1) Good for Christian Thomas for reminding Canadiens fans that he too is in the race for a spot on the big squad, and though it's unlikely he'll beat out sizeable winger Jiri Sekac, he served notice against Boston that he can be an option if the injury bug hits, or if the Habs need to stir things up.
At this point, it is general consensus that Sekac is going to grab the available roster spot. He came into training camp as the favorite to lock down the job, and so far, he's done nothing to change that perception. Granted, things will become more competitive as we move along here, and he'll have to continue proving his worth everyday.
What stands out about Sekac is his fluidity, his puck protection skills and his hockey sense.
I asked him if aside from playing in the KHL, playing with the group of NHLers he practised with before training camp helped him adjust quicker. He said the biggest thing was adjusting to the rink, saying the first couple of times he played on the small ice, he fell into the boards while Milan Michalek and Martin Havlat laughed at him.
2) Nikita Scherbak has elite talent, this much is evident. Can't help but think his attitude was a major attraction for Marc Bergevin and Trevor Timmins. He's charismatic, he's fresh, and it's plainly obvious that hockey's the most important thing in his life.
Brendan Gallagher said Scherbak is exactly like Galchenyuk, and Brandon Prust was of the same opinion on the air with Chris Nilan and Sean Campbell yesterday.
3) After the red-white scrimmage at the Bell Centre, Mike McCarron was standing by his stall while the media scrum went after Scherbak. Nobody was going to speak to him. Last year, he was the main attraction, and just like that, it almost seemed to sink in that he was old news.
With that in mind, it was really too bad that McCarron hurt himself against Boston the following night. There are many people who'd have liked to have talked to him about the way he was playing. It was his first chance to really play his game, take the body, get to the net, with Michel Therrien noting several times that it was hard for him to distinguish himself playing against his teammates.
I really liked what colleague Brian Wilde had to say about McCarron on the air yesterday with Tony Marinaro. He lauded McCarron's skating stride and suggested that so long is his focus is just skating straight lines to the net, there's no doubt he'll arrive on this stage and be a pretty decent player. I agree with all of that.
I thought it served McCarron real well for Therrien to suggest that he's a long-term project. He is. Big bodies that skate well are made for the NHL, and there's no reason the Hunters can't turn McCarron into what he needs to be before he gets here.
4) Nobody uttered Joey MacDonald's name after the Canadiens came back to beat Boston, with Dustin Tokarski surrendering two goals in the first period. Are we really going to talk about a fourth goalie?
You have to think MacDonald will be the starter in Hamilton and that the Canadiens are going to do one of two things with Budaj and Tokarski: keep them both in Montreal until they have a trade lined up for one of them, or trade one of them before the season starts. Either way, if the winner of the backup job behind Price goes down at any point, MacDonald has enough NHL experience to play the role too.
5) There was a lot of talk about a lousy performance for Greg Pateryn and Jarred Tinordi against Boston, and I'll concede that there were some nervous and uncomfortable moments for both at times. But one game isn't going to cook their geese.
In the meantime, Nathan Beaulieu, who clearly has a beat on the spot in being paired up with Mike Weaver throughout camp, hasn't exactly shone brightly as of yet. Maybe that changes with a few powerplay looks over the next couple of days.
6) Jacob De La Rose shows promise for an excellent future with the Canadiens. There's no doubt this kid will be playing NHL hockey sooner than later, and I'd anticipate he's going to get a look or two as early as this season. He may have looked to be a little behind Tomas Plekanec and Sekac in the game against Boston, but with a bit of seasoning and bit of emphasis on using that big frame of his, he's going to be a rock solid power-forward. At just 19, he's impressing.
7) The day that P.A. Parenteau was traded to the Canadiens, he told media members that he sees himself as a top-six forward. He wasn't given that opportunity in Colorado. He's got an opportunity to show Patrick Roy tonight that that's where he should've been. He'll be completing David Desharnais and Max Pacioretty's line on what appears to be a much more NHL-type roster for the Canadiens tonight.
Lines from practice are: Pacioretty-Desharnais-Parenteau Scherback-Galchenyuk-Gallager Prust-Malholtra-Weise Moen-Hudon-Bournival
Emelin-Subban Beaulieu-Weaver Drewiske-Pateryn
Price, Budaj
8) Lars Eller was back on the ice yesterday. He should be back at practice in the next couple of days.
9) Daniel Briere made the trip with Colorado but won't suit up in Montreal. He'll be playing in Quebec City tomorrow, and has been lined up with Max Talbot so far in preseason.
10) Sven Andrighetto certainly has offensive instinct. He's got a lot of talent, even if he is undersized. My evaluation is that he needs to do a lot of work on his defensive zone coverage. This has to be a part of the reason he's been relegated to the B-squad. He's likely to get into another preseason game or two, and he'll have the chance to distinguish himself. Here's hoping he takes advantage of it.