Game Fifty-Nine: Blue Jackets vs Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- Beaulieu has been excellent, both ends of the ice tonight. Arguably his best game of the season.

- Habs not displaying any killer instinct. Feeling is sinking that the tying Columbus goal is inevitable.

- 3rd line doing a good job grinding out the play. That's invaluable when you're trying to hold on to a razor thin lead.

- Since de le Rose was shuffled out of the 4th line in favor of Malhotra, that line's forechecking effectiveness has basically dried up completely. They can't string a single pass together, either.

- Referees have been giving Columbus open season hits on Habs tonight, Calvert with a blind hit on Thomas, who has to take measures into his own hands. Another poor night for officiating.

- Just over five minutes left, Habs in full huddle mode. They're playing not to lose tonight, which is just asking to lose. Going to be a struggle to reach the finish line.

- Therrien would be unwise to play the 4th line from this point forward. They've had a few defensive difficulties tonight.

- Two minutes left, Columbus really turning up the heat now. Hang on.

- Hoo boy. Markov shoots the puck over the glass. Habs couldn't find the dagger this period, and now Columbus with a golden chance.

- Therrein sends out Malhotra. Oy.

- Plekanec to the rescue. Habs hold on, and we all breath a sigh of relief that this team finally beats a lesser light. 

SECOND PERIOD:

- Can't imagine where this team would be without Markov this season. No where near first place, that's for sure.

- Nightly lazy tripping penalty by Eller. That rolling sound you heard was Therrien's eyeballs.

- Habs using a couple of horseshoes on their PK from Eller's penalty. Columbus having a very strong period so far, showing the Habs how a transition is supposed to work. Score should be tied, but at this trend, it should be soon enough anyway.

- Sekac with hard work and speed off the wing earns a powerplay. It's still baffling how this guy was a healthy scratch for two games and then saddled on the 4th line. How could would this team be if it managed its assets properly?

- Habs have basically stopped trying to posses the puck this period, in other news, their offense has ground to a near complete halt. #TherrienHockey

- Habs looked so confident in the first period. I'm assuming the coach didn't like that, and told his troops to focus on long bomb passes and puck dumps. Habs doing everything possible to fritter this game away. Still one long period left - I'm not particularly confident they won't do exactly the same thing as Thursday night. 

FIRST PERIOD:

- Brendan Gallagher just drew a tripping penalty. I thought I'd never see this day arrive.

- Habs great looking powerplay, Pacioretty with an awesome one timer off a great Markov pass. Columbus overplaying Subban on the other side, Montreal takes advantage.1-0.

- Looks like the Habs have their shooting shoes on tonight. Pretty aggressive start to this game. Lots of angry guys were in the dressing room after that loss to Florida. Might be taking a lot of frustration out tonight.

- McElhinney really fighting the puck, some significant rebounds given up via point shots. Net crashing might produce more offense. We'll see.

- Columbus really struggling to adjust to Habs rushes. Key is that the Habs are avoiding the dump, which really leverages their speed. Here's hoping the coach doesn't tell the troops to play #TherrienHockey.

- Officials Ghislain Hebert and Tom Kowal really giving Columbus every possible benefit of a doubt this period - looks of hacks and illegal hits not being called.

- Pacioretty. 29th of the season. Almost identical to his first goal - brilliant pass by Beaulieu for a one timer. Nobody seems to be covering him. 2-0.

- Man, what's the deal with this team? Up by two, Habs surrender a sloppy goal while in complete control of the game. Just inexcusable.

- Kind of the same old story for the Canadiens of late. Outplaying their opponent, but giving up preventable goals while laregly in control of the game. Net result - another night, another opponent still competing for victory when they ought be way down on the scoreboard.   

GAMEDAY GOO:

Well, we're playing another lesser light tonight, aren't we? Seems like we can't buy a win against teams the Habs should be owning in their sleep. Next up, it's the Blue Jackets of Columbus. Surely, we'll win this one. Right?

Ah, who knows? The Jackets have been playing some pretty decent hockey this month, winning 3 of their past 4, and 5 of their past 7, which included wins over the (suddenly struggling) Islanders, and a 7-1 thumping of the St. Louis Blues. So this probably won't be a gimme, unlike the games against Buffalo, Edmonton, Senators, and Coyotes. What's that? We lost all of those? Great.

Lineup tonight will almost certainly be the same. Alex Galchenyuk is out again because of the flu. So that means one more night of Manny Malhotra centering the 4th line. Jiri Sekac, who played a wonderful game Thursday night versus the Panthers, will start on the 2nd line next to Thomas Plekanec.

Otherwise, Habs need to really win these games if they want a top Eastern Conference playoff seed, because the March schedule won't be very friendly.

Puck drops at 7:15 EST.

Game Fifty-Seven: Habs vs. Sens

THIRD PERIOD:

- Subban, or not to Subban. The anticipation is the worst. 

- Subban starts the period. We breath. For now. Let's see how much he plays before we can collectively breath normally again.

- Subban really struggling out there. I fear they may shut him down for the night.

- No way Habs can run with four D the rest of the night, can they?

- Subban looks terrible. They have to take him out. This cannot continue.

- Sens powerplay goal. Tokarski with more rebound control issues. Been plaguing him his last few starts. 3-1.

- Well, well, well, Nathan Beaulieu gets his first NHL goal, a total fluke bounce in off a half dump, half chip towards the net. It's not pretty, but it gives the Habs hope. 3-2.

- If Subban ties this my head will explode.

- Subban can't keep the line, Sens bury the game. Well, it's a loss, but not overtly bad. Still think this team did a disservice playing its most valuable defenseman through an injury in a relatively meaningless game. On to take on Florida, and Carey Price.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Subban looks to be on pace for a 35 minute night. Maybe more as the game progresses.

- I'm all cool with Subban picking up slack, but Therrien needs to play Pateryn more. 3:46 in the period with just 5d is way too low.

- Pretty good start for Habs offense in the period, but play continues to be scrambly around Hammond. Nobody able to muscle a loose puck home (more 4th line please!).

- Guess what? Habs best scoring chance of the night generated by that 4th line, Gilbert given a wide open net off a sweet pass by, guess who - Jiri Sekac. Gilbert totally misses. Should be 1-0.

- Habs forwards have been going high, very high, on Hammond tonight. Not sure if that's the book, but it's not working.

- Habs powerplay. Everything but the kitchen sink. Just won't go in. Galchenyuk still looking awfully good. Com'on guys.

- 11-4 shots on goal for Montreal this period. Subban 15 minutes, we're at the halfway mark. 

- Well, let the floodgates open. Two goals in 8 seconds, tie game. Pacioretty goes low on Hammond. That's where you need to go, guys.

- Wow. Gryba tried to blindside Eller with open ice elbow to the head. Unbelievable. Total scum. Prust comes in to settle the score and gets thumped. Still, Gryba was totally targeting Eller. 

- Hoo boy. Subban takes shot off the foot and goes to the room. Breath deep everyone. Hold it. 

- Pageau. Tokarski no chance. Original mistake by Gilbert which resulted in deep zone turnover. 2-1.

- As we anticipated, another entertaining period, with 32 more shots added to the board. Now 59, and counting. There is only one thing that matters right now, and it's Subban. If he's done for the night, so are the Habs. If he's done for longer, so are the Habs. You get my point.

FIRST PERIOD:

- So Sekac is buried on the 4th line. I guess it's better than being saddled next to Malhotra.

- Ouch. Emelin goes for a foolish body check, stumbles and foes shoulder first into the boards. Methinks Pateryn might actually get more than 5 minutes tonight.

- Galchenyuk smartly trying to test Hammond early. Habs need to hammer shots at him every opportunity.

- Therrien appears to be favouring Gilbert to pick up the slack, with Emelin possibly out for the night.

- Prust. Just can't quite deliver. It's been that way for awhile. With de la Rose seemingly sticking, will he be the odd man out next season?

- Habs announce Emelin is gone for the game. That's almost certainly an indicator of a serious injury.

- Tokarski's and Price's styles couldn't be much different. The former battles the puck, the later just eases into shots.

- Spirted pace so far, Tokarski really fighting the puck.

- Both goaltenders doing quite a flop demonstration tonight. So far it's been working. Barely.

- That tight-checking, watch-your-butt every second game we saw against Detroit has basically been tossed out the window tonight.

- Galchenyuk looks great tonight. Even more so than usual. If there's on guy who's a good bet to make a couple of marks on the scoresheet, it's him.

- Well that was a fun period, 27 shots on goal, both goaltenders were a little bit fortunate to keep everything out, but regardless, both teams's strategies are clear - throw everything possible on net and let's see what happens after the dust settles. Should make for two more exciting periods.

GAMEDAY NEWS 'N' NOTES

- JIRI SEKAC IS BACK. Hard to believe, but he's starting tonight. Yay.

- Manny Malhotra is FRICKIN' FINALLY OUT. I mean, what .. why .. who ... how ... is this guy still getting dressed for game action? Monday night against the Wings, Malhotra won 4 faceoffs. Out of 16. I mean, he has no other purpose other than to win draws. He can't do that. He must never play in a Habs uniform again. It's that simple.

- Greg Pateryn is in!! Yay. He'll replace Mike Weaver, which is kind of a boo, since Alexei Emelin will still be playing tonight. Still ... it's progress.

- Dustin Tokarski will get the start tonight. Welllllllllll ... we'll see how that goes.

- On the other hand, Sens will start their backup Andrew Hammond. So that evens that.

More in a bit!!!

Game Fifty-Six: Habs vs. Wings

THIRD PERIOD:

- Looks like Price's margin for error tonight is exactly zero. Not being helped by the Wings continuing to dominate zone pressure.

- Malhotra continuing to get regular shifts, and with it, blowing any semblance of a good scoring chance. Really don't quite understand the point of utilizing him anymore, at least at this stage of the game.

- If there's one player tonight who's capable of giving the Habs an unlikely goal, it's Alex Galchenyuk.

- Habs have basically just given up wanting to control the puck. Let the icing festival begin.

- You know, you just KNOW, that Therrien is happy with what he's seeing. The rest of us gouge our eyeballs out.

- Five minutes left. Fans at Joe Lewis trying to get the home team motivated. At this point, it's as though both teams are resigned to a scoreless fate. 

- Malhotra in the circle tonight. 4 wins. 12 losses. We continue see his name penciled into the card, and we wonder ... why?

- After nattering about how useless Weise has been tonight, he makes a nifty pass to Plekanec who blasts a slapper past Howard from the high slot. Unbelievably, astonishingly, the Habs now stand to win this game.

- Pacioretty scores an empty net goal (yes, that happened). What an absolutely bat-insane win. How this team continues to pile on one totally unlikely win after another is something I've never seen, at least at this level, in my 38 years of watching this team religiously. 

SECOND PERIOD:

That seemed inevitable. Habs get nailed for a hook in their zone (Markov). Waiting for the other game shoe to drop. 

- Has anyone heard from Prust since, oh ... mid-December?

- Wings actually looked better 5v5 than during their first powerplay.

- Still blows my mind Jimmy Howard has a Stanely Cup ring. Tells you how deep that roster was.

- On any other top 4 Conference team, no way Manny Malhotra would be on an active roster.

- Habs doing an awful lot of running around in their zone. Really tough to see how the Wings stay off the board for much longer. 

- Normally you'd call this a "good road game", but to be perfectly honest, it isn't even that. The Habs are playing far too much of a passive game, with fits of incompetence with the puck. It's not only unwatchable hockey, it's incredibly frustrating unwatchable hockey.

- de la Rose is just so alert, so well attuned to the formation of the play, just loads of hockey smarts, this kid.

- Hard to believe there's been 39 registered shots on goal so far in this game. Just a whole lotta nothing going on. Habs waiting for Wings to muff it up (they haven't), Wings waiting for Price to muff it up (he hasn't). Should we just fast forward this thing to overtime, already?

FIRST PERIOD:

- So Weaver starts in place of Gonchar. Probably not a favourable lineup adjustment against a possession strong team like the Wings.

- It's been while since I've seen a game delayed that long over a pane of glass. 12 minutes.

- P.K. Subban coming straight at you full wind up has to be a frightening sight. I don't care who you are or how long you've been an NHL goaltender.

- Unsurprisingly, Habs having problems maintaining control of the puck. Seem to be doing "okay" advancing to the Detroit line, but not much more past that marker. Bodes poorly for Montreal tonight.

- These two teams have some incredibly contrasting styles, it really is remarkable. Babcock has so fewer tools at his disposal, at least in comparison to a rich roster like Montreal, but he maximizes his lineup to full affect. I've little doubt someone like Bacock behind the Habs bench would win a championship.

- Helm and the Wings giving a pretty good demonstration on how you leverage speed. It ain't dumping and chasing. It's carrying the zone.

- Shots 7-6 Montreal but don't let that fool you - the Wings owned most of the period, possession and scoring chances. They owned the puck, controlled the tempo, and shut down virtually every meager Habs attack. Gonna be one of those nights.

GAMEDAY NEWS 'N' NOTES:

- Jiri Sekac is a healthy scratch tonight, for no explainable reason other than Michel Therrien is just wanting to drive us totally and absolutely crazy.

- Nothing else matters, except that Sekac, in just his FIRST DAMN YEAR in the NHL, has been very, very good. Head, meet desk.

- Did you know people in Montreal actually think having Phil Kessel as a Hab would be a very bad idea, because they think Kessel can't score? Those people actually exist. With a drool cup in tow, perhaps. But they exist.

Game Twenty-Eight: Habs vs. Hawks

THIRD PERIOD:

- Two period possession numbers pretty much split, Fenwick at 50%.

- If the Hawks score on this powerplay, it'll be yet again an indirect result of the Habs immobile defenders.

- Patrick Kane having trouble hitting open nets tonight. Game should be tied.

- Hawks need to make sure in the future to disway their starting goaltender from getting slammed at concerts. It's been an important difference tonight.

- Absurd hooking call on P.K., an the Hawks take advantage. The targeting of Subban by bad referees must stop.

- Questionable blind hits and boards not being controlled or called by the officials. This game could get nasty as it finishes.

- Hawks have the legs in this period, the loss of Eller and the aged defensive legs, you'd have to figure the Hawks are favoured to win this out before the regulation clock runs out.

- How'd he miss that? Galchenyuk is going to have nightmares for days if the Habs lose this game. 

SECOND PERIOD:

- Fundamental rule of officiating. If you aren't sure, don't call it. Subban given a four minute penalty for high sticking. Reply shows his stick never came close to making any contact.

- Habs survive the 5-on-3, justly I suppose. Canadiens did a very good job forcing Hawks to the perimeter.

- Hawks buzzing, Habs defense as usual is slow footed and unable to react to the rush, Price making two superlative saves to keep his team alive. For now.

- Excellent work by Gallagher carrying (!!!) the zone, drawing three Hawks out of position, dishes to Gonchar, who scores one of his two goals he'll get this season. Tie game. It's getting interesting.

- Habs, dare I say, actually outskating the Hawks at the halfway mark of the 2nd.

- Powerplay as usual, pretty tame. Now Prust with a pretty clear embellishment off a harmless Kane stickcheck. Habs sucker another man advantage.

- P.K. with an unstoppable rocket from the line. It wasn't even fair. Habs lead 3-2. Outworking and outskating the Hawks this period has paid off big time.

- Habs announce that Eller will not return tonight because of an upper body injury. Also, Sekac's status is in doubt. Makes for a difficult 3rd period.

- Emelin, once more, is beaten badly on the outside, this time by Hossa, and gets a tripping call to end the period. A defenseman with average speed and skill doesn't draw that trip.

- Early saves by Price keeping his team in this game, and the Habs chip away by mostly outskating and outworking their opponent, putting the Canadiens in an unlikely two period lead. However, these are the Hawks, and the Habs have suffered some key injuries tonight which will but intense pressure on their bench for the third period. It'll be tough, very tough, for Montreal to maintain this lead.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Annnnnnnnnd ... we're off. Rozsival finishes off a nice three way passing play, Habs 4th line caught badly up ice. Man, what about putting someone like ... oh I don't know ... DALE WEISE out there? 2:13 in and it's 1-0.

- Weise is trying, I'll lend him that. But his skills lend zero to a guy like Pacioretty, who's already got a plateful of problems having to deal with an incompetent centre. Just .... arghhh.

- Chicago plays such a nice clean, efficient transition game, I often wonder just how superb this Habs team could be if they were ever able to replicate this kind of well organized (coached) hockey.

- All in all, Habs doing their best to keep some pace with the Hawks, so the net final result might not be a total wipeout again. Still, hard to fathom the Canadiens being able to compete much longer.

- Gonchar looking everyone of his 40 years tonight, and a bunch more.

- Emelin is a pylon at centre ice, and Kruger is allowed to skate around him with ease and enter the zone. Rebound is deposited in by Smith, and it's 2-0. Habs just can't afford to serve a team like the Hawks these gift goals.

- Well, there's hope. Gallagher puts the Habs on the board. 

- Not a horrible first period, but once again, for the 25th time out of 28 games this season, Habs were the worse first period team. For the most part the Canadiens did a decent job possession wise, some of the zone exits and entries were reasonably decent. But the Hawks are just a better organized and playing team, they feast of teams like the Habs. Don't see much hope tonight.

GAMEDAY GAME PREVIEW:

Oh Patrick Kane. Don't you ever change. Don't you ever stop going out in public and making a celebratory drunken ass of yourself. You must set the example for others to follow! Such as, say, your teammate Corey Crawford, who earlier this week accidentally injured his foot when he "stepped wrongly" on some stairs at a Rise Against (seriously?) concert. Assuming when you say "stepped wrongly" as in "so drunk he could barely step forward". BINGO. Out nearly a month with a fractured foot. YOUR CHICAGO BLACK HAWKS EVERYONE.

Speaking of never changing ... the Habs. Here we are at the 1/3rd mark of the season, and our esteemed coach continues to do the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. The results being, in this case, putting the should-be scoring megastar Max Pacioretty next to the frustratingly meek David Desharnais, the later of which is 327th in the whole damn NHL in shots taken - a pathetic 30 shots in 27 games. FOR THE SUPPOSED NUMBER ONE CENTRE.

So Pacioretty, saddled with the guy who never does anything other than dipsy doodle around with the puck, spends most of his shifts trying to figure out what the hell his centre is doing, while the rest of the faithful scream out to coach Therrien to put him next to someone at least half-competent, like Lars Eller.

Oh but it gets better. Not satisfied with pairing up his best forward with one of the most underachieving centres in the game, Therrien has been regularly promoting forth liner Dale Weise to play on the top line, because ... we have no idea. A good chunk of the rest of us have been readily suggesting that Therrien try, I mean ... AT LEAST TRY, to put the ridiculously fast, exciting and hard-nosed playing Jiri Sekac alongside with Pacioretty and Eller. I mean ... THAT'S A LINE.

But nope. Just the same old thing. Over and over again. And in the meantime, the Habs continue to lose, what with Doug Murray Part Deux getting more than 11 minutes of ice time a night, while guys who can actually play, you know, defense, are stuck either up in the pressbox, or sit stapled to the bench in meek hopes that they'll crack the 8 minute mark.

The Habs are not, and we must underscore this, not playing very well right now. Which is to be kind. The game in Minnesota was a total deception on the scoreboard - the Canadiens, until the Wild decided to take a cruise victory vacation for a good chunk of the 3rd period, were completed overwhelmed by a pretty ordinary Minnesota team, getting outshot exactly 3 to 1 through the first 40 minutes of the game.

And tonight? Against a true powerhouse like the Chicago Black Hawks? Not even Carey Price can wallpaper over the holes in this team's walls like he did Wednesday night.

It's probably going to be a very long, ugly night in Chicago. Maybe it's best if we all just turn in early.

Puck drops at 8:40 EST.

Game Twenty-Two: Habs vs. Bruins

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs Fenwick possession nearly 70% through two periods. Astounding.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Bruins getting shadow checked most of the first five minutes, not really able to generate much in the way of offensive momentum.

- Malhaltra is a faceoff machine tonight, it's helped to nullify the adverse affects from the Habs tendency to ice and surrender faceoffs deep in their zone.

- Bruins getting anxious, send defense forward on a rush, get caught, and it results in a 4-on-2 break for Montreal. Plekanec makes it 2-0. Habs taking advantage of this Boston team's lack of consistency.

- Bruins are during up the physicality and forechecking dial. Trying to push the Habs back, and generate some scoring opportunities via turnovers.

- Concersely, the aggressive switch in tactics could create some odd man rush opportunities for the Habs. We'll see.

- Gallagher has great speed but his puck handling abilities aren't exactly great. It's resulting in some sloppy turnovers. He's really not gifted with playmaking charms - so he can create problems onthr occasional shift.

- An unbelievable shift by the Habs, hemming and totally exhausting the Bruins in their zone. Habs controlled the puck for an astounding 2:10 minutes before the Bruins were finally nailed for a penalty. That might have been one of the best shifts I've seen by any Habs team in 10 years.

- Fine period for the Habs, they are head above shoulders better than the Bruins - their speed matches up perfectly against this inexperienced Boston defense. The final five minutes were a thing of beauty. This team has looked fantastic is week.

FIRST PERIOD:

- I'll take that Sekac penalty (on Lucic!) any time. Sends the Bruins a tough message.

- Most excellent kill. Injury decimated Bruins lineup looked pretty disorganized. 

- Glen Healey is the sure formula for a ruined night of hockey. Ugh. 

- Habs doing a bit too much long bomb passing on transition. Maybe 1/10 will be successful, which means a lot of turnovers, and poor possession time.

- Subban tries a Hail Mary to Plekanec, almost connects. Almost. Really don't understand all these passing stratagies.

- Bruins take a silly retribution penalty after Emelin delivers a hard, clean hit on Reilly Smith. 

- Happy 100th Andrei Markov. And a road powerplay goal to boot, the very first of the season on the road. Past the 25% mark of the season.

- Habs defense has tried at least a dozen long passes from their zone this period, a grand total of zero were successful, a grand total of 100% resulted in turnovers, some do them resulting in odd man breaks for Boston. This isn't working, guys. Stop it.

- First Sekac now Allen, Habs in Lucic's face with every opportunity. That's the way you deal with a goon. Stand up and don't back down.

- The unforced turnovers aside, pretty solid, physical period by the Habs. Anytime they even draw in the first period, it should be considered a win. Bruins might not have the legs to compete tonight - injuries and back to back games considered.

IT'S TUKKAA RUSK TIME

Hey, Tukkaa. Last time we squared off, you managed to avoid facing the Habs. You can sit but you can't hide.

Although tonight, you do get to start at home. Feel better now? Think you can do this, now??

Habs have owned the bears this year. As in, totally. And oh yes, Milan Lucic is still an incredible ass. A completely overrated one, at that. 

Puck drops at 7:10 EST.

Game Eighteen: Flyers vs. Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- He's had a fine game, Gonchar with a point wrister redeflected by Parenteau with his second of the night, and the ship is righted a bit with a two goal lead reestablished. In any case, Gonchar looks like an excellent pickup - at least tonight.

- Flyers defense looks really sluggish right now. Habs might score one or two more before this night is done.

- Incredible scrum around Price, the Flyers Reed somehow retrieves a puck that's never frozen and snaps it past Price. The puck luck has kept Philly in this game.

- Ofdicials with a quick whistle denying Gallagher a goal, only moments later. The irony and poor officiating is strong.

- Win or lose, Habs defense hasn't been assertive tonight protecting its goaltender. Hopefully the line gets a talking to after this one is done.

- Habs doing a lot of chasing in their zone. Tying goal might be moments away.

- Well that'll help. Emery lets a softie in off a Weise wrister, and surely ... surely that will wrap this one up.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Lecavalier in his younger years, would have buried one of his two PP scoring chances. He's just lost too much of a step.

- Strange penalty calls tonight. No rhyme or reason other than taking turns. One on Habs, one on Flyers.

- Parenteau and Desharnais getting cute again on the powerplay. Already they've forgotten the can't-miss lessen for success in the first period.

- Well nevermind. Plecks-Gally-Subban-bam-3-0. Third powerplay goal. And counting. When it rains it pours. Again the Flyers unit just too slow footed and physically soft to stop anything.

- If Habs continue to score by carrying the puck in, even Therrien will have relent on the dump-and-chase.

- For no real good reason Prust drops his gloves and proceeds to hurt his elbow. He won the fight, but up three goals, who cares? 

- Game slowing up as Habs start to sit. At the halfway mark of the second period. Wayyyy to early.

- Yup. Sitting on it, Schenn wrists one past Price and it's 3-1. Habs forwards just taking too much time to cover their zone. 

- Plekanac makes it 4-1, official signals goal, but then calls Gallagher for a hold, taking away a goal. I'm  fit to be tied to understand the calls tonight. 

- And .... another call. Oy. Flyers set to make it 3-2.

- Tentative, overly conservative play (tuttuling) has cost the Habs a comfortable lead through two periods. Yes, it should have been 4-1, but blown calls aside, this team started to sit far too early, wrongly thinking the Flyers had nothing in the tank. Well, now they'll have to battle to earn two points. Unnecessarily so.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Habs off to a good first period start?? My eyes must deceive me.

- DRINK. POWERPLAY.

- That's more like it. Quick shots on goal (Pacioretty), rebound prone Emery, Paranteau cashes in. POWERPLAY GOAL.

- POWERPLAY. DRINK AGAIN.

- Guess who gets the quick shot away? Paxioretty. Desharnais the easy deposit. 2-0. Flyers PK utterly incompetent (that helps a bit).

- Wasn't exactly star-struck by what I saw from Gonchar on Thursday, but he's looking a heckova lot more involved and mobile tonight.

- Silly roughing call on Gallagher. Officials trying to "even" things up, I suspect.

- Subban letting forwards get past him undetected. Too many times this season.

- Habs totally outskating and outmuscling the Flyers in Philly's zone - reflective of a thin Flyers defense, and given they played last night, perhaps tired legs.

- The very first time this season the Habs clearly outplayed their opponent in the first period. It took 18 games to reach that milestone.

GAMEDAY GAME PREVIEW:

WHO'S NUMBER ONE IN THE LEAGUE? WE'RE NUMBER ONE IN THE LEAGUE.

Really, dammed if I know how we've arrived at the top of the heap nearly one quarter through the regular season schedule? Productive offense? Naw. Miserly defense? Uh, no. Powerplay production? Hah ... uh, yeah. Dumb luck? I'm starting to wonder. We all have since the team got off to a 7-1 start that maybe, just maybe, the hockey gods have been overly generous this year. Maybe it's a make-up for the 10 years we fans were subjected to the horrors of Rejan Houle and Mario Tremblay.

Oh, Mario. Did ya hear today? Apparently the genius never-to-coach-again ex-coach says the reason why P.K. Subban hasn't been producing this year is that he's out of shape. HAHA ... makes you wonder, does Tremblay even use his eyes. I mean, geez louise, have you seen P.K. Subban? In person? I have. The man is a rock of muscle and athleticism.

The reason why P.K. hasn't scored a ton this year is pretty simple. The team's powerplay unit is a complete disaster ... on pace to score 13 ... that's right, 13 extra man goals this season. Second big reason? P.K. has too much Therrien in his head. He's not carrying the puck through the neutral zone, he's rarely, if ever pinching from the line, he's doing everything you're not supposed to do if you're an offensive defenseman. The culprit here isn't Subban, its the guys telling Subban how he's to play.

Anyway, tonight. The Flyers. Up three goals late in the 3rd period back in mid November, Philadelphia somehow found a way to be on the losing end of a 4-3 score to the Habs. The Flyers, as many expected, have slowly but surely sunk their way down their division, and conference standings - the almost certainly won't be making a post-season appearance next spring, and might not be a playoff presence for some time to come, as they go through a rebuilding process.

So even with the iffy offense, the wobbly defense, and the god-awful powerplay, the Habs should be in pretty good shape to extend (this sounds crazy) their first play lead in the NHL standings.

But then, we thought the Oilers were going to be a piece of cake, and we all know how that turned out.

Puck drops at 7:10 EST. On local cable CITY TV (good grief), if you can stand it.

Game Seventeen: Bruins vs. Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- Hard to believe how far the Bruins' defense has fallen this year. Pacioretty allowed soft access right to Rask, Hamilton feebly checking him, soft pass by Desharnais goes off Hamilton's skate and in. 4-1.

- Cue the Bruins dives. Desperate times.

- One more on Boston would be nice. Just to make it an official blowout. 

- That 4th goal awarded to Patches, his second of the game. He started strong, so it's not entirely surprising.

- Chara's return will help, but it won't fully adress the fundamental shortcomings of this Bruins defense, which hasn't looked this soft and slow in years. 

- Rubbing eyes. A powerplay goal? Sekac. Blowout status achieved.

- Admittedly, the Bruins were tired team tonight, but still an impressive win nontheless for the Habs, who followed their season-long pattern tonight to the letter. Slow first, big bounce-back second, and controlled third period. I'm not sure if any torch has yet been passed, but we may have had another glimpse tonight of two organizations headed in different competitive directions.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Weise gets a penalty shot and buries a chance. Hope Pacioretty was watching.

- Powerplay!!! DRINK.

- Subban blasts a shot off the back of Galchenyuk's leg. At this point, Habs should just decline the powerplay.

- Powerplay!!! Find the highest bridge near you.

- Nothing. Lots of passing, the two shot attempts on Svedberg harmlessly wide. It doesn't need to be a prefect goal. Just get it somewhere around the net and drive it home. The uglier the better.

- Habs bench management has been a mess tonight. Players who need to be played are stapled to the bench. Madness.

- 4th line Beaulieu just took Matt Fraser to the cleaners. Wondering if Beaulieu was visualizing Therrien's face on Fraser's head.

- Habs have played a much better forecheck this period, and Gallagher creates the turnover at Seidenberg and Hamilton's expense to feed Eller for the go ahead goal. Poor Bruins defense especially costly on that play.

- Bergeven so far has had a night he'd probably gladly forget.

- More soft Bruins defense off the Habs rush creates plenty of open ice to allow Wiese to slide a pass to Patches, his one timer totally freezing Svedberg in the headlights. 3-1.

- Pretty much a disasterous period for Boston. Unable to keep pace, Campbell hooks. POWERPLAY!!!!

- Good lord. Plekanec with the widest of open nets, and from five feet out, he somehow misses. On the powerplay. I'm speechless.

- More goonery by Lucic, this time on Sekac. P.K. chases him down and gives him a little taste back. More, please.

- Habs owned that period. Completely owned it. Bruins defense was overwhelmed by a fierce forecheck, and Habs legs went into some otherworldly gear that forced Boston into a series of chase infractions. Net result, three well deserved goals. Really should have been four.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Well I guess that's one way of ensuring Rask doesn't have another disasterous night at the Bell. Simply don't start him.

- So far, not exactly overwhelmed by Gonchar. Yeah, I know he's 40, but was he always this slow?

- Seems as though Therrien has Beaulieu already below Gonchar on the pecking list. Of course.

- Boston kinda pretty much totally dominating Habs, possession wise. Another terrible first period for the Habs. 17 games into the season, they haven't had a single good start to any game. Amazing.

- Habs powerplay!! AND DRINK.

- Desperate times. Subban and Markov are split up with the man advantage.

- Another man advantage, another adventure in nothingness. It's incredible how badly this unit is functioning, how little seems to be done to improve it. The coaches just stand around, shrug shoulders. How can Bergevin tolerate this?

- Habs forwards mainly playing on their heels, just standing back, not attacking, not taking any imitative. They look awful.

- 3 seconds. It took three seconds for the Bruins to score on their powerplay. That's salt in the wounds. Really deep wounds. Also, Desharnais on first line PK? Yeah, okay.

- Svedberg robs Pacioretty on a break. Max one of the few Habs players with any semblance of legs in this period.

- Bruins outshooting Habs 11-6 in the period. It was even worse than that. Habs have far too talented a roster to continually play this poorly to start their game, each and every game.



GAMEDAY GAME PREVIEW:

Hahaha ... the Boston Bruins.

Oh Tuukka. Poor Tuukka. You and your team got destroyed last night. To the Toronto Maple Leafs. Let's just think about that for a moment. Your team got whooped. By the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

Hoo boy. Oh, the humanity!

 

Aw, the poor guy. But he's clearly a great Bruins fan in the making! Actually, he's pretty much nailed it down, at least emotionally.

So what's the deal with the Bruins? In a word, it's defense. It's not been very good this season. Yes, it's not helped that Boston lost their captain and arguably still their best defenseman in Zdeno Chara, who's out indefinitely with a leg injury. With Chara out, the Bruins have leaned heavily on the capable Dougie Hamilton, but he's only one guy, and he's no Chara. Other components to the Boston defense have struggled, including the slow footed Dennis Seidenberg, the relatively inexperienced Torey Krug, and the really inexperienced Joe Morrow. 

Let's cut to the chase about this - the Boston Bruins are not a particularly strong defensive team - certainly not among the League elite. It is a flaw that could very well be their undoing as the season progresses.

And then there's Tuukka Rask. 

What is going on here? The defending Vezina Trophy winner has posted a save percentage barely north of .900, which has him currently tied for 44th overall in the League among goaltenders. That's pretty far down, at least for the guy who was considered the best for his position in 2013-14.

That all said, the Bruins are facing an opponent tonight who aren't exactly setting the offensive world on fire. The Habs, ranked near the bottom of the League in overall offense (and let's not even get started about their powerplay which might be having its worst season in more half a century), might just be the defensive cure the Bruins have been trying to find the past while.

In any case, Rask will be playing against a team, in a venue that's been miserable to his career record. He, like the rest of the Boston lineup, will be hoping the Habs post another night of hapless passing, transition, powerplays and scoring. Then, and only then, will the Bruins have a pretty good chance of winning tonight.

Otherwise? May we be so bold as to suggest the Bruins suck? Because, defensively speaking, they do.

Puck drops at 7:40 EST.