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Habs end 2016 with a 4-3 OT loss to the Penguins. New Year's resolutions! |
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The Montreal Canadiens ended 2016 with a 4-3 overtime loss to the defending Stanley Cup champions Pittsburgh Penguins. It was another valiant effort by the team as they played hard to keep up with Penguins and match them tic for tac, only to see it wasted away by penalty trouble at the end of the game. Throughout this five game road trip, the Canadiens have done the best that they could to push through their injuries and not use it as an excuse for losing. Despite missing key players such as Alex Galchenyuk, Andrei Markov and Andrew Shaw, the Canadiens have played well, even dominating at times. There is much reason for optimism once the team gets healthy.
Alexander Radulov opened the scoring in the first period to give the Canadiens a 1-0 lead. He started the play when he led the breakout from the Canadiens zone and fed the puck to Paul Byron who crisscrossed with him when entering the Penguins zone. Byron passed it to Shea Weber who had jumped into the play and promptly returned the puck to Byron who found Radulov open and ready for the one timer. Patric Hornqvist tied the game in the second period as Alexei Emelin was caught at center ice leading to a two on one and an easy tap in goal for Hornqvist from Evgeni Malkin’s perfect pass. Phil Kessel have the Penguins a 2-1 lead as Ryan Johnston’s inexperience showed as he allowed the Penguins to blow right by him in the Canadiens zone. Paul Byron though would tie the game up at two apiece, continuing his hot hand with his fourth point in three games.
In the third period the Canadiens would go up 3-2 as Brian Flynn’s shot for deflected off of the Penguins defenseman, off of goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and into the net. Unfortunately, the Canadiens were not able to hold on as they got themselves in penalty trouble with Byron being called for holding with three and a half minutes left in the game. While the Penguins were unable to score on the powerplay, they carried their momentum into the final minute of play as Justin Schultz’s shot went off of Connor Sheary’s chest and into the net with Fleury on the bench to send the game into overtime. In overtime the Canadiens were called for too men on the ice and it was no surprise when Malkin scored the game winning goal on his patented one timer.
In lieu of ‘Puck Props and Flops’, here are some New Year's resolutions for the Canadiens:
1) Stop taking unnecessary penalties. Period. Enough said.
2) When on the penalty kill, play hard and aggressive. The Canadiens used to consistently be in the top ten on the penalty kill. There is no reason with their personnel that they should have seen such a drop in their performance. Too often the Canadiens are standing still and allowing their opponents to dictate play and set up. Even when Sheary scored with the extra attacker on the ice, the Canadiens five players were completely standing still, doing nothing and screening their own goaltender. Emelin let Sheary in behind him and did nothing to try to tie him up. The Canadiens cannot depend on Carey Price forever, especially when down a player.
3) Find a second line center. Once Galchenyuk returns the Canadiens will finally have their true number one line intact. However they have an abundance of perfectly capable third line centers with Phillip Danault, Torrey Mitchell, Tomas Plekanec and even David Desharnais and Michael McCarron. Perhaps they will try Danault as a second line center but that still does not seem like a long term solution.
4) Separate Weber and Emelin. The duo make a fine shutdown pairing but Weber needs a puck carrying partner in order for him to contribute more five on five. In the three games since Christmas, Emelin has looked like he has lost some of his bite and jump, getting caught more often and not tying up his man as effectively as he was earlier in the season. It is time to reunite Weber with Nathan Beaulieu who looked quite good next to him against Columbus and Minnesota before the break.
5) Do not play Ice Caps players such as Ryan Johnston over Zach Redmond. Johnston does not have the experience, nor does he seem to have real potential to play in the NHL every day. The Canadiens signed Redmond for a reason on July 1st and he is more than capable of being the team’s sixth defenseman while Markov and Greg Pateryn are still hurt. Let the guy play.
6) Find ways to get Artturi Lehkonen more playing time and into games. Lehkonen has continued to impress since he arrived in Montreal back in September. His hockey sense and game is very mature for his age (21). He is responsible in his own end and perhaps should be getting more time on the penalty kill as he is very aggressive when in pursuit of the puck. It certainly could not hurt. Lehkonen was building some nice chemistry with Shaw and Danault before Shaw suffered his concussion. Once the Canadiens get healthy that could once again be an interesting line.
7) Close out games when in the lead. The Canadiens have to stop allowing their opponents back into games when they have leads late in the third period. In today’s NHL if you lose focus for a second the opposing team will make you pay for it. The Canadiens have to play a stronger mental game in the latter stages of games.
8) Continue to give Paul Byron big minutes. He is very much for real and has a lot more offensive talent than anyone imagined when the Canadiens picked him up off of waivers from the Calgary Flames. At first he seemed to be scoring from using his speed. Then he would be at the right place at the right time by going to the net. Now he is using his high hockey iq to make excellent passes and feed his teammates. Some guys are late bloomers and some just needed an opportunity in the first place.
9) Give Al Montoya more support when he is in net. The Canadiens finally won one for him against the Florida Panthers but he deserves more from his teammates. Therrien and Stéphane Waite have put him in some difficult situations this season with nary a whisper of complaint from Montoya. He has been a complete professional and it would be nice if the team could score a few more for him when in net, leading to much needed wins.
10) Fix the powerplay. The Canadiens had a great 1-3-1 going against the Panthers which they were able to score on. Go with what works. They cannot afford to sit back and wait until Galchenyuk and Markov returns. They need to be better at entering their opponents end and controlling the play. If the Canadiens hope to withstand the injuries and get a few more W’s, they'll need their powerplay to start performing on a regular basis.
Finally, I would like to wish all of my readers, fellow bloggers and Eklund a very Happy New Year! Thank you all for your support through 2016 and I look forward to an even better 2017.
May 2017 be filled with good health, lots of joy and great hockey!
Cheers and follow along!
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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