Alexei Emelin began his season serving as on-ice mentor for the Canadiens’ prized addition from the 2016 NHL Draft: Mikhail Sergachev. Emelin played almost exclusively the rookie during his three-game audition in October.
Once Sergachev was relegated to the pressbox to spend the remainder of his NHL stint in an observer role, Emelin moved onto the top pairing with Shea Weber. The two spent the majority of the season playing together, being one of the NHL’s most stable duos with over 850 shared five-on-five minutes.
That pairing held together on the penalty kill as well, as they spent a further 160-plus minutes defending their zone while playing short-handed, being the unit sent out against the opposition’s first wave.