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Habs start their five game road trip with a 2-1 OT win over Detroit |
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The Montreal Canadiens started their five game road trip off with a 2-1 overtime win this past Saturday night against the Detroit Red Wings at the Joe Louis arena. The Red Wings had defeated the New Jersey Devils in overtime the night before and so the Canadiens came out hard in the first period as they tried to take advantage of their opponents tired legs. While the Canadiens outshot the Red Wings 10-5 in the opening frame, they were unable to get any pucks by goaltender Petr Mrazek who was outstanding in net. His save on Canadiens rookie Artturi Lehkonen would set the tone for a goaltender’s duel:
The Red Wings would find their legs in time for the second period as they dominated the Canadiens, outshooting them 15-5. Fortunately, Carey Price was well, Carey Price and kept his team in the game. Justin Abdelkader finally broke through and the first goal of the game early in the third period. That seemed to wake the Canadiens up as they attempted to mount a comeback, finally tying the game with less than ten minutes left in the game as Brendan Gallagher scored his first goal in sixteen games, a perfect deflection off of Tomas Plekanec’s shot/pass. The Red Wings had a glorious opportunity to win the game in overtime as She Weber was assessed a two minute minor for slashing, forcing the Canadiens to defend a difficult 4 on 3 without their best defenseman. The penalty kill units came up big as they successfully kept the Red Wings from scoring. Out of the box, Weber sould hit the post on a chance to win the game but fortunately on the ensuing two on one with Alexander Radulov and Alex Galchenyuk, the latter would make no mistake as he buried the puck past Mrazek for the win.
The reunited line of Max Pacioretty, Plekanec and Gallagher continued to help get one another out of their respective funks as they worked hard in both ends of the ice. Gallagher’s game tying goal has been a long time coming and came from where else? His office just outside of the crease. As the trio regain their confidence, the More the Canadiens will once again have a true #2 line that is more than capable of contributing offensively while defending their opponent's top lines.
Lehkonen was impressive in his return to the lineup and demonstrated his quick release and hockey sense while on the third line. He saw no time on special teams but that should change as he gets back to full speed. He and Andrew Shaw worked well together but sadly I just don't see how David Desharnais can stay as the Canadiens third line full time center for the duration of the season. If he is not contributing offensively, he adds nothing else to that line.
There is little left to say about the awesome chemistry of Radulov and Galchenyuk. I cannot recall the last time Canadiens fans witnessed such a skilled and dangerous duo. If only Galchenyuk continues to work on his faceoffs skill so that he can earn more ice time, especially starting in the defensive zone.
While Mark Barberio and Greg Pateryn are doing okay on the third defensive unit in the absence of Nathan Beaulieu, I am concerned that too much is being asked of the top four, especially Andrei Markov who has discovered the fountain of youth this season. Without Beaulieu, Markov is being forced to play an extra 4-6 minutes a game. Long term, that is going to affect the Canadiens. Zach Redmond has joined the Canadiens in Anaheim and is back at practice with the team. That will hopefully help in the meantime...
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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