- Markov's ice time tonight least amongst Habs defenders - so it's pretty clear they're attempting to scale back his time. Obviously wear and tear is taking an issue with his body.
- Crazy number of great scoring chances being generated by this team, but nobody seems to be able to bury it. It's pretty demoralizing.
- 40th shot registered. Still nothing on the board. Eventually you have to really start looking at who's taking the shots, and where they're coming from, because there clearly are Montreal players, mainly forwards, that are failing to deliver.
- Lars Eller in a significant funk, it's showing with his body language and his decision making - doesn't seem to have very good game awareness tonight, and has made more than a few passes to nowhere. He's getting frustrated. A lot of Habs players are.
- During these offensive funks, which happen to all teams during the season, it's critical that you allocate ice times to lines that are performing well, and scale back those who aren't delivering. The Desharnais line should be scaled back to 4th line time status, until this log jam breaks. Leave it up to the players who are performing, to deliver.
- Habs swarm on the powerplay but again, have the wrong guys out there. Weise with an incredible chance off the rebound, which he can't bury, because it's Dale Weise. Deployment is mystifying.
- 45 shots, zero goal. And now the schedule gets *really* tough. We might not see another win this calendar year, if the Habs offence can't find a solution to this dire offensive problem.
SECOND PERIOD:
- As we mentioned, we're a little late to this game, but I've been watching the game over a stream, and was, at least up until the past two minutes, very impressed with the Habs - in that they've done everything you're supposed to do against an opponent like the Kings - but the finish just hasn't been there. The Kopitar goal to make it 2-0 an example of a defensive breakdown, with Emelin losing track of the slot, and Kopitar sneaking in behind him.
- Habs with clear edge in shooting, shutting attempts, and high percentage scoring attempts, but are being undone by some fine netminding by Quick, and some just plain old bad luck.
- Kings 3rd and 4th line isn't especially strong, unlike its Stanley Cup years - so it'll be crucial for them to start playing their most effective lines against them - in other words, Montreal is the home team, they need to start behaving more like one.
- Montreal outshooting L.A. by a margin of 2-to-1 through 2 periods, although the ratio isn't quite as strong fro shooting attempts. It seems to me the Habs are floundering offensively because, while they're playing a strong system, they're getting too many chances by guys who have difficulty scoring. While it's nice that the Habs roll 4 lines, there comes a time when you need to push the peddle to the floor a little harder - that means, more time for the Plekanec and Galchenyuk lines, less for the Desharnais and Mitchell lines. Whether coach Therrien will heed the obvious, is another question.
GAME 33: POSSESSION-CRAZY KINGS ROLL INTO TOWN
Now, it begins. For reals this time.
The Habs host the Kings of Los Angeles tonight to kick off, what will be by far, the most difficult part of their 2015-16 regular season schedule. Tonight's tilt will be final home game for the Canadiens until January 6th. That's three weeks from today.
In addition to facing L.A. tonight, the Habs will hit the road for an eight-game trip, where they'll have to face some of the tougher teams in the League, including Minnesota, Dallas, Nashville, Washington and Tampa Bay. The Habs don't get any sort of reprieve until they face the Florida Panthers at the end of the month, and the Philadelphia Flyers on January 5th. Hoo boy.
What I'm saying here is over the next 9-game span, don't expect the Habs to be raking in the victories. I'd be very pleasantly surprised if the Canadiens were able to post 3, maybe 4 wins until the first week of next month, which means this team is due for a massive tumble in the standings.
Do we have bright news? Well, it appears that coach Therrien stumbled upon an excellent defensive pairing Tuesday night, when he yanked a clearly struggling Andrei Markov off the top line, and replaced him with Nathan Beaulieu. Along with P.K. Subban, the pair looked pretty damn magical together - in particular their seemingly unstoppable knack for helping the Habs continuously gain the San Jose Sharks zone.
The new pairing also appeared to liberate Subban, who more often than any game I've seen him play in maybe three years, was carrying the puck from zone to zone, which helped create significant offensive pressure on the Habs opponents. Unfortunately, Habs forwards were shooting blanks for most of the night.
Gaining the zone will be critical against possession-mad teams like the L.A. Kings. They are the League's Corsi Supreme Leaders, clocking in at 57.2%. When the Kings set the tempo, they are awfully difficult to beat.
The Kings, believe it or not, are on a small slide - losing their past two games to significantly inferior opponents - the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres. In response to this, the Kings have made a couple of minor changes to their line combinations, tonight Milan Lucic, President of the Alexei Emelin fan club, will slot next to Anze Kopitar and Marin Gaborik, which means the Kings second line will be compoased of Jeff Carter centring Tyler Toffoli and Michael Mersch.
Over in Habsland, no changes of significance tonight, other than the Habs blue line combinations. That means Charles Hudon will be the heathy scratch.
Goaltenders? It's Jonathan Quick against Mike Condon.
Puck drops at 7:40 EST. We'll be missing the first period because of an unrelated time conflict, so live blogging in ernst will begin about halfway through the game.
- 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.
- 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.
I'll let the video speak for itself, but add this bit. In Murray's two starts, he's played 24 ES minutes, resulting in 39 Boston shot attempts, or 94/60.
Yeah. That's bad. That's really bad.
OVERTIME:
- The best and worst part of these playoffs. One goal stands between the Habs and a probable third round appearance. That's it.
- Not gonna say who was on the ice when that goal was scored. But Therrien played with fire and tonight, it finally burnt.
- Well, I'll say it. Murray was behind his net, and Fraser, the last minute call up, easily beat him fighting for the puck.
Scroll down and take a look at the game preview. I'll quote myself. "While Doug hasn't committed any errors that have directly resulted in a
loss, it's only going to be a matter of time. Forewarned!!".
Indeed.
THIRD PERIOD:
- So who's gonna be the goat tonight?
- Pacioretty off the wing, Rask looked pretty iffy making that save.
- Just shoot it on net, guys. Nothing pretty. Just put it on.
- Great start to the period for Montreal. Lots of energy, Eller line still looking great.
- Habs very diligent in their own zone, Boston struggling to generate a grade A shot on Price. Habs being very patient, looking to spring someone free off the break.
- Emelin called for a hit the exact same as Iginla delivered on Pacioretty. Horrible time for the official to be inconsistent.
- Bruins really pushing centre ice, and the Habs are having trouble moving the puck east/west. It's a chess match right now, both teams pushing with all their might but neither is buckling.
- Habs just pounding the Bruins like crazy, and now they seem to be struggling to find their legs. Habs have dominated the period, in good position to score the first goal.
- Got nails? You won't after this night is over. Crazy good period for the Habs - their checking, both forward and back, was pretty near perfect. Against the team who run roughshod supreme over their opponents the final frame. The Habs hitting in the 3rd really paid dividends in slowing the Bruins up, whether or not that will carry into overtime, we'll have to see.
SECOND PERIOD:
- Habs more aggressive with Rask to start the period, looking for dirty rebound goal. Rask isn't giving any up, though.
- Push by Boston. They're getting free entries into the Habs zone, which is a bad thing for the Canadiens.
- Habs need to hold on here - Bruins determined to get the game's first. Not sure how much longer Price can keep it out.
- Bruins 3rd and 4th lines really rolling right now, which is wearing the Habs ragged, especially in their own zone. This could have big playoffs for Boston as they game progresses.
- Refs have had whistles firmly in pockets, but make a bizarre marginal interference call on Subban. Wow.
- Nothing going right for is Boston powerplay. Totally disorganized and utterly ineffective. Habs PK has dominated this series.
- Bad powerplay for Boston and as a result, ice now tilting in favor of Montreal. Chance to capitalize at hand.
- Excellent shift by Eller generates Habs first PP of the night.
- Eller line all engines firing tonight. If Habs score tonight don't be surprised if that line is on at the time.
- Margins are ridiculously narrow between these two teams. The intensity of the battles out there are fierce as you'll see in any hockey game. Both teams playing for the mistake to break this scoreless tie, neither team has committed that big error. Yet.
FIRST PERIOD:
- So Julien does shake up the lineup with the young Caron, and maybe more surprisingly, reinserting Barkowski, who really struggled in game one. It's an interesting gamble.
- Therrien juggles them up right off the bat - Plekanec/Gallagher/Vanek. Hmmm ....
- Murray out. ICING. Annnnnnnd ... drink.
- Habs focusing on hits and checking, Bruins on taking shots at Price early going.
- Another humdinger tonight. Desharnais had a sparking chance off a complex series of set passes, but hesitates on taking high percentqge shot. That's the bad Desharnais.
- Chara, and I could be wrong, just doesn't look right.
- Iginla boards Pacioretty who hits his head hard on the glass. Pretty borderline.
- Pacioretty determined to continue his shifts. Concussion protocol apparently in the backseat.
- The good Doug Murray, who absolutely wrecks Thornton who had his head down entering Habs zone. Lovely.
- Game has settled down a bit, which I'd consider a Habs win. The Bruins came out hard but Canadiens kept them at bay.
- Bruins with possession edge, Habs controlling centre ice. Tradeoff is making this game reasonably even.
- Good P.K., outstanding sliding check to wreck a Bruins break. Bad P.K. Thoughtless blind turnover behind his net, Soderberg hits the crossbar. Bruins have to be totally frustrated at this point.
GAME PREVIEW:
So the day was suddenly interrupted by all the nonsense happening in Toronto - with the Leafs making the perplexing decision of not only keeping their head coach Randy Carlyle around for one more season, but extending his contract for two more years. Oh Leafs fans. You poor, poor bunch. We feel badly for you. Well. Almost.
It goes without saying that if a guy like Carlyle can be as bad as he's been, and get rewarded with contract extension, it basically totally extinguishes our hopes of Michel Therrien going anywhere, anytime soon. In fact, with the Habs now well advanced into the 2nd round, he'll probably get a similar job extension this summer.
Oh yeah. We have a game tonight! It's a pivotal biggie. In a few hours time, the Habs will either find themselves enjoying a stranglehold 3-1 lead, or the Bruins heading home tied up and plenty of momentum in their sails.
What is there to expect tonight? Probably not a whole lot different, lineup-wise, than what we saw Tuesday night. That means another 60 minutes of Doug Murray, who even after an extraordinarily awful performance, even by his standards, is probably going to get another start tonight. Therrien continues to overlook the obvious when it comes to Murray, and while Doug hasn't committed any errors that have directly resulted in a loss, it's only going to be a matter of time. Forewarned!!
That aside, a few concluding thoughts:
- Let's get the obvious out of the way. Bruins will come out roaring for that first goal - the team scoring first in this series has won every game. The Bruins, let's be honest here - cannot lose tonight. Expect anything and everything. Physical play in overdrive. Ferocious forechecking. A desperate team playing desperately. Which means Carey Price can expect to be very, very busy tonight. Anything less than his "A" game will mean a Habs loss.
- Keep an eye out on Chara. Speculation around Montreal today that his wrist injury is actually pretty serious, but he's playing through it. If there's any semblance to that speculation, then keep an eye on his willingness to fire shots from the line. He may not be able, which won't help the Bruins' production.
- Habs really need to just do the same thing tonight. This means effective zone clearance, more east-west rather than north-south passing through the neutral zone, a tenacious forecheck to stifle the Bruins transition, and staying out of the penalty box.
- Will this be the night that David Desharnais and Max Pacioretty start collecting actual goals and assists? We're getting itchy waiting for top line production to finally arrive.
- Speaking of production or lack thereof, Bruins fans are getting pretty restless about David Krejci's failure to make a significant impact in the series. We saw Julien do a little bit of line juggling at practice this morning, breaking up the Krecji line as (we assume) part of attempt to spread the offense. But I just don't think come gametime that Julien will actually take such a radical and risky step. It's a diluting strategy - fine if the new combos "catch fire", but wrought with incredible downsides in that if it fails to work, then your team probably doesn't score a single goal.
Puck drops at 7:40 EST. The Habs are still a long 10 wins away to winning the greatest prize in sport - but a victory tonight will take them a considerable way towards achieving hockey glory.
GAME DAY NEWS 'N' NOTES:
So we've arrived, the probably-series-deciding Game 4 tonight at the Bell Centre. A few things happened this morning, mainly Bruins-related.
- Claude Julien shuffled many deck chairs this morning. Whether or not it reflects the Bruins actual line combinations tonight remains to be seen (it probably doesn't). Anyway, here's how it went down. With defensemen Carl Soderberg taking the morning off (optional I guess?), the Krejci line, which hasn't had its greatest series ever, was split apart, with Krejci shifted down to the second line with Marchand and Smith, Bergeron shifted up to the top line beside Lucic and Eriksson, and Iginla shifted down to the 3rd line next to Campbell and Paille. Still with me?
I wouldn't read a whole lot into the line juggling routine. It seems to me a more tactical move by Julien to mess with the Canadiens mind. I fully expect Julien to start the exact same line combos tonight.
Speaking of combos, Bruins defensive pairs this morning, with Sodenberg's absense, were Chara/Hamilton, Meszaros/Boychuck and Krug/Miller.
- Thornton took five good strides in an attempt to destroy Subban who saw the hit coming at the last minute to duck away. Thornton it appears, hit his knee and went down in great pain. Helped down the tunnel it sure looked like Thornton turned back and yelled out to his teammates "get him!". Huge loss for Boston. Huge.
- Habs excellent checking so far, severely limiting the Bruins ability to generate scoring chances or any semblance of momentum. Fans getting restless in the stands.
- And now Hamilton takes another dumb Boston penalty. The intermission did nothing to straighten this team out in the head.
- Another blast by Subban, another redeflect by Vanek to put the Habs up by the dreaded two goals. The Habs taking advantage of their powerplays, benefits from Boston's utter lack of composure.
- Thornton returns to the bench. But will he play is another question.
- Thornton takes a shift. Now I'm seriously wondering now much of that injury was pain, and how much was theatre.
- Habs have played a pretty much perfect third period. A fine balance of aggressive checking and taking advantage of offensive opportunities when presented. They have been far and away the better team the first 10 minutes. But 10 long minutes lay ahead.
- Ah, the dreaded two goal lead, the Bruins' Hamilton again scoring off a point shot from the middle with a heavy screen. Markov and Emelin not helping much. 3-2.
- Bruins really pushing here, Habs hanging on for dear life. This isn't going to finish well, methinks.
- Bouillon redeflects the second puck into his own net this game. Wow. We're tied.
- Utter zone chaos, Smith scores, passing lanes too open, Bruins take lead.
- Lucic the empty netter. A totally disheartening result, given how the Habs were seemingly in total control with less than 10 minutes left, and then everything just went south. The pucks, which had mainly bounced in the Habs favor, started bouncing heavily in Boston's direction. But that's hockey. Still, the Habs come away with a split, which is a good thing. But oh ... so ... close ... to a 2-0 series lead. Two days off to regain composure, and come up with some sort of a solution to address the Bruins complete domination 5v5 .
SECOND PERIOD:
- Mad scramble in Bruins zone, Gallagher and Prust blow two certain scoring opportunities, but Weaver comes in to finish the play. Chance originated from a poor Marchand giveaway. That seems to be the big theme today - turnovers. Tie game.
- Pretty determined start by the Habs this period - dominating shot clock, and generating turnovers.
- Bruins again getting nabbed for bad penalties. It doesn't take much to make this team lose its cool.
- Habs have turned the tables on Boston this period, generating lots of neutral zone turnovers.
- Listless. The definition of Vanek and his linemates. Maybe a shakeup is necessary sooner rather than later.
- Bruins have totally found their game and are focusing in on the lead. Habs are as back on their heels as you can stretch, but Price is holding firm.
- The Vanek situation is bordering on absurd. He just shot a puck that probably didn't clock faster than 40kh. He's clearly injured. Upper body or something - but he's doing absolutely nothing right now. If he's hurt, it's pointless to play him, period.
- Carey Price is putting on quite the show. Remarkable goaltending here. Some of the finest I've ever seen.
- Okay, the Vanek comment. Nevermind I guess. 2-1 as Habs take advantage of a powerplay.
- And now Bruins take a bench minor for mouthing off. They're a mental case right now - completely off their game. Exactly what we talked about leading into their series.
- Campbell with a frustration slash on Price at the period buzzer. How the heck that wasn't called is beyond me. But that's Boston Bruin hockey, I guess.
- Wild period. Habs came out and dominated centre ice, creating turnovers and eventually tying the game. Then the Bruins caught fire after getting a powerplay, but some heroic play by Price kept them from scoring. Frustrated, the Bruins then took a series of poor penalties, and the Habs mostly dysfunctional powerplay finally struck gold. Like game one, Bruins are dominating play, but their attitude and psyche have become their mortal enemies. We've talked about this quite a bit, but a team this good develops a sense of entitlement, and when things don't go your way, when the game becomes unfair, you lose it mentally. Habs, astoundingly, may come out of this with a 2-0 series lead. But 20 very long minutes await.
FIRST PERIOD:
- Habs will go with the same lines, just the one already-noted switcheroo - Bournival will take the place of Moen on the 4th line.
- Looks like Matt Barkowski, who visibly struggled with the speedy Habs forwards, and committed the holding penalty which led to the Subban game winner, is a scratch today. Andrej Meszaros will take his spot on the Bruins 3rd d-line.
- Bruins retaliate right off the bat. This is exactly the opposite of what they need to do.
- Emelin dives and draws the Habs a powerplay. Subban seemingly cut in the hand but is on the ice again.
- Mostly disorganized powerplay, hurt because Habs couldn't start Markov/Subban off the bat. Briere didn't help much with weak feeds back to the line that were easily intercepted.
- Habs with two iffy calls to set up Bruins 5-on-3. Gorges and Weaver blocking machines to kill it. Huge, huge kill. Should give Habs a huge lift.
- Habs forwards being much more diligent with their backcheck. Bruins are visibly frustrated.
- Habs have to be quicker moving the puck through the neutral zone. It bites them again as Gionta coughs up the puck, and on the fierce Bruins transition, Paille buries a slot chance. 1-0.
- Paille goal also came as a result of wide open passing lanes. Prust didn't cover his territory, and was immediately yanked for a shift by Therrien. Messages are being sent, but will the players recognize and perform their defensive duties?
- I guess that's the (one of the few) advantages of dump and chase. Hamilton nailed for interference on Paxioretty.
- Habs powerplay passing just not on today. Passes are either behind or in feet.
- Subban and Chara are sent off, which benefits the Habs as P.K. was on the end of a two minute shift.
- Well that wasn't pretty. Bruins got to play the game on their terms, and again dominated. Habs forwards must do more to come back to stifle the passing lanes. Montreal also really struggling to engage their transition, which is resulting in far too many turnovers or possession surrenders. Anyway, the Habs best players must engage. Pacioretty and Vanek need to do something or the Habs have a long afternoon ahead.
GAMEDAY PREVIEW:
Okay, as we know, there hasn't been much time between game one and two of this series, so we're going to preview in point form today, a lot of it an extenuation of what we noted following the conclusion of the first match.
- Travis Moen, who struggled to keep pace, is a scratch today in favor of the younger, speedier and probably healthier Michael Bournival. While I luvs Travis to death, it's the right move. Moen's purpose was to check and contain - his lack of speed meant he wasn't doing much of either.
- I don't expect a whole lot different from the Bruins today, given that they did as much as a team could possibly do to win, but still lose. The only significant adjustment I think we'll see is Boston forwards being more aggressive around the crease, trying to disrupt Carey Price as much as possible. In light of this, I thought (more accurately feared) that Therrien would go with the "more physical" Doug Murray today, although it now appears that the Habs will continue to play the same defensive sets.
- Habs by comparison, will need to make many more adjustments than their adversaries. Aside from working off the so-called rust, Habs forwards must do a better positional job bottling up the passing lanes during Bruins rushes. Boston had more than a handful of stellar scoring chances on Price because they were able to so freely pass the puck north/south during a rush or transition.
In addition to protecting lanes, the forwards must also be more aware of not turning the puck over in the neutral zone. Daniel Briere was a big culprit Thursday night, committing two relatively soft giveaways near the red line, one of which directly to Boston's 2nd goal. I'm hoping the addition of Bournival improves the situation.
Finally, the Habs will really need to get offense from the guys who are expected to deliver. The Desharnais line has faced some fierce checking by its opponents (which in part has allowed the Eller line - the Habs best of the post-season to date, the luxury of weaker defensive opponents). If the Habs top line produces, this team becomes incredibly difficult to beat.
- Goaltending: Tuuka Rask, by his own admission, wasn't great Thursday night. But then that's the story with Rask when facing the Habs, isn't it? He'll have to elevate his game somehow, because right now, he's getting his clock cleaned by the guy on the other end of the rink.
- Frustration: As this blog noted not only heading into game one, but leading up to the playoffs, the Bruins are an emotionally fragile team burdened by a sense of entitlement. Winning teams are often this way. When you go out and expect to win, and things don't go your way, you get mad. And then you start doing stupid things. The Bruins were clearly a rattled bunch Thursday night, their frustration not so much vented by taking dumb penalties, but in finishing scoring opportunities. Carey Price's brilliance was clearly getting into the heads of many Boston forwards as the game progressed, which didn't help the Bruins finishing close to a dozen golden scoring opportunities.
Anyway, expect an even more intense game today, if that's even possible, because the Bruins can ill-afford to go to Montreal down two games in the series. The pressure is firmly on Boston, and today's game will give us a pretty good glimpse as to whether this team has the mental capacity to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
Well, that was quite a roller coaster, wasn't it? Bathing in the glory of a double overtime victory, and early series advantage, some morning-after thoughts.
- Habs
were - let's be perfectly honest here, roundly outplayed by the Bruins,
who had trouble burying some glorious scoring chances. The Habs cannot
count on good fortune to carry them through the rest of the series.
Eventually Boston will bury these scoring opportunities, regardless of
Price's capacity to play some heroic netminding.
- I watched the overtime period again, and Price's performance really was astounding. Most above average NHL netminders wouldn't - couldn't have made some of the acrobatic saves we saw from Carey. The split bad blocker save made by Price on Krejčí halfway through the first overtime period was one of the greatest OT saves I've ever seen by a Habs netminder. There's nothing wrong with having your goaltender steal the occasional victory, but you cannot rely it. Certainly not in what reckons to be a lengthy, grinding series.
- The Eller/Bourque/Gionta line continues to be head above shoulders, the best line on this team. They were pretty much the only line generating consistent chances on Raask last night, and were among the (very) few possession brights spots for the Canadiens. The reliance on Eller is eerily resemblant of the Habs early season success, although at that time, it was Eller, Galchenyuk and Gallagher who were carrying the team offensively. When that line eventually stop producing, the team as a whole started slumping. The Desharnais line must rise to the occasion, and start scoring. Like ... now.
- Of course, the reliance on one line is somewhat nullified if production comes from other places. Last night it came from P.K. Subban on the powerplay.
- While not producing points, the Habs 4th line has been doing what 4th lines are supposed to do - either to stem or create momentum, and focus on containing the opposition in their zone. The line's hard work generated the Bartkowski holding penalty that resulted in the Subban OT winner.
- Bruins were getting some ridiculously good scoring chances off the rush, largely because the Habs were failing to clog up the passing lanes both at centre ice, and as Bruins forwards were entering the Canadiens' zone. This was largely a result of Habs fowards not being able to retreat fast enough to defend the lanes, which is pretty inexcusable given this team had nearly two weeks of rest. I'm sure the Habs coaching staff will take note during their video reviews today, and make the necessary adjustments.
- There were a couple of areas where the Habs played a very disciplined game. Their shot blocking was excellent for most of the game, in particular blocking Bruins shots off (the few) rebounds surrendered by Price. Perhaps more importantly, the Habs were exceptionally disciplined in not biting on Bruins attempts to fish for retaliation penalties. Staying out of the penalty box will be a critical component of any series victory over Boston.
- Coach Therrien noted that he thought his team looked rusty, which I largely agree with - the passing was okay, but certainly not as crisp or as accurate as it was against Tampa. I didn't like Therrien's attempts to get his offense producing, much of his focus seemed to be on moving Thomas Vanek around. If your team is rusty, you don't shuffle - you work through it. Vanek, who was moved around starting late in the first period, was eventually reunited with the Desharnais line late in the 3rd, but by that time, it was too late for Vanek and that line to work off the so-called rust.
- The bottom line is pretty clear. The Habs will have to be better - much better, if they hope to win 3 of the next 6 games. Last night Carey Price stole them a victory, but that's not going to continue. It's not reasonable to ask of him, it's not responsible for Therrien and Price's teammates to depend on it.
OVERTIME:
- Brillaint feed Prust to Plekanec who really needed to bury it. Big missed opportunity.
- Vanek firmly back with Desharnais, but he just doesn't look right.
- This is the kind of game where guys like Gallagher are the heros.
- Compared to first three periods, Habs hanging tough.
- Price Brillaint right pad save. Saves the game. All because of another sloppy neutral zone turnover by Briere.
- Price with three remarkable overtime saves. So far. If the Habs win this, it's all Price.
- Eller line practicaly the only unit producing any offense for their team right now. It's become that bad.
- Brenden Gallagher didn't score the winner, but he saves the game.
- More impact play by Gallagher intercepting the puck in centre and then taken out by a knee check by Paille. Luckily Gallagher isn't hurt, and Habs will get a powerplay.
- Carey Price making enormous saves in that period to give Habs a chance of winning this. Boston pelting the Habs like crazy, but Montreal is living another day - or at least one more period.
- Okay. That's one for Rask.
- Habs 4th line with some great work, and they draw a powerplay.
- SUBBAN!!!! A rocket to win the game.
- No way the Habs win the game if it wasn't for one Carey Price.
- Because we mentioned it wayyyy back in the first period, note that it was the Plekanec line who were on when the winning goal was scored.
THIRD PERIOD:
- Well, Boston has had some pretty impressive third periods this season, a major reason for their final points total in the standings.
- Bruins are overthinking this on the rush. Gotta be the Price (in their heads) effect.
- Seeing eye shot by Smith puts Boston on the board. Nothing you can do about those. Well, Emelin could have cleared traffic better, I suppose.
- Three or four minutes after a goal makes is when this Boston team is most dangerous. Habs will have to weather another storm, and a Bruins powerplay.
-'Excellent kill there. That might be enough to get them through the onslaught.
- Briere with killer neutral zone turnover. Resulting rush the B's tie it.
- The onslaught was not weathered. The two goal lead has been a curse this spring.
- Habs need to be philosophical - they have a tie game in the third period, and are but one shot away from winning home ice advantage.
- Still not sure what the deal with Vanek is. I think Therrien needs to reunite him with Desharnais. Habs have nothing going right now, offensively.
- All four lines rolling for a Boston. Third goal is inevitable unless the Habs find a way of changing the game's tempo in a hurry.
- Emelin hurt by a shot taken off the hand. Is in the dressing room.
- Habs need gut check play here - one of their character guys. Somebody. Something.
- Bouillon. Right on cue. Wait, Bouillon??? 3-2.
- Vanek back with Desharnais.
- UH. How was that not a penalty for the Bourque mugging?? Looked like knee contact.
- Price had that deer in the headlights look going after the Bruins tied it. Seems to be more settled now.
- Bruins desperate crash Price like crazy, refs don't intervene and Boychuk ties it with a point bullet. Oy.
- Vanek must be hurt. That must be the explanation.
- Overtime it is, then. Heckova game, but the bottom line is the Habs did not come back physically like they needed to in the third, and the Bruins steamrolled their way back into this.
SECOND PERIOD:
- Bruins slightly improved their Fenwick percentage to 56% in the period (compared to 53% they had against Columbus). Habs dropped from 56% registered against Tampa, to 46% in that period. But those numbers aside, the Habs played their strengths well, plus Carey Price (of course).
- Weaver with a monster shift blocking three great scoring chances, and then the Habs generate that neutral zone turnover with Bourque scoring yet another one. Rask really beaten clean and badly there. 2-0.
- Bourque goal has really sparked this team. TD Gardens very quiet right now.
- Vanek is dropped to the 4th line, which is somewhat shocking.
- Marchand sticks Subban in the face, and the refs blow the call.
- Habs simply not biting on the Bruins baitings. This is awesome.
- Thierrien sending Vanek the message to step it up. I fully expect to see him right back with Desharnais.
- Different tact now for Boston: hit everything in sight. Trying to overrun the Habs, create energy, momentum, and hopefully, goals.
- Gorges nabbed for a hold. Woulda figured the refs were giving the Habs a free pass after blowing the Marchand cross, but nope.
- Tremendous pressure and great chances for the Bruins on the powerplay, but Price, who brought his elite game to the Gardens tonight, with wonderful saves.
- Dammit, P.K. needs to stop focusing on making huge hits - he's not making contact and it's generating scoring chances for Boston.
- Bruins really dominated the period - Habs did some great shot blocking, but they ran into lots of problems when the Bruins turned up the physical play a couple of notches. After the physical barrage, the Habs played the final 7 minutes on their heels, bailed out by Price. Habs need to be more assertive and defiant of Boston throwing the body around - I'm please they aren't retaliating, but they must push back physically. The game is still in a razor's edge.
FIRST PERIOD:
- Hey, hey, now, now. Doug Murray is a scratch.
- Moen will play, Bournival will sit. So the lineup tonight is exactly the same as it was against the Tampa series, except for the 4th line switch.
- Bruins come out with fury, no surprise. Habs need to weather the first 10 game minutes.
- Julien playing Bruins first line heavy early. Also no surprise. Boston wants to score as early as possible.
- Very good first series shift by the Eller line, Rask good save off Bourque.
- Briere out with Prust and Gallagher. Interesting.
- Terrible shift for Bouillon, hit like a rag doll, coughs up the puck, can't find position, and Bruins come within a whisker of scoring.
- Habs fans would be wise to keep an eye on the Pleks line - they could have a major say with tonight's final score.
- Bruins fans are holloring dive, no doubt. But Weise was hacked to the ice. Here're one of those Habs series keys coming up - scoring on the man advantage.
- Subban with a seemingly harmless wrister sneaks its way through a screen (I think?). Rask should have had that? 1-0. Habs powerplay clicks.
- So there you have it. Habs survive first 10 minutes, capitalize on the powerplay, and now appear to be dictating tempo.
- Gallagher with an excellent period - generating scoring chances, and getting into the faces of Boston's biggest bullies.
- Habs transition looks sharp, and it's giving Boston trouble. Canadiens have dominated the puck since the period half mark.
- Price with some outstanding saves in the period, and I sense frustration setting in on the Bruins side of the ice.
- Boston clearly targeting Subban. He must remain cool, not retaliate.
- That was an excellent period for the Habs. They held the fort early, took advantage of the powerplay, and then dominated tempo. Good neutral zone presence, very good transition play. One of the better road periods they've played all year.
THIS IS HOW YOU BEAT THE DIVING BOSTON BRUINS:
BOSTON VS MONTREAL: THE PREVIEW
10 days. Man. That’s way too long.
Relief, however, is arriving with Game One of the Eastern
Conference Semi Final, Habs and Bruins in a playoff showdown. For the 34th
time in League history.
With all that time to consider the confrontation at hand, a
great deal of focus the past few days has been on whether the Habs can someone
find a way of beating the mighty President’s Award-winning Bruins.
The speculation, at least within the constrict of whether
the Habs have a sliver of a chance, has puzzled me.
Why the befuddlement? Because, at least in this writer's mind, the Habs are going to win this
series.
First, let’s clear the obvious stuff out of the way.Yes, the Bruins finished with the most
points of any other League team (although they did with aweaker schedule compared to teams in
the West), and yes, the Bruins’ biggest strength is its roster depth. The
acquisition of Jarome Iginla, who’s had a significant impact in bolstering an
already potent offense, has made the Bruins a most difficult team to contain –
during the regular season.
Plus Tukkaa Raask, whom with his Vezina nomination, has
obviously been very good.
Funny thing though. Along the way towards finishing on top of the League, the
Bruins were fit to be tied when playing the Canadiens. Four times they met
this year, and three times they lost. So, what gives?
It’s actually nothing mythical, mystical or mysterious. The
Bruins lost to the Habs this season because they don’t match up very
well against the speedier, more skilled Montreal lineup.
Sure, the Bruins have significant advantages in how they can deploy their
assets – when you have lots of options, you can make significant adjustments,
even in game mid-flight. But the Bruins do have weaknesses, which often don’t
get as much attention as they deserve.
First and foremost, the Bruins defense, solid, but slow.
They do a fine job protecting their crease and winning puck battles in the
corners, they can be an intimidating bunch. I mean, led by the 6’9 troglodyte
Zdeno Chara, how can you not be second guessing yourself digging for a loose puck near the boards?
But - they have been very vulnerable in adjusting to defending the rush.
Because the Bruins defense depends so much on using their size and physical intimidation,
by paradox this team performs well defending against bigger sized players. It
makes sense. The larger your target, the easier they are to hit. The Habs
smaller sized forwards, for once, can leverage their smaller sized stature to
an advantage. That’s why I’m expecting the likes of David Desharnais, Daniel
Briere, Briant Gionta and Thomas Plekanec to shine in this series. Don’t be
surprised if larger players includingthe seemingly reborn Rene Bourque, regress slightly in the series –
insofar as their point totals are concerned.
The key to exploiting this Bruins weakness is for the Habs
to continue to play an effective transition game (just like they did against
Tampa), and strong play in the neutral zone to help create turnovers.
Secondly, the Bruins are – and let’s be honest, a boorish collection.
They are not afraid to play a dishonest game if it results in victory. Ergo, the
dives and dirty stick work. The Boston mouthpiece media has been cranking up
the noise machine this week in an attempt to reverse the narrative by defining
the Habs as divers. But we know
the score – and seen the evidence. There’s certainly plenty there – just type
in “Bruins divers” in Youtube, and enjoy the shows.
The point being here that a boorish team is also prone to a
lack of discipline. Get them off their game, give them a taste of their own
medicine, and they lose focus. The Habs did a very good job of that this
season, drawing Boston into silly retaliation penalties, and causing the Bruins
the lose focus on playing the game their way.
The keys? Well, it’ll depend an awful lot on the players who
have the capacity to drive the Bruins to mental desperation.So keep a keen eye on the likes of the
so-called agitators. Brandon Prust, Brendon Gallagher, P.K. Subban, and Travis
Moen will play an important role in determining whether the Habs win the series
via frustrating their opponent.
Exploiting the Bruins’ two biggest failings also is contingent
on taking advantage of the resulting opportunities. This mean the Habs
powerplay MUST start producing at rate that more reflected their
regular season totals – slightly under 20%. If the Habs are able to score on
the man advantage, they will have realized a massive series advantage.
The series will be close. It would be physical. It’ll probably
be dirty. But it will be won by a Canadiens’ team whose symmetry seemed to all
come together at the very best possible time.
The time really is now for the Montreal Canadiens. I believe at the end of the day, aided by an expected stellar performance by Carey Price, they will win this
series in 6 games.
Puck drops at 7:40 EST. Wear your jersey people. And cheer
hard. Because this playoff season is starting to feel special.
GAMEDAY NEWS AND NOTES
- So Carey Price is a child molester? You keep staying classy, Boston.
- PANIC PANIC PANIC PANIC. Max Pacioretty did not participate in this morning's skate in Boston. Therrien will be giving an update. Oy, oy, oy. UPDATE: MAX IS FINE, says coach Therrien. Just took the morning off.
SERIES PREVIEW IS COMING UP!!!
HERE'S YOUR BOSTON BRUINS DIVE OF THE DAY FOR MAY 1, 2014:
IT'S GAMEDAY!!!
HERE'S YOUR BOSTON BRUINS DIVE OF THE DAY FOR APRIL 30, 2014:
BONUS LOLZ FROM THE BRUINZ AND THEIR HACKS:
David Krejci believes the stick-work of the Detroit Red Wings readied him for what he's come to expect from Montreal http://t.co/lfBrT6GtpO — Joe Haggerty (@HackswithHaggs) April 30, 2014
You stay classy, Boston. WEDNESDAY NEWS AND NOTES:Series eve!! The anticipation mounts. We'll be posting a series preview, maybe today - likely tomorrow. Depends on how non-lazy I feel. In the meantime, we've got a few updates:
- Habs a.m. practice, and the drill lines were exactly the same as what we saw during the Tampa series, with Doug Murray again paired up with Jarred Tinordi. This does not mean that Murray won't play - but it does give us a morsel of a hint that Therrien might be edging towards going with the same D-line pairs tomorrow night.
- Alex Galchenyuk practiced this morning - although it was pretty light. This means that 1) rehabilitation progress is being made BUT 2) given how light his drills were, he's nowhere close to being in game shape. Um ... round 3 maybe??
- Bruins fans and the people who cover them are shameless. But hey - you knew that already.
HERE'S YOUR BOSTON BRUINS DIVE OF THE DAY FOR APRIL 29, 2014:
HAPPY TUESDAY NEWS AND NOTES:
Howdy.
So it's been a week. A whole week since the Habs wrapped up their series against Tampa. 7 days!!
It's been a lovey siesta, but all good things must, invariably, come to an end.
So here we go. Habs and Bruins. For the 34th time in playoff history.
It's looking more and more as though game 1 will probably be played on Friday evening, so in anticipation of the big puck drop, we'll be putting up as many news and notes, stats and drivel - leading right up to the puck drop on Friday, or whenever game one occurs.
In the meantime, let's leave you with this little tidbit. Lots of lazy analysis going on right now about how the Bruins will dominate this series because of their massive size advantage. Well, consider this. The average weight of the Bruins roster heading into game one is 206 pounds. The average for the Habs, without Doug Murry in the lineup, is 199 pounds. With Murray? It's 202 pounds.
So that massive advantage? 6 pounds. Or maybe 3.
More in a bit.
- UPDATE: Lots of speculation this morning that the League is aiming to have the series start on Saturday. At noon. Ick. Bruins have played 14 afternoon games this season, and have won 12. Habs have played 4 this season, and have won exactly zero. Thanks, Gary.
- EARLY EVENING UPDATE: So the series schedule is out!! And it's ... disappointing (slightly). Here it is:
Game One: Thursday May 1 (Boston - 7:30 p.m.)
Game Two: Saturday May 3 (Boston - 12:30 p.m.)
Game Three: Tuesday May 6 (Montreal - 7:00 p.m.)
Game Four: Thursday May 8 (Montreal - 7:00 p.m.)
*Game Five: Saturday May 10 (Boston - TBA)
*Game Six: Monday May 12 (Montreal - 7:00 p.m.)
*Game Seven: Wednesday May 14 (Boston - TBA)
So, there's a potential for at least one, perhaps two afternoon games in this series, both in Boston. The Bruins, FWIW, have won 12 of 14 afternoon games played this season (at home), while Montreal is 0-4. That ain't very encouraging.
- So perfect opportunity for Habs to take stock in Tokarski, with this game out of reach, but nope, Therrien stays with Budaj, and another softie is surrendered to start the 3rd. 4-0.
- Seems to me if Tokarski is deemed backup capable, Budaj immediately becomes a draft pick commodity this summer.
- Desharnais. At least Rask won't get the shutout.
- Bruins really have played a sloppy game, PDO saving their day (and hurting the Habs). No way Boston will go far in the post season if this is all they've got at the table.
- Dump, chase, dump, chase. The madness never ends.
- Habs have made zero adjustments during this game. They almost never do because they are incapable of doing so. This team decides its course before the puck drops and just keeps plugging away, even if they're headed over a cliff. There is no way this team has any hope of competing the first round (assuming playoffs are even reached). Just no way.
- Bruins adjusted after 20, Habs didn't (or more accurately, can't). That's your game story.
Second Period:
- In addition to outshooting, Habs 5v5 Fenwick was 80%. Dominance.
- And just like that, it's all rendered meaningless as Tinordi and Murray team up to leave Budaj high and dry. 1-0.
- Habs have three breaks and counting so far because the Bruins are getting their clocks cleaned in the neutral zone. But Habs haven't converted, and they probably won't get many more great chances like that.
- Markov just plain falls down at the bruins blue line and gives Boston a 3-on-1, finished by Bergeron. 2-0.
- Story of the game, it really doesn't matter how well Habs have played, they haven't converted, the Bruins have. No finish, no chance.
- So Prust is out for nearly enough with a shoulder injury and he picks a fight? Uh .. kay.
- So when's this Vanek with Plekanec/Gionta experiment going to end? Because so far, it ain't been clicking.
- Great shift by Plekanec line, Vanek included, but can't finish.
- Lucic gets away with a board, and Budaj surrenders a weak one to him on resulting transition. You simply can't give those up against first place competition. 3-0.
- Bruins made appropriate adjustments in the 2nd, took advantage of their opportipunities, and have now won complete control of this game. An excellent example of how a very good tactical coach (Julien) can have a profound effect over a not very good tactical coach (Therrien).
First Period:
- That Prust/White/Moen 4th line might be the strongest, most well-rounded this team has had in 20 years.
- Decent first Habs PP, passing was crisp and accurate, finish - not so much. Beyond the Subban/Markov team, it's a serious drop off on that Habs man advantage. Emelin and Bouillon don't have the smarts (or shot) to be anything resembling effective. Still can't figure out why Therrien refuses to play 4 forwards and split the 2 minutes between Subban and Makrov.
- Bruins first PP, Budaj with some nice stops. No signs of early game shakiness that we saw on that western road trip.
- Thomas Vanek - this is the team you've frequently destroyed. Just a little reminder.
- Habs are bounds faster than this Boston team. If Montreal only could play a possession game, the Bruins wouldn't have much of a chance most nights.
- Habs sniffing close, Vanek included, to a PP goal, but finish still not there. Bruins really collapsing hard around their crease, converting rebounds (which Rask has been surrendering) has been near impossible.
- Vanek gets attention for his goal scoring abilities, but he's really a two-way specialist (making him all the more valuable).
- Really solid first for the Habs, clearly the harder skating and working team, and it's helped them to win the little battles. 13-6 SOG to boot. Very happy with what I've seen.
HAPPY GAMEDAY!!
Soooooo ... let's see what's cooking today.
- Carey Price isn't playing tonight. He might not play until the post-season? WHAT?!? So Peter (sigh) Budaj is in.
- Um. Oh boy. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy. Therrien has scratched Mike Weaver tonight (waaa?). So guess who's starting? Emelin (oy), Bouillon (OY) ... and ... Murray (sweet merciful god, why must you mock us?!?!)
It's gonna be a clusterfu ... uh ... a terrible mess on the blue line tonight. And you have one person to thank for this impending self-inflicted wound: Michel Therrien.
- On the upside, Brandon Prust will return tonight from injury for the first time in like ... ever. Well, mid-February, to be more exact. So that's welcome news. Still, Emelin, Murray AND Bouillon ...
- Bruins come out hard to start the 3rd. Habs hemmed in their own zone.
- Diaz with a shot on net, that actually was a shot on net.
- Reports now that Boychuck sustained a lower back injury, but he's moving. So he should be okay.
- Even though he scored a big goal Monday, Galchenyuk still in a funk ... for the first time since getting to the bigs, he looks like he's struggling to maintain his confidence.
- Outstanding, perhaps goal-saving block by Emelin on Lucic slot shot.
- Bruins buzzing, coming really close now. Sensing a tie.
- Shots are 10-1 Boston through first 9 minutes of the 3rd. Habs have to stop the bleed, and fast.
- Boston forecheck too much for Habs to handle. It's creating numerous offensive zone opportunities for the Bruins - Price will have to dig very, very deep to keep this game in control.
- Whatever legs Habs had in the 2nd are gone. This team is limping towards the finish line, seemingly exhausted.
- Short shifts. 30 seconds. Sprints to the finish. I dunno what else can be done to save this game.
- Two least played Habs, Parros and Briere, also happen to be the two weakest players, defensively. What can ya do?
- 5 minutes left. 5 agonizingly long 5 minutes left. Bruins with 15 shots in the 3rd.
- Price doing everything and more.
- Great energy shift by the Desharnais line there.
- 90 long seconds left.
- Bad decision by Subban who overplays the puck and draws an icing. 38 seconds left. Faceoff deep next to Price. Hold on, folks.
- That was NOT an icing. Good grief.
- Subban single handedly killed the clock hugging the puck behind his net.
- Carey freakin' Price. First place. That is all.
Second Period:
- Bruins had shade under 80% Fenwick (closed) in the first. That's really, really bad from the Habs perspective. They really were taken to the shed.
- In the span of 48 hours the Habs powerplay has entered an abyss. Rask virtually untested so far.
- Iginla sprung free, Markov blowing his coverage. Again. Methinks Andre's legs and mind are too weary.
- Eller levels Campbell. If we can't beat em, might as well hit em.
- Boychuk in the hospital. Reportedly his arms and legs are moving.
- Eller line actually generated actual offensive pressure in the actual Bruins zone. No, really.
- Plekanec! From nearly behind the nearly behind the net, finds a way. Tie game.
- Right in front of the official, Hamilton boards Prust, who luckily is not injured, but could very easily have been. Tim Peel, one of the League's worst, didn't make the obvious call.
- Funny this game. Since that Eller shift, Habs have suddenly discovered they have legs. Are actually using them.
- Habs powerplay suddenly waking up as well, Bruins continue to be very aggressive with puck pursuit.
- Massive defensive breakdown by reeling Bruins defense creates loose pucks a plenty, Pacioretty cashing in, and the Habs, who have dominated the final 2/3rds of the period, take the lead.
- Weird, weird game. Two periods, each total opposites of each other. Boston dominated the first, looked to be cruising to an easy win 6 minutes into the 2nd, and then the wheels fell off. Habs totally controlling the play from that point out, outshooting Boston 14-3, and taking the lead 2-1. Claude Julien won't be pleased - the Bruins can't possibly use exhaustion for an excuse.
First Period:
- Very physical start to the game, as expected. Habs delivering the bulk of the blows, unexpected.
- Pacioretty with a board on Boychuk who's appears to have sustained a significant injury. Not a dirty hit, but still might get a League review. The loss of Boychuk will create some defensive problems for Boston, especially since it's so early in the game.
- Full medical staff looking at Boychuk. Being taken off on a stretcher.
- Watching reply it wasn't a check from directly behind, it appears that Boychuk lost his footing just before going into the boards. Don't think it's a suspendable infraction.
- Habs PK looking good as usual, even though Smith missed an open net off the rebound.
- Marginal tripping call on Desharnais. Brooons back to the PP, which like the Habs', didn't look too hot first time out.
- Boston sloppy, sloppy puck control so far.
- Habs outdrawing Boston so far by a factor of 2 to 1, but Bruins outshooting Habs by a factor of 3 to 1.
- Habs haven't a lot this period, but now get a second powerplay. Would like to see some sustained pressure, at the very least.
- Bruins with extremely aggressive puck pursuit on the PK, works great if the other guys can't gain consistent puck control, but is still a high risk strategy.
- Lucic with a pretty and perfect feed to Campbell in full stride, Price with no chance. Play happened as a result of Markov with a bad pass in the neutral zone. Bruins have been nearly unbeatable this season when they score the first goal.
- It wasn't a route, but the Bruins slowly took over the period as it progressed. Habs legs might not have enough in the tank to compete tonight. All first period signals point towards a fairly routine Bruins win tonight.
Gameday Game Preview:
Alright, it's the game that we've had circled for weeks. You just knew this game was gonna be worth the wait - and lo and behold, it's a showdown for first place.
Logic would reckon that the Habs have a few factors working against them tonight. First, they've just come off two consecutive wins where they were either matched or badly outplayed by a supposedly inferior opponent (specifically, sub 50 percentile possession numbers). Secondly, its the last half of back-to-back games. Thirdly, their hated opponent, the Boston Bruins, haven't played in five days - so you just know they're bursting with energy.
And yet ... logic seems to be taking a backseat to intangibles, which have worked greatly to the Habs advantage this week. Timely scoring, outstanding netminding, fortunate bounces, missed penalties (specifically Subban's trip on Elias last night which allowed the Desharnais tying goal to happen). For whatever reason, the hockey gods are smiling down on the Canadiens. At least this week.
But the stats are daunting. The Bruins have posted superior numbers in key categories. Overall offense, defense, fenwick and corsi percentages - really the only area where the Habs have better numbers are specialty units.
The Bruins feature strong goaltending - Tuukka Rask has had another solid campaign so far - not Carey Price good, but still enough to be on the first page for many leading netminding stats. As usual, the Bruins feature three reasonably balcned lines, with no one player dominating the scoresheet - David Krejci leads the team with 21 points, decent but by no means anywhere close to the elite league point getters. Meanwhile the Bruins' star off season free agent signing, Jarome Iginla, has been an occasional contributor, but he's nowhere close to the player he once was - he certainly doesn't seem to be aging nearly as well as the recently departed Jaromir Jagr.
On the Habs page, Max Pacioretty and David Desharnais still have the hottest hands, although it appears that the recently goal slumping Lars Eller seems to be turning the page a bit - he's due for a big night sooner rather than later.
Pierre Houde said in Montreal radio this morning that P.K. Subban is "close" to signing a long-term contract with the team in the neighborhood of 8M per for 6-7 seasons.
Given what the Rangers were dishing out yesterday for a goaltender that hasn't won anything important, 8M seems fair and reasonable to me.
The Day After the Night Before
Well, it's everything we could have possibly hoped it would be. A showdown for first place in the Division, two rivals who hate each others guts fully and completely. It'll be fun, fun, fun!!
Still, if you're a Habs fan, even with the team at a lofty 17 wins, the last two games haven't been particularly encouraging. A stolen game on Monday night, and then a crazy victory last night that was also not particularly deserved, and you're looking at a team, although fully healthy, is probably playing over their heads right now.
I'm a nervous fan. I haven't liked what I've seen this week - and I most certainly don't like what lays ahead.
