It didn't start badly, the Canadiens were dominating puck possession, face-off and shots for the first 6 minutes or so, until Gallagher took a tripping call. He meant well, he was forechecking and missed the puck getting the players skates instead and tripping him in the process...24 games in, this was Gally's very first penalty. Unfortunately for him though, it would be a costly one. The Bruins have a lethal power play and it showed even though it took them almost the full 2 minutes to score, they did it. The thing is though, the Habs were defending themselves pretty well until they decided to finish their checks while on the penalty kill therefore taking themselves out of the play. 4 minutes later, Shea Weber joined in the attacking rush and was able to put in a rebound of a Gallagher shot behind Jaroslav Halak. That would be the last occasion the Habs faithful had to cheer during the game for the rest of the match truly belonged to Boston. Nate Thompson was assessed a 2 minute minor that really shouldn't have been called and the Bruins of course stroke gold on that 2nd power play before putting in a 3rd goal with less than a minute to go in the first. At the buzzer, the Habs had 13 shots while the Boston had 8 but they lead 3-1 on the scoreboard where it mattered.
Un peu plus proche du but que d'habitude pour Shea, mais le résultat est le même. 🚨
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) November 27, 2019
A little closer to the net than usual for Shea, but still the same result.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/4kX6pvonJX
That last minute goal was the 11th time this season the Canadiens allowed a last minute goal...This is a major issue, this team cannot appear to stay focus until the end of the period. Yes, that goal was cause by a big fat Jeff Petry turnover but again, you need your franchise goalie to bail him out there. Price who's normally cool as a cucumber looks shaken these days. His confidence just isn't there and he appears unable to make the big saves or almost any saves in November, his numbers for the month are just awful: 3.64 GAA with .886 save percentage.
Still, the Canadiens fans were hoping that their team would come out strong in the second and give the Bs a run for their money but it wasn't to be. It took 8 seconds for Pastrnak to make it 4-1 with his 2nd goal of the game and a minute later, Bjork took advantage of Petry's second brain fart of the night to descend on Price on a breakaway and make it 5-1. This is when Claude Julien realized that a) he could take a timeout and b) he could pull his goalie. In the end, Price gave up 5 goals on 11 shots tonight for a save percentage of .545... Before the clock stroke 10 minutes, Pastrnak completed his hat trick and made it 6-1 Bruins which would remain the score until the end of the second frame. Boston took just 7 shots during that period and scored 3 times...Meanwhile, Montreal took another 13 shots but failed to score.
The third period was more of the same, Boston shooting and scoring some, Montreal shooting and scoring none. By the midway point, the score was 7-1 Boston and the Canadiens looked positively defeated, deflated and stunned. they even made it 8-1 with less than 2 minutes to go. This is the Habs 5th defeat in a row and they will soon be free falling in the standings. If ever there was a time to hit the panic button, it's now. I'm sorry to say but I think it might be time for Price to see a sports psychologist, it worked wonders for Fleury when he did it back in the day and if this team is to go anywhere (i.e. to the playoffs) they need their 10 million man to look and act the part.
That being said, give Caesar what belongs to Caesar, the Bruins played a great, disciplined and efficient game. They fully deserved that win, the came to town 2nd overall and they will leave as 1st overall and that is no fluke. Need I remind you that they didn't even have Patrice Bergeron tonight and that they were using their second goalie (that being said Rask often gives the Habs a better chance of winning so that was an astute decision by Cassidy). Without their regular centre, Pastrnak and Marchand shone brightly like the stars they are and that's the story of the game. When your best players are your best players, you win. When your best player is not himself, well... I'm not saying that this shameful performance is solely on Price's shoulders but had he made the saves in the first, the team would not have fell flat in the second.
21st, 22nd and 23rd 🚨's of the season for this guy.@pastrnak96 | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/yKhJzevlCk
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) November 27, 2019
Looking ahead, the Canadiens will get a chance for redemption when they host the Devils on Thursday and the Flyers on Saturday before heading to Boston on Sunday. It will be interesting to see what unfolds in the meantime because something, anything has got to happen. The Canadiens didn't make the playoffs last year and this season, their record is exactly as it was at this point of the season in 2018...That is not a good sign.
The Habs record after 24 games last season: 11-8-5.
— Brian Wilde (@BWildeGlobal) November 27, 2019
The Habs record after 24 games this season: 11-8-5.
The Habs with their longest losing streak of the season last year was right now. It stopped after 5 games.
Losing skid this season so far: 5 games.