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If Slafkovsky had his best game so far yesterday against the Leafs, he couldn’t build on the momentum in this one. Ridding shotgun on the first line, the young Slovak learnt that not every team plays the same way in the NHL. While the Leafs have a star-studded line-up, they don’t exactly play a tight and gritty game unlike Ottawa. The big winger got a lot of good looks tonight, but before he could take advantage of them, he had a couple of Sens on him almost every time. This is the north American game, less time, less space, and more sandpaper, welcome to the NHL kid.
Nick Suzuki looked good in his first preseason game, there was some rust which he shook off in the first frame before showcasing some sweet stickhandling and passing in the last two periods. In the end, he got two assists on the night and two shots on goal. It was a tough night in the face-off circle but that was the case for everyone but Jake Evans who had 72.7% success rate. After taking 12 shots on goal in his first two games, Caufield was quiet tonight, only getting two shots, but he still converted on the power play to give him three goals in as many preseason games.
Goal Caufield!#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/0ymE3GnlSK
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 5, 2022
Speaking of Jake Evans, he always gives his all every single game and as crowded as the forward positions are in Montreal, as long as he’s healthy, he’d always be in my line-up. You can’t fault his work ethics and he does have some good offensive instincts, after all, he was getting more than his share of points in college.
At the blue line, the Guhle-Savard pairing is looking increasingly good and while the 20-year old’s game isn’t perfect (one of his rare mishaps led to a 2 on 0 chance with ended up in the back of the net), it’s extremely good for his age and experience. You know the youngster is good since David Savard feels confident enough to join in the attack with his young partner watching his back, which led to a goal for the veteran defenseman.
Savant Savard.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 5, 2022
A Savvy bit of hockey.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/jbUSn8CXZ0
Meanwhile, Arber Xhekaj was invited to dance by Mark Kastelic, something that was highly predictable considering how he dropped a Sens’ prospect in the rookie tournament, and he held his own, getting at least a draw. Later in the game, he also scored the Canadiens’ final goal with a wrist shot from far out.
Arber met un X dans sa colonne de buts.
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 5, 2022
X marks his spot.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/tXtn1ekA93
In net, it was hard to fault Montembeault for the first couple of goals or for the 2 on 0, but his limitations are still visible, he’s fighting the puck too often and struggling to smother rebounds. In a contending team, Montembeault isn’t the back-up and Allen isn’t a number one, but on a rebuilding team? That tandem can work just fine.
St-Louis had to make do with just 10 forwards in the last part of the game as both Emil Heineman and Joel Armia had to leave the game due to upper-body injuries, we’ll know more about the seriousness later on.
“Only… two preseason games now remain on the Canadiens’ schedule, both against Ottawa, one on Thursday night and the other on Saturday evening. Both games will be played in the Maritimes and will have earlier start times, 6:00 PM on Thursday and 6:30 PM on Saturday. Before then, there should be some more cuts as it’s getting very near to go time but tonight’s injuries complicate matters a bit.
EDIT: shortly after publication, the Habs announced that Owen Beck had been sent back to his junior team in Mississauga and that Brendan Gignac was headed to Laval.