1) "This just goes to show that this team has it. We have to find a way to bring that kind of intensity and game focus against every team. We can play with the top teams in the league, we just have to do it night in and night out."--Brian Gionta to the Gazette
The thing is, we know the Canadiens won't play like this in all of their remaining 36 games. They may not even play like this against the Devils on Tuesday, in their next game. And while it's important that they find a way to play like it more often, the biggest thing they take out of their win over Chicago is what it will mean when the games really matter.
This is an experience to draw on for a team that's playoff-bound, and barring some cataclysmic disaster, the Canadiens will make the playoffs.
2) I'm not a proponent of fighting. And I don't prescribe to the theory that a fight influences momentum, as there's no statistical trend to support it. But, that's not to say fighting is irrelevant.
I don't think Brendan Gallagher's decision to fight Kris Versteeg gave the Canadiens momentum, but I do believe it was a very early sign of the commitment level Therrien's players had to winning this game. It was a statement to the rest of his teammates. And they responded.
Montreal's best players--Tomas Plekanec, Max Pacioretty, P.K. Subban, Andrei Markov and Carey Price--played like their best players. The rest of their players followed.
Alexei Emelin did his job. Many felt it was his best game of the season, and I'd agree with the notion.
Lars Eller, Daniel Briere and Rene Bourque may not have found the back of the net, but they were intense and committed for the entire game.
After his fight, this was probably the most involved Gallagher's been in a game in a very long time (not that he isn't consistently involved, but he was on a mission against the Hawks).
From David Desharnais to Michael Bournival, to the fringe work of Doug Murray and George Parros, this was a team effort.
And all it did was reinforce what we already knew about the Canadiens; they have no superstar up front, and if a couple of wheels are loose on the bus, it's going to be a rocky ride no matter who they play. But with a near-full commitment, this team can compete with the very best in hockey.
If Saturday's game was a glimpse at the commitment level they'll get when the post-season rolls around, than you have to believe in their chances to go deep in the East.
3) If it weren't for Corey Crawford, this would've been a blowout for the Canadiens. While that would've provoked some much needed scoring confidence for the team, it was almost more important that they were able to gut this one out.
The Hawks' disallowed goal early in the third period was a key moment in the game. Price felt he didn't have an opportunity to save Versteeg's shot, and the refs agreed.
Chicago showed their mental fortitude in finding the tying goal several minutes later on a pristine passing play between Sharp, Toews and Hossa. The Canadiens showed as much, if not more by not allowing it to effect their gameplan.
4) The shift.
Tomas Plekanec's never had a better one at this level without it resulting in a goal. It was one of the best shifts of his career; it was the best shift of the game; it was the best shift of the season.
We know Plekanec's bread and butter is skating. But with the puck on his stick for a partial breakaway in overtime, we've never seen Plekanec skate that fast. His dogged pursuit thereafter provided some of the best entertainment featured at the Bell Centre this year, and it set the Canadiens up to win the game seconds later.
Here's the play by play in overtime, as transcribed at NHL.com: 5:00 FAC MTL won Neu. Zone - CHI #19 TOEWS vs MTL #14 PLEKANEC 4:17 SHOT MTL ONGOAL - #14 PLEKANEC, Wrist, Off. Zone, 10 ft. 4:09 SHOT MTL ONGOAL - #14 PLEKANEC, Wrist, Off. Zone, 9 ft. 4:03 SHOT MTL ONGOAL - #14 PLEKANEC, Backhand, Off. Zone, 20 ft. 3:49 MISS MTL #74 EMELIN, Slap, Wide of Net, Off. Zone, 58 ft. 3:36 TAKE MTL TAKEAWAY - #67 PACIORETTY, Off. Zone 3:32 GOAL MTL #79 MARKOV(5), Wrist, Off. Zone, 30 ft. Assist: #67 PACIORETTY(8)
Not a lot of Chicago in there... and that's saying something with Toews, Kane, Seabrook and Keith on the ice for all of overtime.
5) "Do it for the guy next to you" is a phrase that permeates the dressing room like the pungent odor of hockey. It's a refrain from a song stuck in everyone's head, hummed out by the different voices, but always in the same tone. Unsaid, it still rings loud and clear.
The mantra is a coach's best friend; not because it's the coach's preaching tool, but because when it comes to life, it adds definition to the team.
There have been ups and downs with Therrien, and there have been ups and downs with the team, but more often then not, they do play for each other, and the organization has to be pleased about it.
The latest installment of "doing it for the guy next to you" is something to build on.
6) So here's how the month of January ends:
At home to the Devils on Tuesday, then on the road for four straight.
In Ottawa Thursday (man, do they owe the Sens one), in Toronto on Saturday, in Pittsburgh the following Wednesday, in Detroit on Friday.
Back home against the Capitals on the 25th, welcoming the Hurricanes on the 28th, finishing off in Boston on the 30th.
This effort against Chicago came at the right time. It was the best possible response to the game in Philadelphia, and sets them up for the competition to come; a fierce one against teams that are all dangerous in their own right.
How do you think this eight game stretch will go for the Canadiens?
I see them collecting 11 of 16 available points.
And if they do...
7) If they do, maybe this tune from Marc Bergevin changes a little bit.
8) All due respect to Bergevin--and he deserves it for insisting on not altering any part of the team's future for the present--nothing changes the fact that his best player makes $3.75M this season (it'll be more than $8M next season), or the fact that the East is there for the taking.
I believe Bergevin understands what's going on, on the market. He's not wrong about what his outlook on the team was at the beginning of the year, nor is he wrong to manage expectations with the fanbase to ensure he has justification for holding onto dear pieces that can help them down the line. But, he can't ignore his mandate to make the team better, and that can't solely be done over the long run.
Currently, the team isn't giving him the inclination to take some risk. We'll see how he feels about it if they go on a very successful run over the next eight games.
9) There are three current minor leaguers in the organization that you can't imagine Bergevin touching: Greg Pateryn, Jared Tinordi and Nathan Beaulieu. So far, Pateryn's been the best of them.
With the cap situation being what it is, it's going to be a while before any of them are here. All three of them represent an upgrade on Francis Bouillon. They represent an upgrade on Murray too, though Murray's bringing something to the group regardless of his liability at times. As we pass the trade deadline, the cap situation loosens, and obviously, there's no cap in the playoffs.
One, or two, or all three of these players will be a factor in Montreal when the time comes.
10) Carey Price has to play the rest of the games in January. Only the Wings and Caps are back-to-back. The first game in February is against the Lightning, and he'll have to be in for that one too before Peter Budaj takes over against the Winnipeg Jets on the 2nd.
Budaj has lost three straight starts.