When it comes to winning hockey games in the National Hockey League, teams must rely on their franchise players in order to succeed. Their best players need to be at the top of their game night in and night out, with the hopes that their supporting cast will be there to bail them out during rough patches or through injuries. Occasionally, these stars experience scoring droughts that can extend over a certain period of time. Sometimes, confidence is lacking or shaky, regardless of the reasons why.
Nevertheless, the professionals of this game know that substandard performances are the exception and not the norm. They know how to bounce back and keep their heads high with their eyes on the prize, and thus become inspirations for their teammates, their fans and even their organizations.
What on earth do you do when your finest player is always performing to the best of his abilities? How does this athlete stay humble, without letting his head float up into the clouds? With very little to reproach for the past two years and more, Carey Price was once again the difference-maker in a 3-0 win over the St-Louis Blues on Tuesday night. The Blues were coming into this matchup as the second-hottest team in the league, and the best in the western conference.
And it showed.
In the first period, Price stood on his head as Ken Hitchcock’s team came flying at the Canadiens, working the bodies, dumping the pucks deep behind the defensemen, and practically skating circles around a home team that hardly showed up to play in the first twenty minutes. Thankfully, Price was there to clean up the mess, and the Habs managed to head into the second period with a one-goal lead.
Here’s a look at Price’s heroics throughout the game, en route to a 38-save shutout.
Despite his otherworldly performance, he was quick to give his teammates credit, as usual, and he’s not wrong in doing so. Only Alexei Emelin and Alex Galchenyuk (!) did not take any shots in the game, and Alexander Semin scored his first goal of the young season by firing a howitzer from the top of the slot that beat Jake Allen cleanly.
What a shot it was, and the smile on his face tells the whole story:
All four lines were rolling as usual, and it was David Desharnais’ line that came close to netting a few on gorgeous plays that were either pushed aside by Allen or simply did not hit the intended target. Still, it must be a relief for head coach Michel Therrien to see his team perform as well as it is right now, especially when his fourth line is contributing on the scoresheet. Torrey Mitchell scored the third goal of the evening, with Devante Smith-Pelly finally earning himself a well-deserved point by assisting on the play along with P.K. Subban.
Here's an odd stat for the readers: Emelin (23:11 ToI) and his partner Jeff Petry ( 24:53 ToI) who had another outstanding match despite four giveaways, played comparable minutes to Subban (23:33) and Andrei Markov (22:25). I wonder if this is a trend that will continue into this upcoming weekend…
After being outhit 46-25 by the visiting team, the Habs managed to keep their cool and not retaliate, except for Nathan Beaulieu who got fed up of Steve Ott’s questionable plays and was the first player to drop the gloves this year. Kudos to him for standing up to his teammates, even if he’s not the greatest fighter we’ve ever seen…
It was a convincing win for the home team, who managed to once again score a minimum of three goals. Now that Semin has broken the ice, and once the Desharnais line starts burying their chances a little more often, the balance of this team will be very hard for the opposition to handle and match.
The challenges belong to the teams facing your Montreal Canadiens.
Check back soon for my previews of the games versus the Buffalo Sabres and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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Congratulations to Carey Price and his beautiful wife Angela on their big announcement!
First came love, then came marriage....
https://t.co/wjc6K3RKNC pic.twitter.com/Cb1HPdYg98
— Angela Price (@ByAngelaPrice) October 21, 2015