Tonight, the Montreal Canadiens and the Boston Bruins will face off in an original six rivalry matchup that’s bound to provide viewers and fans everywhere with an exciting and entertaining hockey game.
While the Bruins are merely a shadow of their once-dominant selves, they’ve managed to revitalize their season and have won six of their last 8 games, improving their overall record to 14-9-3. They currently hold the eighth position in the Eastern conference and are 4th in the Atlantic division with 31 points, having played two less games than the Detroit Red Wings and the Ottawa Senators who have 35 points each.
It’s hard to tell just how profound the rivalry between the Habs and the Bruins is anymore, especially with the departure of Milan Lucic who joined the Los Angeles Kings during the course of the last offseason. Zdeno Chara is still around, although he looks relatively lost on the ice of late. He’s getting on with age, and perhaps the organization should have considered moving him two years ago when his value on the market was still high enough to merit a return of at least second-round draft picks. Still, Brad Marchand continues to be the pest hockey fans know him to be, although I’m not sure his presence alone is sufficient in keeping the sparks flying between these teams.
Here’s a really nice clip, courtesy of Sportsnet.ca, highlighting some of the major events between these teams. I’m reluctant to think that this rivalry is still what it’s always been, but can appreciate a wonderful work of marketing such as the following clip:
Kudos to the Bruins for somewhat putting to rest their old thuggish ways and opting for speed and skill over pure strength. The NHL is an ever-changing league that’s looking for ways to increase the number of goals scored and provide better entertainment for fans everywhere, and it was only a matter of time before fights started becoming more scarce. I couldn’t find any statistics on the number of “dirty hits… (define them as you may) for this year compared to the last, but should this year’s trend continue, the NHL is on pace for 328 total fights compared to last year’s 391 during the regular season. That accounts for approximately 16% less fights overall, a significant number given the division amongst fans in terms of whether fights should or should not be a part of today’s game. Thanks to Hockey fight statistics for providing these numbers.
Personally? I don’t care much for fighting. I’ve enjoyed my fair share of instances where teammates have backed each other - see Beaulieu, Nathan – but I do not believe that they necessarily have their place in the game. That’s a discussion for another time.
The news that Max Pacioretty, Alex Galchenyuk and Sven Andrighetto will be lining up together is what’s been making headlines lately. Before the start of the season, I had encouraged the combination of Pacioretty and Galchenyuk to close out the 2015-2016 regular season schedule. Last year, they combined for 22 points in 12 games, and Galchenyuk’s ability to hold onto the puck and confuse defensemen will open up the space in the offensive zone, allowing Pacioretty to blast rockets from practically anywhere. I expect that if this combination works out, the captain will surely see his goal totals rise at a faster rate.
It’s hard to dismiss the presence of Brendan Gallagher and the chances that he created for his line mates with his speed and nose for the net. Until further notice, Gallagher will be sorely missed as the Habs have struggled on the right wing without him. Andrighetto will fill in nicely for the time being, and while I’m not a huge fan of Tomas Plekanec going back to a checking role, I believe that being flanked by Lars Eller and Paul Byron, both of whom are riding waves of momentum lately, could potentially add a few points to their totals nevertheless.
It’s good to see Tomas Fleischmann, David Desharnais and Dale Weise reunited. With Galchenyuk’s line more than likely facing the opposing first lines and Plekanec’s the second, DD’s trio will also provide their fair share of goals in the upcoming games.
Once again, credit must be given to Michel Therrien for not hesitating in putting these lines together. Despite the issues at the right wing, this organization still has enough depth to not suffer too much, as their 3.3 average goals scored per game (tied for second-best in the league) has demonstrated.