The Texier Signing Keeps Getting Better And Better

Despite his 4-game point streak being snapped during Thursday night’s Montreal Canadiens 4-1 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks, forward Alexandre Texier continues to look better with his new team with every game he plays. In a way, he easily could have finished the game with 2 assists if it hadn’t been for those 2 goals being called back for being offside. Nonetheless, his play on the ice is getting noticed at all ends of the ice.

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Before Texier’s placement on a line with Jake Evans and Josh Anderson, that line was primarily playing in the defensive zone attempting to shut down the opponent. Now thanks to Texier’s skillset, the Habs’ 3rd line is actually creating offence on the regular and is no longer spending all their time just trying to play as a shutdown line.

Texier was originally signed as a depth piece that would just fill in for the injured Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook, but it seems like he is more than just a depth fill-in, as he’s managed to fit on a 2nd line briefly with Ivan Demidov and Oliver Kapanen as well as lead his current line’s offensive rushes. He has actually performed better on the 3rd line with Evans and Anderson, showing that he is best suited as a skilled guy lower in the lineup. The reason for that is that, being on a 3rd line, he doesn’t get matched up against opposing teams’ top defensive pairings, which allows him to be able to showcase his skills successfully more often. As a result, he has shown that he can be a playmaker and set up his teammates. Now, he definitely doesn’t have the most skilled linemates, but he is showing that he can still make the most of what he is getting to play with.

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On Thursday, he made a few really smart plays to set up goals, but unfortunately, due to two separate offside incidents, he ended the night with no points. To be fair, the first time around was his fault, but none of that takes away from how good he looked on both disallowed goals. Had it not been for him, those plays wouldn’t have even happened. His sneaky skill seems to make everyone around him better.

A lot of why he’s been so good as of late is because he is comfortable in Montreal, where his family from France feels comfortable staying with him, as they can speak French here. This situation shows how a player in the right place can produce at better levels than they had in the past. With the Blues, he couldn’t get anything going, and now he’d be on pace for a 41-point season over an 82-game season with the Habs. That’s very impressive given that he plays as a bottom-six forward. He currently has 3 goals and 6 points in 12 games for the Habs this season.

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Texier will never be the most skilled player on his team, but he is the perfect guy who can fit up and down the lineup, which is something that makes his acquisition so great. He has especially proven to be a good fit on the Habs’ 2nd power play unit as someone who can set up his teammates but also be someone who can score with a shockingly hard wrister.

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Over his past 5 games, where Texier has been at his best, he’s scored 3 goals and 1 assist, which could easily be higher if his linemates were better finishers or if he didn’t have to deal with the goals he created getting called back. Some may say he’s on a hot streak, but the plays he’s making show that he can be a decent producer the more comfortable he gets with a team. Texier is more than just a shootout guy; he is someone who provides much-needed secondary scoring and could actually have a role on this team going forward.

How have you liked Texier’s play since joining the Habs?