Game Forty-Five: Caps vs. Habs

First Period:

- Took the Caps nearly 5 minutes to register their first shot. That's the good news. The bad news it was taken by Ovechkin, it was a softy, and it beat Price. Uh-oh.

- Um. Three shots. Two goals. The rink is stunned. I'm stunned. Price is completely stunned.

- The gods gave Price four goalposts on Thursday. It would appear they are collecting tonight.

- Prust has made at least two heroic blocks tonight. I cringe every time he throws his body in harm's way. Wish there was some way he could be shelved until the playoffs.

- Price making some very difficult saves here, keeping this game from getting way out of control. Hopefully he's settled down.

- Habs buzzing on the powerplay, Diaz off inside of the post. What a return that would have been.

- Caps got two softies to start the game, Habs responded well enough, but they're playing with very little spirit or inspiration. If this team insists on mailing it in until the playoffs start, then Therrien might as well start resting his key guys.

Second Period:

- Plekanec all alone with the puck almost never seems to end well.

- Bourqure, after scoring his first game upon his return, struggling to generate quality scoring chances.

- 3-0. Bouillon can't win battles for pucks along the boards to save his life. And we now officially return to crisis mode.

- Habs likely denied a goal by a bad offside call, there. It ain't gonna be our night.

- Chorus of boos growing louder in the Bell Centre. It represents the only crowd noise in the building.

- Route is on, as Caps score on the powerplay right off two posts including a crossbar. Bounces all one direction right now.

- Looking forward to Therrien's comments after this game as much as I am curious as to whether he's going to finally start scratching players from here on out to give them rest in preparation for the post-season. Too bad he didn't start doing that tonight.

- One of the loudest goalpost clangs I've heard all year. Everything totally not going Habs way tonight. What can ya do?

- Pacioretty has firmly returned to MIA status.

- What can you say. Bounces went Washington's way, nothing went the Habs way. But the Canadiens can't excuse this game away - they were uninspiring in the first, and dug their own hole towards another loss. Yeah, this team likes to proclaim "no excuses", but their play the past 8 days has been inexcusable. Tonight is no exception.

Third Period:

- By my count, Habs have hit three posts so far. One more and we're all square with the hockey gods.

- Therrien may have already begun the shut down process, Prust's ice time since the end of the first is just 4:23.

- Holtby has been excellent tonight, only compounding Habs' frustrations, which are now starting to boil over.

- Bouillon low man on the defensive icetime totem pole. Less than Weber at this point, which either indicates a lack of Therrien's confidence in Frankie, or increasing confidence in Weber. Or maybe both.

- Habs' PK might be their most glaring weakness right now, which says a lot about how bad it's become. 30 now for Ovie.

- One goal. I guess that means the final score won't be completely humiliating?

- Feel terribly for any Habs fan who paid to watch the game in person tonight. If there was ever a good time to demand a refund, this would be the game.

- Badly beaten tonight. No contest. I'd say this team might be wise to go back to the drawing board, but the season is too far gone. Pray for a miracle??

Keep it Classy Bruins, Keep it Classy

How long did the good feelings last? 48 hours?

Like any delinquent, the Bruins' organization is incapable of taking the high road. Jack Edwards is a joke.

Gameday Game Preview:

So here's the test. Three dreadful games in a row, including a drubbing at the hands of the Leafs (whose faithful are in semi-meltdown mode as they flirt with finding a way of missing the playoffs), and big-time also-rans the Flyers (who were beaten by the even worse New Jersey Devils two nights ago - who can figure out the NHL these days?).  Some footing regained by eeking out a one-goal win over true bottom feeders from Tampa on Thursday night, the Habs tonight square off against the Washington Capitals, whom after going on a dizzying winning streak, now find themselves in a dogfight for first place in the South-Least Division against the Winnipeg Jets.

Yeah, strange days indeed.

The Habs, whose defense, as we all know, has played atrociously since last Saturday, got a pieof good news yesterday when it was announced that long-injured Raphael Diaz would be returning to the lineup. Diaz' return is a significant step forward, but it is by no means a solution to the team's defensive troubles, many of which are currently insolvable.

To some it is mystifying how a team, which was cruising along so mightily, largely because it was playing such a sound defense game, could reverse direction so abruptly. I don't think it's much of a mystery at all - the essential reason why so many things have gone south is because this team's blue line is just plain exhausted.

Andrei Markov, who looked so great at the start of the year, can barely keep up with the play. He's got scars and (literally) bolts keeping his legs attached to his torso. So when he gets caught on a pinch, even just a little bit, he struggles to recover. He's been played too much. He's out of gas.

The same could perhaps also be said of Josh Gorges, whom I think has played some of his worst hockey as Canadien for the past two weeks, must either be exhausted, or playing through some sort of injury. There's no other explanation for his slow and soft play in the slot. He's also been struggling to move the puck out of the zone, usually indicative of a player who's guarding against hard physical contact along the boards.

This is why the season-ending injury to Alexei Emelin was so critical - in addition to his League-leading hits total, he was taking up much of the slack and workload to the benefit of the tiring legs of Markov and Gorges.

So now here's what's left: As matters stand right now, the rest of the blueline isn't geared for the minutes it's been provided. Guys like Francis Bouillon and Davis Drewiske, who are career 6th-D players, are being asked to play 4th-D minutes, meaning they're also taking roles in shorthanded situations, neither of which they're really capable of handling. That's why for good measure, the Habs PK, which started slowly, then stabilized the 2nd third of this season, has fallen off the cliff of late.

P.K. Subban, who I think is pretty close to clinching this year's Norris Trophy, is doing just fine. He's getting close to 30 minutes a night, which is an amount given his size, condition and age, he can easily handle. But he can't play every shift, he can't take the burden off the shoulders of the Markov's and the Gorges'. That was Emelin's role. And he's gone.

So while Diaz' return is very good news, he won't be played heavily tonight - probably somewhere around 12 minutes. That means once again, Therrien will have to lean heavily on Markov, Gorges, and Subban to pick up the slack, which only compounds the longer-term exhaustion problem, which looms large as we near the playoffs. Le sigh.

SO TONIGHT. The Caps, as mentioned, are fighting hard for their Division lead, which means fighting hard for a playoff spot. They are led by the still red-hot Alex Ovechkin, whose soft goal on Carey Price sparked a comeback victory by the Caps over the Habs the last time these two teams met on April 10th.

There was some speculation that Niklas Backstrum had suffered a serious injury Thursday night after taking a hard Mike Green shot in the arm. However there are reports today that the deep bruise he suffered isn't nearly as serious as first diagnosed, and that he'll likely play tonight.

The Habs? Well, they have Diaz back, but gaps sill remain. Prust remains frail. Michael Ryder's health has become a sudden ongoing question mark. Colby Armstrong is out indefinitely. Alexei Emelin -  let's not even think about that. Ryan White is done for three more games from his suspension (and might not ever return again).

Carey Price will get the start tonight, and the Habs are hoping he posts another solid start much like he did against the Lightening. With a tired defense in front of him, not to mention facing a team desperate for a win to maintain their narrow grip on a playoff spot, this won't be a game easily won.

Puck drop is at 7:15 EST.

This is Why we Love Brandon Prust:

Yeah we know - goonface Milan Lucic gets the best of this bout, but it doesn't matter. Brandon Prust is hockey gold, and the much deserved winner of this year's Jacques Beauchamp award, for the Habs' unsung hero of the year.

Except that we all like to sing about guys like Prust. One of the best free agent signings this team has done in a generation.

Friday Afternoon Kibbles and Bits:

- Raphael Diaz will be returning to the lineup tomorrow night against the Caps, per announcement earlier today by coach Therrien. Which means Weber will probably sit, which is a shame. There are other guys on the D-line more deserving a sit than Weber (as in, the rest of them).

- Bruuuuns and Pens game, for which many of us were salivating in anticipation for Friday night enjoyment, has been postponed until at least tomorrow afternoon, because the world is a messed up place.

- Most of the City of Montreal did a STFU over Carey Price today. Thank goodness.

More later.

Game Forty-Four: Bolts vs. Habs

First Period:

- His first shift, Desharnais has gone to the dressing room with an apparent injury. No idea what or how it happened.

- Now gonna hex this with praise, so I'll go the other direction. Early on, Price looks terrible.

- Again I don't want to hex anything but Habs are being far more consciences and alert in their own zone in comparison to the previous three games. Not perfect, but better.

- Two posts rung by the Bolts so far, the first unstoppable, the second stoppable. Bounces have been on Carey's side so far, but that won't last forever.

- And it's three, this time the crossbar. Price was way, way, way too deep in his crease. Previous history, he's had a habit of retreating back there when he's not confident. Tampa would be wise to just shoot every opportunity. Eventually they'll go in.

- First goal here will go a long way towards determining the winner. Both teams are struggling with egg-fragile psyches.

- Superb point blank save by Price on Panik, a few "Carey!" chants go up in the Bell. Stay positive, stay positive.

- That was pretty good, wasn't it? Relatively evenly played period, Tampa with the better quality scoring chances overall. Price was helped out by posts, but otherwise looked pretty solid. Habs defence, while still too slow and still mired by poor positional play, seems nonetheless to be heading in a better organized direction. No goals surrendered in 20 minutes is unquestionably mission accomplished in the arduous process of rebuilding a team whose collective confidence has been run over by a bus. The second period will really tell the tale.

Second Period:

- More wretched defence by Gorges, another superb save by Price on St Louis to bail his team. That's more good signs (not the Gorges part, of course - I've no idea why he's played so poorly the past two weeks).

- Tampa defence doing a pretty good impersonation of the Habs defence the past week, Galchenyuk continues his hot play, and Habs score the critical first goal.

- Four posts now. Price's bad luck karma being paid back in full plus one hundred.

- Why is Bishop never this good when he's not playing in Montreal? Oy.

- Habs offence suddenly firing to life, overwhelming Tampa defence. Gionta makes it 2-0, and the Habs, dare we say, looking more and more like the Habs of old, as in, two weeks ago.

- Habs really need to stay out of the box if they want to bring this one home. No good reason to be taking unnecessary or lazy penalties.

- Fans singing. That hasn't happened since the Bruins game 12 days ago.

- And the Bolts score on the powerplay. Having Bouillon and Drewiske back there was playing with fire, especially the former.

- Habs defence back to their bad old ways after that Tampa goal. Price holding firm but you can just feel this slipping away. Second is nearly over, thankfully.

- Apart from the bumbling around the final three minutes, very good period for the Habs, especially the later half when the offence found its footing and overwhelmed Bishop. Can't estimate how big a victory would be tonight towards installing a feeling of normality on this team. 20 minutes away, if the defence rebuckles itself.

Third Period:

- Under normal circumstances, Therrien might have sat Subban for a few shifts in response to his undisciplined penalty resulting in Tampa's goal. But these are not normal circumstances.

- If Habs defence really insists on being sloppy, can they do that when Stamkos is NOT on the ice, please?

- This game feels like so many countless games from last season. Habs holding third period lead but you're just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

- Shoe drops. Where to start? Markov with the turnover, gets caught up ice, can't recover. Not helped by shoddy positional coverage by Bouillon, Bourque flailing away in the slot, Price left hung to dry. Game tied. How can you fix this kind of badness?

- Love the physicality Dumont has brought tonight, and it's producing quality scoring chances from him driving Bishop. Last one should have been buried by Plekanec, who's the latest among the badly snakebitten.

- Is it a bit too melodramatic to say that Andrei Markov is hurting this team more than he's helping? Because he is.

- If Habs lose this anyone who criticizes Price ought to have their head examined and IQ measured. He's been excellent.

- Phantom trip called on Gorges. Here we go.

- Habs PK has been beyond shaky. Closing eyes, can't bear to watch this.

- Survived. But still huge cloud of doom looms overhead. All the memories of last season, feels like the third shoe is about to fall.

- Tampa doing their best to give this to the Habs with all these terrible late 3rd period penalties, but Habs can't take advantage. 0-for-4 tonight.

- Markov with ANOTHER ill-advised pinch catches him up ice. Bolts nearly score shorthanded. Wow.

- Mercy. Mercy. Mercy. Brian Gionta with what is probably the game winner. Weber with the huge assist. Genuinely good guys rewarded.

- Empty Tampa net, Mr. Snakebite Plekanec misses from three feet. If Tampa scores they'd better guard the Montreal bridge rails for jumpers.

- Breath. Breath it in. Victory. Enjoy that feeling. Let it linger. Carey Price was the difference tonight. Sense of normalcy returning, although that was as shaky and as sloppy a Habs victory as you'll ever see.

Game Preview

So here we are. Three straight losses, all of them of the "pretty bad" variety. The skies are bleak. There's little chance of redemption. There'll probably be no tomorrow. This is the end, my only friend. The end. The end.

Okay, now that we have that out of our system, a reality check. First, we're in the middle of a losing stream. It happens all the time - even to the best teams. Stuff happens. Bad goals bounce in. People have off nights, perhaps singularly, perhaps collectively as a team.

Last night the Habs had a horrible first period against the Pens, where they were out-worked, out-skated, out-checked, and ultimately, out-scored. Down 3-0 after 20 minutes, the game was essentially over. From that point forward, the Habs actually played a pretty competitive game, and setting aside some rather unnecessary penalties (mainly by Brendon Gallagher), the game ended on a relative high note. The Canadiens outscored the Pens 4-3 in the final 40 minutes - it's not a lot to be joyous about, but it's something.

In retrospect, starting Peter Budaj last night was a mistake. He didn't look particularly sharp in either the game against the Leafs or the Flyers, but Therrien, perhaps hoping that he could muster up a similar winning performance against Pittsburgh from earlier in the season, took a chance, and lost.

At this point, the Habs must go with Price from here until the end. He's the long-established number one goaltender in Montreal, this team will live or die by how well he does (or does not) perform.

Tonight, an opportunity to regain some momentum is at hand against the 13th place Tampa Bay Lightening, who are playing for next season. So yeah - there's always the prescient dangers involved in facing a "loose" team that's going nothing but pride to play for, but the Bolts are 13th for a reason - they're not a very good team.

Michael Ryder, thankfully, will start tonight, and Brandon Prust, thankfully, will get another night's rest - let's say it for the 24th time, the Habs simply must have Prust healthy for the playoffs.

Carey Price, also thankfully, will start.

Puck drops 7:40 EST.

Gameday Notes:

A few items to post before the preview.

- Nathan Beaulieu was reassigned to the Bulldogs this morning, meaning his NHL play for this year, including playoffs, is almost certainly done, unless the Habs run into significant injury trouble. Beaulieu demonstrated lots of potential, but at times seem overwhelmed by the speed of opposing forwards, and struggled to maintain proper position. He's got a future, but he's just not quite ready.

- Beaulieu's demotion probably means Yannick Weber will continue to earn starts, at least until Raphael Diaz is ready to return (whenever that happens). Weber, along with P.K. Subban, were the two lone bright spots amongst an otherwise dysfunctional and dispirited Habs defense.

- While the Habs did muster 4 goals against the Pens, it's clear that they miss the presence of Michael Ryder, who in addition to being a bonafide sniper, is also capable and willing to dish out of few hits. No word from the team about his status, but we're hoping he'll return tonight.

- Bolts announced that Ben Bishop will start tonight, which comes as no surprise. Bishop stoned and stole a game against the Habs earlier in the season.

Preview in a bit.

Game Forty-One: Habs vs. Leafs

First Period:

- So Prust is shifted back to the first line, Bourque shifted to the 4th, which is a pretty strong indication that Therrien is wanting to set a physical tone.

- Leafs off to quick start on the powerplay, Gorges plays the puck instead of the body and gets burned. 1-0 Toranna.

- Leafs with lots of energy early, Habs will need to adjust their intensity level quickly, or it could be 2-0 soon.

- As the doctor ordered, Prust drops them with McLaren. Didn't think that one would ever end.

- Nice reply by Habs here, Plekanec line generating some energy, Eller line follows accordingly.

- Reimer has the tendency of giving up rebounds, so Habs are taking shots with every opportunity, looking for goals off those rebounds. Good strat.

- Carey Price is one shot away from getting yanked. That might have been his weakest of the year.

- Habs gunning Reimer's glove side, which is his strong side. Not there, guys.

- Price should get the yank now. Yup, he's gone. So too, I suspect, are those new pads he started wearing tonight.

- Drewiske responds with a soft wrister on Reimer's *blocker* side. One more, please. 3-1.

- Giving up juicy rebounds and now whiffing on a routine Markov point shot that clangs the post, Reimer is now looking suspect, at best.

- If you told me the Habs were outshooting the Leafs 13-4 but losing 3-1 I'd have called you crazy. But here we are.

- Wow. 13-5 shot total, score is 4-1. Leafs continue to deny gravity.

- Habs have played a very good period, arguably better than the Leafs, but the netminding is AWOL. Maddening, simply maddening.

- Some solace, Gallagher suckers Kadri into a stupid penalty.

- Gionta the wiffmaster so far tonight.

- Bizarreness abounds. Everything that could have gone right for the Leafs went right, just about everything that could have gone went wrong for the Habs in that period. That said, there's still loads of time left in this game, and I still think Reimer doesn't look his usual self. Be interesting to see how the Habs collectively respond to the deep hole that's been dug.

Second Period:

- It's been almost 23 years since anyone's scored 4 goals in 5 first period shots (Pens vs. Nords in October 1990). H/T TSN's Kevin Gibson.

- Speechless. First period Fenwick was +20 Habs, +6 Leafs. That period went beyond anomalies.

- Tremendous shift by the Eller line. Keep playing 'em, Michel.

- Budaj two tremendous saves, but Habs had exceptionally sloppy, Markov somewhere else getting caught twice on the same shift, the second time results in a Kessel goal. The drubbing is on.

- That said, Frankie Bouillon continues to be the weakest link on defence. -2 tonight and counting.

- Yeah I know the defence has to get involved, but 4-on-1 breaks? Good grief.

- Kinda need Subban to be on that powerplay, not getting suckered into undisciplined penalties. Oy.

- Gionta has fanned on four shots so far. Four. What is that about?

- Pacioretty slump continues, gripping stick too hard or something, missing too many can't-miss chances.

- Oh please don't tell me Prust has hurt his left arm again. This night has been awful enough already.

- Dunno what to say. File this game under M for "messed up". 20 minutes more to endure, and then it's home, sweet home.

Third Period:

- If Prust is done for the night, I'm already dreading tomorrow's injury report. I think I'll just stay in bed and hide under the covers instead.

- Prust is on the bench. What a relief. This game became a lot more watchable.

- Gionta's had a bad night, and now he slashes Kessel out of frustration.

- Game's a foregone conclusion but it would be nice to get this powerplay producing.

- Therrien no longer playing Markov/Subban PP combo, giving Beaulieu some icetime instead.

- Budaj gets my vote for Habs player still bothering to show up with the game long over award.

- Good news tonight is that the Bruins lost to the Canes (Boston - who can figure them out?). Of course this also means the Habs blew a great opportunity tonight cementing their grip on first place.

- Okay, best to just forget this game happened. Habs head home to play the Flyers, kicking off 4 games in 7 days, three of them at home. My bet is that Therrien goes right back to Price on Monday night, and I wouldn't be surprised if Price responds with a solid outing.

Gameday Game Preview

Writing these little updates is so much more enjoyable when you know your team is already headed to the post season.  Yeah, I know it's not like it's been 10 years (*cough* Leafs *cough*) since we've been in the playoffs, but there's something extra satisfying about the way this team qualified, especially coming off one of the most disastrous seasons in franchise history.

Speaking of disasters, the Toronto Maple Leafs. I kid! Actually, it's true. I kid. The Leafs are FINALLY going to be in the playoffs for the first time since 2004. Yeah, it's actually been that long for the poor fans in southern Ontario. So let's take a moment of pity before we show these guys no mercy, amiright?

Why are the Leafs so much better? Well, for starters they hired a guy who knows how to coach. Then they implemented a new philosophy that was really not particularly complicated: take care of your own zone, and everything else will follow.
,
So where can we see the improvement in Toronto? By far the Leafs have improved with the penalty kill, which for so many years was ranked near or at the bottom of the League. This season? 3rd best. That's pretty impressive, turnaround-wise.

Other net benefits from the philosophical shift: The Leafs' GAA is ranked 18th. Last year it was 29th. Their goaltending, long maligned, has been pretty solid. So credit where credit is due, the Leafs' improvement from their zone outward has helped position them for a decent finish in the Eastern Conference.

That's the good news for the Leafs. Now for a little bad. They've been lucky.

Toronto's PDO is 1.30, which is 1st (or worst) in the NHL. Just to recap, if your PDO is 1.0, that usually means the points you've earned in the standings are reasonably reflective. Anything below 1.0 indicates underperformace, anything above 1.0 means you're overperforming.

What this means is the Leafs' have been getting an awful lot of favorable bounces - their shooting percentages have been defying gravity in combination with goaltending percentages that simply can't be sustained. In other words, their place in the standings isn't really where they ought to be, although it stands to reason with a sound defensive game, you can beat the curve for a period of time. But not forever. Whatever goes up has gotta come down. With a ridiculously low 46.7% fenwick, I'd make a very large wager that over an 82 game schedule, the Leafs would eventually fade out of the playoff picture.

From the Leafs' perspective, PDO and fenwick don't matter - they're in the playoffs, and that's all that matters. So tonight, the Leafs come in on a pretty good clip, winners of 5 of their past 7.  The Leafs have been led of late by excellent performances by Phil Kessel, who you might recall couldn't score a lick the first quarter of the season. Well no more - Kessel has been on a bit of a team lately, 6 points his last three games, four of them goals. Meanwhile, James Reimer, who'll start tonight, is slowly emerging as a qualified first stringer, which for many a Leafs fans will come as great relief to the chagrin of Canucks fans, who now appear firmly stuck with Roberto Luongo.

On the Habs' side, it's business as usual. After disappearing into an offensive abyss, Davie Desharnais played his best game in a long time against the Sabres on Thursday night, so keep an eye on him and his line for continued improvement. Suffice to say, the Habs need his production to be on target for the playoffs, Lars Eller and Thomas Plekanec can't carry all the weight.

Carey Price will start after an "okay" outing against the Flyers on Tuesday.

Puck drops at 7:20 EST.

PLAYOFF BOUND

That's about as close to tasting the post-season as Steve Ott's gonna get.

More later.

Game Thirty-Six: Habs vs. Flyers

First Period:

- Disppointed a bit that Budaj isn't playing tonight instead of Price, as I'll be live blogging tomorrow night from the Bell Centre, when alas, Budaj not Price, will probably start.

- Habs solid transition game out of the gate, Flyers with better puck control, good portion of the play so far in Canadiens' zone.

- Gallagher took heck of a slapper off the foot, went straight to the dressing room.

- Excellent no goal first pp for Habs.

- Picture perfect wrister by Emelin from the line through a screen, but the pretty part of that play was Pacioretty's blind behind the back feed. 1-0 Habs.

- After a slowish start, Habs got lots of mo from that first powerplay, and carried the rest of the period. So far so good.

Second Period:

- Brandon Prust just bailed out Travis Moen, who was manhandled by Simmons. Crowd at the bar here just went nuts after the Prust TKO.

- Since those fights Flyers have dominated puck possession and tempo, tying the game, and forcing the play deep in the Habs zone. Canadiens have been on their heels much of the period, and would probably be just as happy as anyone else to escape the frame with the game tied.

- Not to be, great bounce off the backboards right on to Gagne's tape gives Flyers the lead.

- Brandon Prust, who's played superb since returning from his injury ties the game. Excellent response by the Canadiens.

- And Desharnais seconds later! Wow. Remarkable turnaround here. Crowd at the bar goes crazy.

- Weird period, Flyers owned much of it but had huge letdown for all of one minute, where the Habs took full advantage. Outshot 11-4 in the second, it's a bit remarkable the Habs come out of that with a one goal lead.

Third Period:

- Eller (!!) drops the gloves with Giroux on the PK. I'll take that trade off every time.

- Price excellent so far in the third, getting great help by his defense who are providing him clear sight lanes.

- Flyers had at least 6 skaters on the ice for a good three seconds right in front of the officials. Somehow got away with it.

- Seven minutes left, Habs are impressively not playing to protect the lead. Flyers having great difficultly creating momentum.

- Nope. And once again it's the Emelin/Markov pairing on the ice for an opposition even strength goal. Game tied.

- Wow. How did Bouillon not touch that for an icing. Seconds later, Flyers take the lead. No way Bouillon should not have hustled to touch that puck. No way.

- Bah. Empty netter. The bar floods out. Flyers owned the third. A deserved loss.

Live Game Update

- Tonight we're blogging live from Station Des Sports on St. Catherine Ouest! Pictures included!

Trade Deadline Day

THIS JUST IN:

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz ...

More later.