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In Hainsight: Canadiens' Steal One in Seattle

December 7, 2022, 5:27 PM ET [356 Comments]
Karine Hains
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Follow me @KarineHains for all updates about the Montreal Canadiens and women's hockey

Playing a second game in as many nights, the Habs clearly had very little left in the tank and with Savard, Monahan and Gallagher still unavailable, they were down to 11 forwards, and Chris Wideman dressed as the 7th D. In net, Jake Allen, who hadn’t played since Saturday looked fresh and alert, which is probably the sole reason why the Canadiens were able to leave Seattle with the 2 points. Well, that and the fact that the Kraken’s goalie, Martin Jones surrendered 4 goals on 8 shots in the first 2 frames.

At the final whistle, the Canadiens had only managed to take 16 shots while the Kraken had tested Jake Allen 33 times. Still, ultimately, it’s not about how many shots you take, it’s about how many of them go in and the Habs took this one 4-2. Both Cole Caufield and Josh Anderson scored a second goal in as many nights, Rem Pitlick got his first of the year in his 10th game and Jonathan Kovacevic got the first of his career at 25 years old.



Monahan’s absence meant that Jake Evans got to center Slafkovsky and Anderson, he didn’t have a bad game, but it might be time for the Habs to carry an extra forward rather than two extra defensemen. I know, this would mean making a tough roster decision, but the time has come if you ask me.

On the Kraken’s side, unsurprisingly, Shane Wright also scored his first career goal against the team who snubbed him in July. Things haven’t been easy for Wright in the big league and getting his first goal in the NHL after getting 4 in 5 games in the AHL will no doubt be a big confidence builder. Chances are he’ll be heading to the World Junior Championship with Team Canada come Christmas time, unlike Juraj Slafkovsky. It seems likely that the big Slovak will be sticking around in Montreal, after all, he’s been playing against men for the last 2 seasons, and he doesn’t need to build up his confidence playing against younger opponents.

The Canadiens headed back to Montreal after the game and will only be back in action at the Bell Centre Saturday against the Kings. We’ll see if the powers that be decide that it’s time to make a move roster wise, with injuries pilling up up front, it certainly wouldn’t be a luxury to have an extra forward on hand.

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