Montreal Canadiens star winger Cole Caufield has always had a knack for scoring goals. He’s scored at least 20 goals in every season thus far in his career. However, he’s always had a higher goal-scoring potential and is proving it this season. Despite this team U.S.A left him off the four nations roster. With 23 goals on the year, Caufield ranks sixth in the league in that department. But how many goals can he score this year and how many can he score in the future? Let’s take a look at Cole Caufield’s goal-scoring potential for the Montreal Canadiens.
Montreal Canadiens Cole Caufield’s goal potential
Cole Caufield’s Montreal Canadiens career thus far
Caufield has been a consistent goal-scoring threat since joining the Canadiens right before their playoff run in 2021. His career-best was 28 goals last season although he had 26 the year prior before going down with injury after 46 games. The diminutive forward has already racked up 104 career goals in only 247 games.
Despite Caufield’s success, he has never taken that step and reached the 30,40, or even 50-goal plateau that many envision he will. He was well on his way two years ago before his shoulder injury which arguably limited him to begin the last campaign. His rookie season was also a let down as he was sent down to Laval after a slow start. Many attributed this to former coach Dominique Ducharme’s usage of Caufield. He immediately found his groove under Martin St. Louis and when healthy, hasn’t missed a beat since.
How many goals can Cole Caufield score this year?
This season, Caufield’s 23 goals have him on pace for 46 on the year. This would be a huge jump in production from his previous career best. He has spent the majority of the season flanking captain Nick Suzuki with Juraj Slafkovsky occupying the other wing. The trio’s success together dates back to last season as they were one of the league’s best lines down the stretch in the campaign. Both Slafkovsky and Suzuki have great shots and are goal-scoring threats in their own rights. However, Caufield has become the primary shooting threat on the line.
One of the big differences from previous years is the amount of goals that Caufield has scored at even strength. He is amongst the league leaders in even-strength goals. The Stevens Point, Wis. native has previously been more of a powerplay threat. However, this year Patrik Laine has taken over his shooting position on the powerplay. As a result, Caufield has had to diversify his game and find other ways to be effective.
As far as how many goals he can score this year, 30 goals should be a shoo-in. He needs only seven more tallies in 41 games to reach this mark. Caufield’s big target should be the 40-goal plateau. Caufield has typically been at his most productive in the second half of the season and with that being said, this number is very achievable for him.
Cole Caufield’s Future Goal Totals
Caufield just turned 24 years old last week and is arguably just now entering his prime as a hockey player. This and the fact that he is playing on a team that struggled for the majority of the year makes his 46-goal pace all the more impressive. When he was drafted, many thought that Caufield could compete for the Rocket Richard trophy later in his career.
While that may never happen, with players in recent campaigns scoring nearly 70 goals a season. However, Caufield can undoubtedly be a 50-goal scorer at some point in his career under the right circumstances. Once the Canadiens have a contending team and a deeper cast of forwards, Caufield will reap the benefits. If healthy, you can expect Montreal Canadiens forward Cole Caufield to be a 40-goal man on a consistent basis and maybe even better.
Main photo by: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
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