It was another rough night for the Montreal Canadiens as they lost to the San Jose Sharks 3-1 Tuesday at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens dictated the play for much of the 1st period but unfortunately were not able to capitalize on their opportunities. Perhaps the outcome of the game would have been different if Max Pacioretty’s bullet of a shot hit the back of the net instead of the post as he had Martin Jones beat. However, it is impossible and unfair to play the ‘what if?’ game.
Instead the momentum in the game changed when late in the first, Sharks fourth liner Barclay Goodrow illegally cross-checked Subban into the boards and the referees turned a blind eye. Torrey Mitchell, who played his first game since returning from injury was the only Canadiens to stand up for his teammate and took on Goodrow who was clearly in another weight class.
"He did the right thing," Therrien repeats several times about Mitchell fighting after hit on Subban, "which should have been a penalty"
— Dave Stubbs (@Dave_Stubbs) December 16, 2015Shortly thereafter, Subban gave the puck away in the Sharks zone and got caught out of position leading to a Sharks 2 on 1 and Patrick Marleau opening the scoring. Less than a minute into the 2nd period Joe Pavelski took advantage of another Canadiens giveaway and breakdown, giving the Sharks a 2-0 lead. Finally, Dainius Zubrus scored a 3rd goal midway through the second. Dustin Tokarski was then pulled in favor of Mike Condon. It is hard to fault Tokarski on the goals scored as the first two were due to his defencemen leaving him hung out to dry and the third shot changed direction multiple times. Condon was solid in relief but the Canadiens could not muster enough offence to to make the close. Dale Weise scored towards the end of the 2nd period on a shot that deflected off of Marc-Edouard Vlasic. Goaltender Martin Jones was then superb in the 3rd period and kept the Canadiens at bay, giving the Sharks their first win after losing 6 straight.
I thought that the illegal hit on Subban would spark a fire in him and that he would take over the game. That kind of happened but not in the sense that I expected. He and defensive partner Andrei Markov were on the ice for all 3 Sharks goals and were especially responsible for the first two goals. My telepathic abilities were spot on though for calling on a shakeup of the defensive pairings after the 3rd goal:
It gets worse for Subban-Markov... -3 each on the night. Perhaps split them up to shake things up? Condon now in for Tokarski. #Habs
— Jennifer B. Cutler (@Jenbcutler) December 16, 2015Shortly thereafter, Therrien decided to put Nathan Beaulieu with P.K. Subban and demoted Andrei Markov to the 3rd pairing with Tom Gilbert. To those that say that Therrien relies too much on his veterans and is not open to change, this is further proof that this is indeed Therrien 2.0. As quick as Beaulieu was in the doghouse, Therrien was even quicker to reward his strong play. That is encouraging not just for Beaulieu but for the other young players in the organization who are awaiting their opportunities. The move paid dividends almost immediately as Beaulieu and Subban started the play that led to Weise’s goal. In the 3rd period the two combined for numerous chances, one that included a highlight reel save by Jones on Beaulieu during a Canadiens powerplay. Andrei Markov has been overworked and his ice time needs to be adjusted accordingly...
Therrien also adjusted his forward lines after the 3rd goal, reuniting Weise with Desharnais and Fleischmann who were all on the ice for Weise’s goal. Andrighetto also found himself back with Alex Galchenyuk and Lars Eller but they did not get a lot of ice time. Daniel Carr joined Mitchell and Brian Flynn on the 4th line. Somewhat curiously, Therrien left the trio of Pacioretty-Plekanec-Byron together despite them being on the ice for 2 of the Sharks goals.
This morning at practice, Therrien kept together the lines and defensive pairings the same as how they finished the game:
#Habs D & G:
Beaulieu - Subban
Emelin - Petry
Markov - Gilbert
Tinordi - Pateryn
Condon
Tokarski
— John Lu (@JohnLuTSNMtl) December 16, 2015#Habs lines:
Pacioretty - Plekanec - Byron
Eller - Galchenyuk - Andrighetto
Fleischmann - Desharnais - Weise
Carr/Hudon - Mitchell - Flynn
— John Lu (@JohnLuTSNMtl) December 16, 2015We’ll see how long the Subban/Beaulieu pairing lasts but it is refreshing to see them being given another opportunity together. The two were well in sync and this could be the pairing of the future. I will though keep harping on Paul Byron being on the top line until a more offensive player is given a chance, be it Carr or Hudon. The St. John’s Ice Caps play tonight and then are off until December 26th. Again, why not reward Michael McCarron with a call-up in time for the Canadiens 3 game road trip? At the very least it will be similar experience to Zach Fucale’s in terms of being around the big club and soaking it all up.
Finally, Zack Kassian cleared waivers and the Canadiens have sent him down to St. John’s. Therrien did come out somewhat harshly saying:
#Habs M.Therrien on Z.Kassian: "Not a priority right now. There are a lot of players ahead of him in our organisation."
— Richard Labbé (@Richardlabbe) December 16, 2015I understand that Therrien is solely focused on the players that he has on his roster. It is not for him to monitor Kassian’s progress. That responsibility falls on Marc Bergevin’s shoulders along with the staff in St. John’s. Perhaps had the Canadiens won last night he might have demonstrated a little more compassion for Kassian and his situation. His goal is to win games and right now Kassian is not going to help him. I would be more interested to hear what Bergevin has to say about Kassian and his future… I sincerely wish all the best to Zack Kassian and hope that he is able to get through this.
Cheers and follow along! Follow @Jenbcutler