Dec 28 Why Acquiring James Wisniewski is Vital for the Habs

Mercifully, Pierre Gauthier has addressed a major need on the Canadiens and he did so by pulling off a shrewd trade to acquire James Wisniewski from the New York Islanders. No one will be "blown away" by the deal (pun definitely intended) but what Wisniewski will bring to the Habs should prove to be invaluable. Having scored two of his three goals against our boys this season, Habs fans have already gotten well-acquainted with his booming point shot, an asset that will help a power play lacking a good point shot with the exception of P.K. Subban's and Yannick Weber's. Considering usually only one of the two is in the lineup, a second big shot in the lineup on a regular basis is most certainly welcome. Wisniewski also brings a level of grit to the team which is always appreciated by a team lacking in that department. While he might not be the tallest player at 5'11", he carries a thick 208 lbs and is durable having played well over 20 minutes a game on most nights for the Islanders. At just 26 years old, the Canadiens bring in a solid defenseman just entering his prime who should be more effective with less responsibility than he had in Long Island.

Aside from what Wisniewski brings to the powerplay, he helps an ailing defensive corps greatly. Jaroslav Spacek, Roman Hamrlik and Hal Gill are all over 35 years old and these days, are showing every big of their age. Josh Gorges is clearly hurting right now and is not playing up to his usual level of play. Too much is being asked of Alex Picard and the increased responsibility has hurt his overall performance. Subban is playing below expectations even when he is in the lineup and like Weber, is a work in progress.

What the move does, however, is force Jacques Martin to re-work the defensive pairings he and fans have grown comfortable with. Considering Wisniewski is a right-handed shot, it only makes sense to pair him with a left-handed shot. That being said, I would play Wisniewski with Gorges, Subban with Hamrlik and Gill with Spacek. That leaves Picard in the sidelines to be called on when in need and Weber in the next bus to Hamilton. While it may take a little while for all the new pairings to get to know each other, in the long run these combinations give the team three pairings that can all be depended on to play big minutes thus reducing the wear and tear on the entire corps.

According to Arpon Basu, bringing in Wisniewski will result in a cap hit of $1.8 million, leaving the team with a few million left to play with as the trade deadline approaches in February. In return, the Islanders receive a second-round draft pick in next year's NHL draft as well as a conditional pick in 2012. It's a decent price to pay for an upcoming unrestricted free agent but in the end, you have to give something to get something and if the Canadiens have a shot at making any noise in the playoffs this spring, shoring up the defensive corps is vital.

About Will Martinez

Will Martinez runs the 'Hey, My Name is Will' blog and is a contributor for TheFranchise.ca. You can follow Will on Twitter @heymynameiswill

Tags: defenceman \ habs \ James Wisniewski \ Montreal Canadiens \ New York Islanders

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