Make no mistake about it, the Tampa Bay Lightning played their best game of the series in game 6 to eliminate the Montreal Canadiens from the playoffs. For the Canadiens to have forced a game 7, they needed to come out and play just as they had in games 4 & 5. To take control of the pace early and not let Tampa's fans get into the game. Unfortunately for them, the Lightning thoroughly dominated the Canadiens in just about every which way - starting with their desperation, intensity and determination not to return to Montreal for a game 7.
In game 6 the Canadiens were out scored 4-1, outshot 28-19, outhit 33-22. Tampa Bay won 36 of 62 faceoffs (58%), went 1-2 on the power play and successfully defended against Montreal's. Outside of the Pacioretty-Plekanec-Gallagher line, the Habs could barely sustain pressure in the offensive zone. It was heartbreaking to hear Carey Price's post game comments:
Price: "I didn't play well enough for us to win the series. I think that's basically more or less what it comes down to."
— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) May 13, 2015Here is Price, being the ultimate teammate and leader, trying to deflect the attention off of the Habs inability to score goals. I would be shocked if anyone else would dare to place the blame of the Canadiens loss squarely on Price’s shoulders. Earlier in the season Therrien stated that he believed that you needed to score 3 goals to ensure a strong chance at winning hockey games. In 12 postseason games, the Canadiens only managed to accomplish that feat 3 times. As for the desolate power play, the Canadiens were only able to score twice in 36 opportunities, leading to paltry 5.6% conversion. So no Carey, this was not your fault. You carried this team as far as they could go.
All was not lost these playoffs. The Canadiens showed a lot of heart and resiliency to win 2 games after being down 3-0. Games 1 & 3 could have just as easily gone the Canadiens way. Up until game 6, the Canadiens were able to limit Steven Stamkos's chances and play. Jeff Petry proved to be the best trade deadline acquisition and will be rewarded handsomely in the off season. Imagine what these playoffs might have been like without the strong play of Petry. The Habs would have been in trouble long ago… Brendan Gallagher showed up day in and day out although he was not always rewarded for his personal sacrifices. Torrey Mitchell was another great deadline day find, a perfect 4th line centre who was able to contribute offensively as well.
Fresh off the loss, there are many "What if" questions that we can ponder on, wondering what might have been...
- What if the Habs hadn't hit so many posts? - What if the Canadiens could score on the power play? - What if age hadn't caught up to Markov? - What if the Canadiens were able to control their emotions in game 2? - What if Alex Galchenyuk played Centre?
Were the Montreal Canadiens overconfident after thoroughly outplaying Tampa Bay in games 4 and 5? Did they lose a bit of that underdog edge, one that they enjoy so much? Perhaps they were already thinking ahead to a possible game 7 at the Bell Centre, one which the fans surely would have helped to carry them on. Or perhaps they had already given it everything they had and simply had nothing left in the tank. Michel Therrien alluded to this:
Therrien: “I felt that physically and mentally we were drained. It’s disappointing but I guess those things happen.… #HabsIO
— Dave Stubbs (@Dave_Stubbs) May 13, 2015While some fans are in an uproar over these comments, I don’t think that this is Therrien throwing his team under the bus. The Canadiens simply looked like they didn't have anything left while the Lightning were giving them their best. Of course it was disappointing. If the fans were upset at how the players came out to play, the coach would obviously feel the same way.
There is now a whole off-season to dissect the regular season and playoffs. Before the season began, Marc Bergevin talked about managing expectations. In the 2014 playoffs the Canadiens exceeded them going as far as game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Repeating that feat and going one further was certainly going to be a tall order. 3 years ago when Bergevin and Therrien were hired, chances are most fans would have been thrilled to know that the Montreal Canadiens would finish the regular season 1st, 3rd and 1st again in the division. That in the playoffs the team would advance past the first round two years in a row for the first time since the early 1990’s. The Montreal Canadiens are certainly heading in the right direction with 3 core players to continue to build around - Carey Price, P.K. Subban and Max Pacioretty. These players can’t do it on their own though and will certainly need additional help and support. The off-season will be important and an interesting one at that to follow.
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