The Montreal Canadiens homecoming after a successful seven game road trip was spoiled by the streaking Washington Capitals as they were defeated by a score of 4-1 at the Bell Centre on Monday night. The night belonged to Alex Ovechkin who with his 19th goal of this season, tied Canadiens legend Maurice (Rocket) Richard with 544 career NHL goals. Ovechkin also had two assists to inch his way closer to 1,000 points as he now sits at 999. He will have the perfect opportunity to reach his next milestone at home when the Capitals host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday evening.
The Canadiens were a tired bunch and barely had their legs on for the latter part of the game. Nick Backstrom scored in the first period to give the Capitals a 1-0 lead but Carey Price stood tall throughout the rest of the first two periods, making big saves and keeping his teammates in the game as the Capitals outshot the Canadiens 28-15. Tomas Plekanec has had his share of offensive difficulties this season but he finally broke through in the third period, scoring a powerplay goal to tie the game at one apiece. That was as close as the Canadiens would get though as Jeff Petry and Price each made uncharacteristic mistakes, leading to goals by Evgeny Kuznetsov and Brett Connolly. Ovechkin’s goal was scored on the powerplay with less than four minutes left in the game to make it a 4-1 final victory for the Capitals.
Post game, the Canadiens lamented on how coming home after a long road trip can be a bit of an emotional let down. They had to focus extra hard on playing well and strong to get through those seven games while players continued to get hurt. Perhaps the game would have been a different story had the Canadiens been able to enjoy an extra day of rest but all teams have tough stretches on their schedules. It also does not get any easier for the Canadiens as starting Wednesday they play seven games between January 11th and January 21st, beginning with back-to-back games in Winnipeg and Minnesota.
Hopefully, Plekanec's goal was a sign that he is starting to return towards his old form, contributing at both ends of the ice. His line with Artturi Lehkonen and Paul Byron was the team's best against the Capitals as they were dangerous on numerous occasions and were deserving of their power play time. If Plekanec can play a strong second half of the season and regain some of his offensive skill, the Canadiens will be all the better for it as they will be able to solve their second line woes at center in house. They can then deal with his contract in the off-season, likely leaving him unprotected at the expansion draft if it comes to that.
Some of the focus was also on Price’s less than stellar numbers from the month of December through January:
Habs since Dec 5:
— Ðrpon Basu (@ArponBasu) January 10, 2017
Galchenyuk: 0 GP
Desharnais 1 GP
Shaw: 4 GP
Markov: 6 GP
Price: .904 Sv%
Record: 8-4-4
It is fair to say that Price is struggling over the last little while. He has allowed three or more goals in five of his past six starts and only two wins to show for it. Ever since Alex Galchenyuk began the parade to the infirmary in early December, the Canadiens have played above expectations with Price not having to bail them out night in and night out. It has been a total team effort from top to bottom to get through this rough patch. That part should be celebrated.
There is little doubt that Price will be able to get back to his usual self and other worldly performances. Even if he has struggled according the standards that he had previously set. Price still gives the Canadiens a chance to win on just about every night. He was dialed in for much of the Capitals game but got beat by some excellent shots and scorers. There is no shame in that. Price’s mental game and the ability to stay so steady and calm is one of his greatest strengths. Perhaps he is getting rattled a little more easily as of late. Whatever it is, he and goaltending coach Stephane Waite will surely work on it and it is only a matter of time before Price is back to being amongst the best in the NHL.
Unfortunately, the Canadiens will have to wait a little longer for more healthy bodies to get back into the lineup as none of Galchenyuk, Andrei Markov and Andrew Shaw were cleared to accompany the team on their trip.
There was at least some good news those today as the NHL announced the remaining of the All-Star game rosters:
Shea Weber and Michel Therrien will join Carey Price at the 2017 NHL All-Star Game in Los Angeles. READ | https://t.co/XDp6Jc5HU2 #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/rJ87l0tWNj
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) January 10, 2017
Price had already been voted in as Captain of the Atlantic Division and it was of little surprise that Weber was selected as well, despite his points total leveling off since the first twenty games of the season. It is a nice honor for head coach Michel Therrien to be named, especially after recording his 400th career NHL win as a coach. Few would have thought that this would even be possible after how the Canadiens imploded a year ago but full credit goes to Therrien for adjusting and learning how to be a better coach. A case could also have been made for Max Pacioretty to be named an All-Star as well but with a player from each team in the Atlantic needing to be named, it was of no surprise that he was left off the roster.
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