 10 (Beaulieu). P.K. Subban and Andrei Markov in particular are vastly underrated here. No defenseman has an approval rating over 80%, while six forwards do, and Galchenyuk even cracks 90%.
The burden of expectations
After Carey Price, there can be no argument that the most important players to the Montreal Canadiens’ success this season have been Subban, Pacioretty, and Markov. The two defensemen play the toughest competition night in and night out, dominating opponents on both sides of the puck, while Pacioretty leads the Habs’ offense. Yet all three are under 80% approval. When all that’s expected is dominance, every little mistake gets scrutinized. Similarly, P.A. Parenteau has been a brilliant possession player, but hasn’t put up points at the expected pace, and is less approved of than… Malhotra? Yeah….
Season rebounding
Since Desharnais was taken away from Pacioretty, his approval rating has jumped from below 50% to above 70%. He’s a great example of a player who takes a lot of guff from fans simply based on how he’s used, not how he plays.
