Having played two games in two nights, you had to expect that the Montreal Canadiens were not going to deliver their most spectacular performance of the year. For those of you who had predicted that they were to be dealt their first loss tonight, you were half-right; the Habs should have lost against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
They were dominated in practically every category. The shots were an outrageous 51-28 in favor of the visiting team. The Leafs won nearly 55% of their faceoffs, held a 26-23 advantage in hits, had 5 less giveaways, took one less penalty, and blocked as many shots as their original six rivals. Despite all this, the Habs still came out on top with a final score of 5-3, in part thanks to Max Pacioretty and P.K. Subban’s 1 goal and 1 assist each. Overall, however, it was once again Carey Price who would dictate the pace of this game.
It was a weird night for Price. He looked uncharacteristically nervous at times, yet fully confident (and then some) at others. He was the savior for the Habs, but you could tell that he was frustrated, especially after being beat high on the blocker side by Morgan Rielly and questioned certain decisions taken by his tired teammates. Halfway through the second period, all four lines looked completely gassed. One player in particular seemed to be struck by fatigue the most…
Playing in what was potentially his worst game as a Canadiens thus far, Alexander Semin was benched for most of the third period after nonchalantly giving away the puck twice, both times leading to a Leafs goal. Head coach Michel Therrien promoted Devante Smith-Pelly in his place alongside Alex Galchenyuk and Lars Eller, who both had shining moments (including a goal scored on a rebound after Galchenyuk masterfully deked three players) in what was a roller coaster of a match for them.
David Desharnais’ line contributed once again on the scoresheet, with the diminutive center scoring a fluke of a goal while attempting to connect a pass to a rushing Dale Weise.
In his postgame conference, Michel Therrien said it best. It was the special teams and the goalie who made the difference. For the second game in a row, the Habs managed to score two power play goals, and added one during a penalty kill tonight. From here on, the team must realize that they will be facing the absolute best efforts from their opponents.
The Bleu Blanc et Rouge are the team to beat, there is no question about that. It’s a great time to be a Habs fan, yet many are holding their breaths and hoping that wins of the undeserving kind will become less frequent. Let’s not forget that the Leafs hit the posts twice during the game, and is the first team to score more than 2 goals on the Habs…
Last year, the Canadiens relied more often on Carey Price to bail them out of tough situations. This year, it’s looking like the power play might finally be on its way to becoming the difference-maker.