No one in the league deserves the 1st star of the week more than Jaroslav Halak. He posted a .958 SA% in 3 games, with 1 shutout against the Canucks, and 2 very impressive wins in back-to-back games over two teams ahead of the Canadiens in the standings. Halak hasn't been great--he's been exceptional, and thanks to him the Canadiens are riding the high of a 4-game winning streak.

What a muddy month February was for Le Tricolore. Though they haven't been dominant in their last 4 games, Halak has given them the opportunity to work on aspects of their game that have been failing this season.

The powerplay has been unreal since Mathieu Schneider's return to Montreal. I don't know for sure, but one would have to assume it's the hottest powerplay in the league over a six-game span; clicking on 11 of their last 25 attempts- 44% , as the Canadiens are in 18th position in the category after being kept from the top 20 all season. Schneider has 3 goals and 3 assists since coming to the Canadiens with 4 goals and 11 assists on the year.

The penalty kill has been excellent of late, and hasn't dipped lower than the 15th spot in the league, all season long. Right now the PK sits at 10th overall, effectively killing 82.8 of the oppositions powerplay opportunities.

The offense is clicking, and now it's time for the defense to come together. If Roman Hamrlik and Mike Komisarek were able to reel in their games a bit, the Canadiens would be letting up 10 less shots per night. Yes Brisebois and Gorges give the puck up as well, but they aren't expected to be as reliable as Hamrlik and Komisarek need to be.

While it's clear the bottom four need to do a better job of lowering the opportunities against, defense is a team thing, and if the forwards helped out a bit more, you wouldn't consistently see over 35 shots against each night.

Halak has given them the opportunity to start figuring it out, like they have with the special teams, but if they don't sort it out soon Halak will lose, and a whole new chapter of the season will begin.

Carey Price will eventually regain the net, and that might be a very difficult chore should his team continue to let up a barrage of shots each night.

The Canadiens were among the best teams 5 on 5 earlier this season, and they'll have to figure it out defensively if they aim to finish securely in a playoff spot. As it stands, they have the 10th best goals per game, and the 20 the best goals against.
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This trade deadline is as unpredictable as any other we've seen from Bob Gainey since his regime started in Montreal. It's clear the Canadiens are buyers, and by all accounts they are in on some big names.

What they plan to do is very hard to decipher when you consider the uncertainty created by the free-agent mix this summer.

So, you might be disappointed if they won't give up a lot to get an impact player in right now (ie. Olli Jokinen), but if that is in fact the case, you might assume it's because they have their sights on other targets that are more worth giving up for, and are more available this summer.

I would predict the Canadiens will make 1 or 2 moves to strengthen the team without moving too much personnel from the current roster.

I would also expect the Canadiens to move Mathieu Dandenault, as well as send Kyle Chipchura back to Hamilton.

I can't predict what will happen with Gregory Stewart, Matt D'Agostini, or Max Pacioretty, but at least one of them will have to return to Hamilton once Tanguay and Latendresse are back in the lineup, provided Gainey doesn't clear room for them through trades on Wednesday.
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Alex Tanguay will meet with doctors tomorrow, when it's expected he'll be given the green light for Wednesday's game. Expect him to be a game-time decision, though it's probable he'll play.

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It seems highly unlikely that Billy Guerin will be traded to the Canadiens, all signs point to Washington, Jersey, or Pittsburgh, regardless of the denials you've heard. Though it's becoming clearer and clearer that nothing has been finalized

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