The Canadiens improved their record in the second of back-to-back games to 6-1-1 with their win over the Winnipeg Jets last night. With the win, they maintained their one-point lead over the Boston Bruins in the race for the divisional title, pulling to within three points of the idle Pittsburgh Penguins for the conference lead.
It was Peter Budaj's sixth-straight win for the Habs-- a career record for him. Budaj was elated after the game, crediting his teammates for the work they did in front of him. It had to be especially satisfying to have obtained the victory in front of family members who rarely get to see him live.
Budaj's contribution is exemplary of the type the Canadiens have received from all their support players this season.
In prolonged absence of Raphael Diaz, Greg Pateryn, Jarred Tinordi and Nathan Beaulieu all proved to be reliable. Davis Drewiske played 17 minutes of solid hockey last night, with the exception of losing his position on the Jets' only goal.
Without Rene Bourque and Brandon Prust for some period of time, Jeff Halpern and Michael Blunden have played important minutes for the team. And with Colby Armstrong succumbing to a knee injury, there was Ryan White last night, showing why he's a better winger than he is a centreman.
The scoring Michael Ryder's brought to supplant Erik Cole's lack of production to start the year has been an incredible bonus for what was already a successful team.
And without Tomas Plekanec last night, Lars Eller stepped in and played arguably his best game of the season.
This is the product of a healthy system--one the players have clearly bought into from the start and at least up until this point of the season, which now has 12 games remaining.
If you're wondering why the Canadiens have fared so well in the second half of back-to-back situations, I think it's clear that Michel Therrien and his staff should take the lion's share of the credit.
Preparation and strategy is crucial, no doubt, but where Therrien, Daigneault and Gallant impress is in the ice-time management of their players. The only two over 20:00 last night were Subban and Gorges, and both clocked in under 24:00.
Alex Galchenyuk only skated 10:00 in this one. They were 10 quality minutes though. Therrien said afterwards that the team is very conscious of where Galchenyuk fits best (at centre) but that they've gone through great pains to ensure he's not exposed in an unfavorable match up down the middle. They have managed Galchenyuk's confidence with great sensitivity, and they have to be pleased with what they saw last night.
Coming back to a note from earlier, if Galchenyuk appeared more comfortable in his first game at centre in over a month, White was extremely effective on the wing.
White was credited with three hits on the night, but he had at least five or six. He was physical, involved, and he was a big part of an impressive penalty killing effort that blanked the Jets on six opportunities.
If there were two areas of play that required drastic improvement, it was faceoffs and the penalty kill. The penalty kill has successfully eliminated 16 of the last 17 disadvantages.
As for faceoffs, over their last six games, the Canadiens have won 178 while their opponents have won 193. If you take the Boston game out of it, the Habs beat the Jets, Flyers, Hurricanes and Penguins 152-149 in the dot.
If there's any improvement to speak of in the faceoff circle, it's negligible at best. Seems to be the final piece of the puzzle that requires significant practice between now and the end of the regular season.
............Find great deals on Montreal Canadiens tickets at Fanxchange.com.............
*********************
-Peter Budaj won 5 games in 17 starts last year. When I asked him about his decision not to play during the work stoppage, he simply said that he hadn't anticipated that the lockout would last as long as it did.
Was it a refreshing break for him? Not really, according to him. But Budaj did come to camp with the attitude that he was going to play a much bigger role when called upon.
At 6-1-1 in eight games this year, Budaj has made an excellent contribution to the team's success. And speaking with Carey Price last night, it's a great relief, and he's very happy for his friend who has supported him so much over the last couple of seasons.
-Speaking of being happy for your friends, Brendan Gallagher was elated for Alex Galchenyuk:
"Was great to see Chuckie get one. We were all really happy for him."
On Galchenyuk finding his groove at centre:
"He hasn't complained about being on the wing at all, not even in private."
-I asked Ryan White earlier this season why he was playing centre. He said, "because it's my position. Been playing it my whole career."
I retorted: "You had 12 hits in a playoff game against the Bruins--on the wing."
After last night's game, we re-hatched the conversation. I won't share the details, but he seems pretty happy about the way the game went...
-Paraphrasing here, but after last night's game, Therrien said something about treating his team like a family. He spoke about affording Budaj the start because his family was there to see him, and because in addition to Budaj earning more games, Therrien believes the player himself and his teammates really appreciate that sort of thing.
He's dead right. And it's another reason this guy is so dramatically different in this kick at the can. The evidence is in the team's play. The method that brings them to a win hasn't changed all season, and the buy-in is universal in the room.
-I can't imagine a scenario by which the Canadiens hold on to Michael Ryder. Not that they'd want to lose his bonafide scoring. He's just played too well to not test the market. This is his chance at a long-term extension, and it's likely to cost the Canadiens more than they're willing to spend. It'll be interesting to see where this situation goes. A great playoff performance on top of this regular season might make him indispensable to Bergevin, but it's likely to cement his value on the open market.
Either way, the Canadiens must be so happy to have this guy right now...
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»