Game 1 - ECQF: Rangers vs. Habs

New York Rangers 2, Montreal 0:

FIRST PERIOD:

- Nesterov gets the start ahead of Davidson, which surprises (and concerns) me.

- If it seems like the Bell Centre is loud over your TV, you're right. Having been at a Canadiens playoff game in that arena, the noise cannot be described (or underestimated).

- Gallagher with a bad trip on Staal. As we mentioned in the series preview, it's important that the Canadiens avoid the penalty box, because it offers the Rangers a path to victory.

- Good PK by the Canadiens - not entirely suprirrisng since this unit has been among the League's best since Julien took over.

- Beaulieu with a couple of great scoring chances high slot, but can't deliver his shots on goal. That's been an issue with him all season - shot accuracy.

- Habs largely dominating the game so far, but Rangers strike first, as Plekanec wins a deep draw, but his wingers, specifically, Paul Byron, fails to tie up their marks, in this instances it's Glass, who with a fierce backhander that hits top corner. 1-0 New York.

- Galchenyuk looks great, but he isn't getting much help from his inept line mates Martinsen and Ott  both of whom are predictably mixing it up physically, but can't do a damn thing with a hockey puck.

- Lindqvist has stopped all 12 shots he's faced, but his style shouldn't endear Ranger fans with confidence. Scrambly would be a good way of describing his style so far.

- McDonagh gets nailed for an interference, with a strange play on Pacioretty at centre ice, with the puck really nowhere close. Gotta be smarter than that.

- Julien goes with Andrew Shaw first unit, a page out the book of Therrien. Doesn't work very well at least that first attempt. Galchenyuk  on the 2nd unit, which is something, I guess.

- Smith high sticks Lehkonen, Montreal's powerplay extends from 2 to 4 minutes.e

- Aside from the Glass goal, difficult to feel disappointed with that 1st period, the Habs outshooting the Rangers 14-5, which is not a sustainable number if you're hoping for a New York victory. Don't think Lundqvist looked anything but slightly shaky, which means he's likely getting too many good looks at shots. Habs could probably offer a bit more traffic around the crease, and shouldn't be wary of crashing the Rangers net when the opportunity presents itself (Ott had managed to run over Lundqvist earlier in the period). Don't like the score, but like the mostly dominated Habs period.


SECOND PERIOD:

- Domination by Habs in that 1st period, 77.3% CF ... at even strength. Rangers with a couple horseshoes helping them stay ahead on the scoreboard:

- While the Canadiens had a very strong 1st, one failing were their attempts. Just one high danger in the frame, which is not nearly good enough against any opponent or their goaltender:

- Underlying numbers are hard to debate, here. If the Canadiens play the 2nd and 3rd periods like they played the first, the Rangers will need a miracle to win this hockey game.

- Maybe Vigneault read them a copy of the riot act during the intermission - Rangers coming out a bit faster this period.

- Stumbling start this period, Rangers doing much better job retreating to their own zone, and for bottling up centre ice. Canadiens unable to muster much speed with the puck so far.

- Rangers clearly turning the tables this period, Habs need to regroup. Ott and Martinsen with two terrible shifts this period, at some point Julien has to think about moving Galchenyuk up, maybe switching him up with Dwight King, who's doing his line no favours so far, either.

- Rangers have the forecheck running full throttle, and it's keeping the puck mostly in the Habs zone. 7 minutes gone in the period, Montreal still hasn't registered a shot.

- Habs 4th line officially back to being a tire fire again. Julien needs to make an intervention, or at the very least, significantly scale back their playing time (while moving Galchenyuk to another line).

- Weber with a cannon, which is good. But it's a shot that Lindqvist is allowed to see without any distractions in front, which makes it a routine save by NHL standards. Habs have to get bodies in front, or they're not going to score.

- Mats Zuccarello, who's been the target of Shea Weber tonight, with a dirty low hit on Gallagher that the officials refuse to call. Not cool. Not cool.

- Great shift by Galchenyuk, one of the best I've seen all year, and it puts the Rangers entirely on the defence. Canadiens come close to score, with pucks loose around Lindqvist, but predictably, neither Ott nor Martinsen can shoot it home. At some point Julien will need to reconsider his strategy, Galchenyuk needs to be put next to people with goal scoring abilities. Otherwise, all this fine play is being wasted.

- That Galchenyuk shift has changed the dynamics of this game, Habs swarming Lundqvist, who has to make a couple of big saves to keep his team ahead.

- Galchenyuk with a *do'h* puck handling off the faceoff, which is probably the most avoidable penalty possible. Sigh. Goodbye momentum.

- Ut-oh, extended Rangers 5-on-3 advantage, as Gallagher is nabbed for a hold.

- Simply outstanding kill by the Habs PK, Markov and Weber really shining. Huge missed opportunity for the Rangers.

- Well, that was an unexpectedly bad period for the Habs, especially in light of what we saw in the first. Maybe this team came out a little too fast, too hard? It happens, especially game one at home in the playoffs. Still, there's no excuse for the way this team played in that 2nd period, the Rangers clearly reorganized and refocused during the 1st intermission, and took it to Montreal for the first 14 minutes of that period, dominating possession and the shot clock. Galchenyuk played a very strong period, Dwight King was very weak. Claude Julien, the hockey gods are basically screaming at you to make an obvious adjustment - moving Galchenyuk up to King's spot, and King back down to the 4th line. HEED THE GODS.

THIRD PERIOD:

- Oy, what a turnaround. Canadiens ridiculously lucky to be only 1-0 down at this point, including the fact they managed to kill an extended 2 man advantage. Rangers CF (5v5) in the 2nd alone was 67%+:

- Julien sticks with King along side Lehkonen and Shaw. Sigh.

- Rangers are stacking their line, and so far, the Habs have no response.

- Habs are gonna have to do this the hard way - shooting pucks, hitting and retrieving. Rangers also doing an excellent job covering passing lanes in their zone. Canadiens can't muster up any form of sustained puck pressure.

- Shaw sets King up perfectly in the slot, shot fired hits Lundqvist in the head. If that's Galchenyuk, it's like a tie game. CLAUDE TAKE A HINT.

- Rangers are winning most of the puck battles, especially in their own zone, against Bergevin's "bigger", "tougher" team.

- Habs look spent. Gave it all the 1st period, battled to keep the floodgates closed in the 2nd, limping through the 3rd.

- Julien steadfast with his line combinations, refusing to budge an inch. He's picked his hill to die on tonight, dammit.

- 6 minutes left, Habs will have to gamble now with hard pinches. Nothing else has worked. Julien won't make any adjustments, so now we need some luck to salvage this game.

- Phillip Danault won't be bookmarking this game as a career highlight, and he gets nailed for an anxious tripping penalty in the O-zone. Another viable candidate for some kind of line juggling, but Julien remains steadfast.

- Habs kill the Danault dumb-ass penalty, but lose two minutes off the clock. 3 minutes left, time to roll all the dice.

- Julien switches up King and Galchenyuk. With 2 minutes left in the 3rd. Too little, too late.

- Grabner, empty net. Game over.

- Habs get shut out. It's not rocket science. You put one of your best forwards on the 4th line for 58 minutes, you're going to struggle to generate offence. And now the Habs suddenly find themselves in a must-win position, with the playoffs literally just begun.

Game 2, there's no excuse for Galchenyuk to be mired next to Martinsen and Ott. There's no excuse for Dwight King to be in over his head on the 3rd line. This team ought easily handle an opponent like the Rangers. Instead, the Rangers easily handled the Habs tonight, especially in batting for pucks. This against Marc Bergevin's reconstructed "tough" hockey team. Well tonight, his troops got manhandled.



HABS AND RANGERS FIRST ROUND PREVIEW: 

Well, it's arrived. The Stanley Cup Playoffs.

For fans of the Montreal Canadiens, the fight for a championship has been two years waiting. 24 months have passed since the last spring of promise, and just 12 months time removed from the disastrous 2015-16 campaign, a season in which the Canadiens finished with just 38 wins.

This year, it's been different. From 38 wins last season, to 47 this season.

All of this while in the shadow of "the trade".

In late June of last year, the Canadiens sent star defender P.K. Subban to the Nashville Predators in return for the hulking body that comprises Shea Weber. The deal stunned Habs fans, many of whom had developed a affectionate following for Subban, who, just weeks previously, had himself made a $10 million commitment to the Montreal Children's Hospital.

The trade, in itself, highlighted a deep and unabiding insecurity over certain perceptions that had haunted the franchise for years:  The Canadiens are too small. The Canadiens lack character. The Canadiens aren't tough or rough enough to compete.

The acquisition of Weber, all 6'4", 230 lbs of man mountain, changed the dynamics, or at the very least, the perception that Montreal didn't have the muscle required to ice a truly competitive hockey team.



The "toughing" of the Habs actually started in earnest before the Subban trade. In the days leading up, General Manager Marc Bergevin, then entering 4th season within the Canadiens' front office, traded away Lars Eller, who had attained a reputation for soft play, and then hours later, made a play for Chicago Black Hawks grinder-supreme Andrew Shaw, whom had caught the G.M.'s eye during his time as an assistant G.M. in Chicago. For Beregvin, Shaw shored up the "character gap" that had presumably dogged the organization for so many years.

The Eller deal and Shaw trade would, of course, be totally overshadowed 3 days later when P.K. said his goodbyes to Montreal. But in the aftermath of the trade, Bergevin made a free agent signing which, in retrospect, may have had a bigger impact on the Canadiens fortunes this season than either Weber or Shaw.

It was Canada Day, when Bergevin announced that he had won a fierce bidding war against the Colorado Avalanche for services of Alexander Radulov, who 4 years earlier had been banished from the NHL because of management conflicts with the Nashville Predators. It was a watershed moment for the Canadiens who entering the 2016-17 season, desperately needed scoring punch on the wing. Previous experiments with the likes of Dale Weise, Thomas Fleischmann, Alexander Semin and Devante Smith-Pelly had failed to pan out.

From game one it was clear the Canadiens had finally found their wingman in Radulov, whose speed, skill, grit and playmaking abilities made him an immediate fan-favourite:



While much last summer's roster limelight was cast on the likes of Radulov, Shaw and Weber, another roster move, which at the time received relatively little attention, has had a big impact on the Habs offence. That addition, made back in May, 2016, was the entry level signing of Arttruri Lehkonen, who had originally been drafted by the Habs in the 2nd round of the 2013 Draft.

Lehkonen, while not possessing Radulov's brawl or intensity, has in short order evolved into one of the most talented young two-way players in the NHL. Lehkonen's hockey intelligence, in combination with a fierce wrist shot, helped him to score 18 goals in his rookie campaign, no small accomplishment for a winger who had largely fallen off the radar of most Habs hockey observers before his signing. Just look at his shot from a game in early March against the Panthers:



These are not the same Habs as the old Habs. With Radulov, Lehkonen, elite scoring from captain Max Pacioretty, and 20+ goal production from Paul Bryon the Canadiens front lines have as much depth this season as any in recent memory - bolstered further by the presence of a healthy and productive Brendan Gallagher.

Ah yes, health. That's a big word around Montreal, especially so given what happened to Carey Price last season. The Canadiens, blessed they be with talent up front, will only go this post-season as far as their healthy all-world goaltender can carry them. It goes without saying that the Habs, with Price in top form, are a much more difficult team to beat in a seven game series. And while Price has had his ups-and-downs this season, his form has looked excellent since the Canadiens made a mid-season coaching shift in February, with Carey putting up a +.940 SV% since then.

Oh right. The coaching change. We almost forgot about that.

Truth be told, the Montreal Canadiens were never going to compete for a championship under Michel Therrien, who somewhere along the way, lost the room. Blessed with talent and a healthy Carey Price, the Habs nosedived from a comfortable 1st place lead at the start of the calendar year, into nearly out of a playoff spot in a mere 6 week span. The underpinning trend was dreadful:

Following a 4-0 loss at the hands of the Bruins, Marc Bergevin, realizing the season was slipping away, and born from the opportunity of having an available Claude Julien, made a change that so many Habs fans have been pining for years. The effect of the change was nearly immediate:

So what does this all add up to? It adds up to a Montreal Canadiens team that, for the first time in 25 years, has a viable chance at winning a Stanley Cup championship.

But it won't be easy. It will mean having to beat tough competition, be it the Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, Chicago Black Hawks - or someone else. 

It will mean, of course, beating the Habs first round opponent, the New York Rangers. So, before we put any carts before any horses, let's look at the 1st round, and break these two teams down a little:

OFFENCE:

Both clubs enter the playoffs with reasonably deep offences, but big questions surrounding their deployment. Under head coach Alain Vigneault, now in his 5th season behind the New York bench, the Rangers aren't a particularly strong possession team, as this season's rolling game average shows:

The Rangers, as per usual, bring plenty of speed to the rink, bolstered by the infamous Kreider, who's had an excellent campaign with 28 goals scored. Along with Kreider the Rangers have veteran Rick Nash, as well as Mats Zuccarello. The Canadiens defence will need to be fleet to contain the Rangers transition, which has the potential of turning the game in their favour on a dime. The Habs, meanwhile, have managed to build three relatively well balanced lines, headlined by Max Pacioretty, Alex Radulov and Phillip Danault first line pairing. Still, there are big questions surrounding how the Habs offence has been constructed and deployed. At the trade deadline, Marc Bergevin made questionable acquisitions in Steve Ott and Andreas Martinsen, both of whom bring physicality to the Canadiens lineup, but on any given shift, are a significant defensive liability. There's also controversy at hand - with Alex Galchenyuk, the presumed top-6 centre, who's found himself now buried on the 4th line wing along side Ott and Martinsen. If head coach Claude Julien is steadfastly intent on burying one of his best offensive assets on the bottom line, the Canadiens offensive potential will be hampered significantly.

PLAYERS TO WATCH: for the Rangers, keep an eye on both Derek Stepan, who's seeking to have a breakout post-season, and Michael Grabner, who's mired in a deep slump. If Stepan produces, and Grabner finds his game, the Rangers will be keeping Carey Price busy through most of the series. For the Habs, obviously it's Alex Galchenyuk - somehow he's got to find his way back to (at the very least) the Habs 3rd line. Being isolated next to marginal NHL forwards will make his ability to produce points limited at best.

ADVANTAGE: RANGERS

DEFENCE:

The Habs are making a few adjustments to their blue line with Alexei Emelin not playing tonight due to injury. Brandon Davidson, who was picked up at this year's trade deadline, will be in the lineup tonight in his very first playoff game. Otherwise, the Canadiens defence, with or without Emelin, matches up well against any League opponent. We all know Shea Weber's story and what he brings to the table - while Andrei Markov, even at the ripe age of 39, is playing arguably his best hockey in a decade. 

The Rangers' defence is lead of course by captain Ryan McDonagh, who'll be paired with Dan Girardi. While there's no question McDonagh is a top line defender, Girardi, who's had an up-and-down season, might not be the Rangers' best option compared to other more viable candidates like Brandon Smith or even Nick Holden. Vigneault seems to be taking a more diluted approach to his defence, in contrast to the Habs playing their top two defenders, Weber and Markov, together.

Keys players to watch this series. No doubt for the Habs it's Nathan Beaulieu, who had a sparkling training camp and pre season, but has struggled with consistency through most of the season. Beaulieu has demonstrated good puck moving abilities through much of his career - if he's able to consistently feed the puck to his forwards, it'll make the Habs transition and speedy forward much more difficult to contain. For the Rangers, it's Girardi, who we mentioned previously has struggled with consistency through much of the season. If he's able to get his game in order, the Rangers will have a potent shut down 1st pairing.

ADVANTAGE: HABS

GOALTENDING:

On paper, the series appears stacked in the Canadiens' favour. The Habs have a good record against the Rangers this season, winning all 3 contests by a margin of 12-7.

The difference makers in those game, both good and bad, was goaltending. And what helped the Canadiens win during the regular season is likely to help them advance in the playoffs.

From the Rangers perspective, hopes are pinned on King Henrik Lundqvist, the venerable veteran netminder who's had an excellent NHL career playing in a blue shirt.

Against the Habs? The picture changes.

Since 2012, King Henrik has played the Montreal Canadiens 12 times, including the playoffs. He has won 4 times. Of those 4 wins, Carey Price was in net for Canadiens a grand total of zero times. Lundqvist's winning success against the Canadiens, at least those 4 times, was because of this:


That collision came 3 years ago, knocking Price out of the playoffs, and with it, the Habs hopes of advancing to the Stanley Cup final.

What about with Carey Price in goal? Lundqvist's numbers drop to 0-7-1. A 3.22 GAA and a .886 Sv%. Under normal circumstances, those figures wouldn't be good enough to get you a backup job in the NHL.

Price, meanwhile, has owned the Rangers. Never losing over 5 years, Price has put up numbers that under normal circumstances, would result in a Vezina Trophy romp: A 1.29 GAA and a .955 Sv%

ADVANTAGE: HABS


SO WHO'LL WIN?

At the end of the day, the Habs are likely to win this series, because of their significant goaltending edge, and a more properly deployed defence. The Rangers best hopes are in their ability to outscore the Canadiens, meaning their forwards will need to elevate their game significantly, bolstered by a productive powerplay. Habs in 5 games.

Game Forty-Seven: Habs vs. Rangers

THIRD PERIOD:

- Plekanec/Pacioretty/Gallagher. Sure, it was a powerplay line, but progress!!

- Price up to his usual tricks, absolutely robbing Stepan with a marvellous sprawling pad save. St Louis now skating around in disbelief. With a mortal in net, it's 1-0. 

- Rangers really turning up the heat with 8 minutes left, but the puck luck has been firmly bouncing in the Habs' favour. 

-   I'm petty damn sure Sekac next to Plekanec and Pacioretty would be giving oppositions defenders plenty o' fits.

- Lindqvist went more than six periods without letting in a goal against this Habs team, and then he lets that in? Crazy. Crazy luck for Habs tonight. 1-0 with four minutes left.

- Here come the Rangers ...

- Habs forwards seem to be having great difficulties of late with putting pucks into goaltender-less nets.

- Carey Price, no problem. And the Habs win another maddeningly dysfunctional game. Again.

SECOND PERIOD:

- So, how long will it take before Subban is profiled again by this crew?

- Two entirely futile powerplays for the Habs tonight. Slipping back towards the specialty unit abyss.

- Rangers a bit snakebit this period - by far the better team but passes aren't quite connecting, shots finding a way of not going in.

- Closing in on six straight periods without a goal scored on the Rangers by his Habs club. Not even Price can bail his team out of this kind of production.

- Not exactly enthralling hockey tonight. Habs slipping back into their overtly conservative ways, playing classic Therrien hockey. Surrendering the initiative. And so the Rangers were handed the period, but really didn't do a whole lot with the opportunity. I guess it'll be up to Price to steal another one. Sigh.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Oh yeah. I'd forgotten. I guess our hopes of Emelin getting supplemental discipline after his CFB Tuesday night went out the window. The League obviously hates the Habs.

- Am I the only one who has dreams at night if Sekac playing on the first line? Am I weird? Don't answer that.

- Alexei Emelin slow and soft in front of his net. In other news, the Sun rose.

- It's just so damn obvious. Why hasn't this happened? 1. Shelve/trade Emelin. 2. Get Weise off the first line. 3. Shelve Malhotra permanently. So many addition via subtraction moves this team could make that would make them miles better in an instant. 

- Christian Thomas on 2nd powerplay unit? I'm all for playing the kids, but he's no powerplay winger.

- Subban called for embellishment, for the life of me, I can't figure out for what? And the profiling continues ...

- Pacioretty just had a shift without Dale Weise and guess what - he generates a high quality scoring chance. Shocking.

- Kreider tries to bait Subban into a fight. P.K. Laughs in Kreider's face. Kreider is as low as they get. But we already knew that, right?

- Incredible. Subban also sent to the box for having the audacity of not fighting, I guess? That's two times this period Subban has been profiled and targeted by some awful striped officials.

- Did Weise actually score? It's hard to tell for certain with the cameras they have. Why hasn't the League installed super slow-mo cameras for situations like this?

GAMEDAY GAME PREVIEW:

This guy. Yeah that guy above. Look at that. LOOK AT IT. I'm already angry. I just wanna give that face a good hard smackin', and that's not even considering the fact that this smug little guy completely and utterly derailed our hopes of making it to the Stanley Cup Finals last season, because of this:

Avoiding contact, my butt. Just look at that. One purposeful crash into the net, and all playoff hopes were extinguished. It still smarts today to think about it. Revenge. We want it.

Well, we had an opportunity early in the season to give the Rangers a little taste of come-uppance, and we got a taste of sorts back in October when the Habs beat the Rangers 3-1. But then in November, the Habs got, in one of their ugliest games played all season, curb stomped by the blue shirts 5-0. I hate, HATE the Rangers.

Anyway, a season on, and New York still is a pretty good team. 7th in the Conference, but it's a deceptive placing. I think the Rangers are better than their record represents - 9th rated League offense, 4th rated defense, I would not be the least bit surprised that this team will gradually climb higher up the standings as the season heads towards the stretch drive. I think the Rangers are likely to (bold prediction time) eventually overtake the Washington Capitals, Pittsburgh Penguins, and yes, the Canadiens, before all is said and done.

Rangers are a team that, like last year's club, thrive off speed, and spread their scoring around. Rick Nash, Martin St. Louis, Derick Brassard and Derek Stepan all have more than 30+ points - they have three competent scoring lines at their disposal. This can be a very, very tough team to play against.

Meanwhile in Habsland, the team continues to just haphazardly rumble down the road, picking up unlikely win after unlikely win, even though they get outplayed, out-possessed and outshot virtually each and every game. The only other significant consistent has been the ridiculously good play of Carey Price, whom game after game, bails his outplayed team to victory. 

Not helping the Habs cause is coach Michel Therrien's continued insistence of putting 4th liner Dale Weise on the team's top line, which, unsurprisingly, had resulted in the suffocation of that line's offensive production. It certainly has dramatically scaled back the ability of players like Max Pacioretty or Thomas Plekanec, or Brenden Gallagher, or whomever else has been saddled with Weise, to generate appropriate levels of offensive production. Yet, for reasons that continue to baffle closer followers of this team, Therrien keeps putting Weise out there, the line continues to get badly outplayed virtually ever shift, and the team as a whole, is left figuring out how to win with its hands tied behind its collective backs, courtesy the coach's terrible bench decisions.

Oh well. Again tonight it's Price in net. Which means the Habs have just as much a chance tonight of winning as any other night. They'll probably get badly outplayed, but that doesn't seem to really matter.

Puck drops at 7:10 EST.

Game Four - EC Final: Habs vs. Rangers

OVERTIME: 

- Subban cracked the half hour mark through 30 minutes. Expect him to play every other shift from here on out.

- What a dumb penalty by Pouilot. Wow.

- All Habs in this OT. Lots of pucks at Lundqvist. Looking for a game winning bounce.

- And there you have it. Habs 4th line unable to clear the zone after multiple chances, and St. Louis finally solves Tokarski at the greatest possible time. Emelin probably the biggest failing culprit. Heartbreak. Pure heartbreak.

- So much Emelin did wrong on that last sequence, but whatever. He is what he is, what's done is done. The Habs ultimately were undone by their inability to capitalize on multiple powerplay opportunities. The game itself really shouldn't have even required an overtime. The Habs forwards, and there were many, just didn't do their jobs, didn't put out their best effort, and didn't deliver a victory that was so hard fought for by the remarkable Dustin Tokarski. That's the real tragedy in all of this. Tokarski has come to the Habs goaltending rescue, but too many of his linemates have failed to hear and respond to his heroics.


THIRD PERIOD:

- So Pacioretty has 15 minutes through 2 period, Therrien obviously sensing an impending breakout (man, Max .. if there was ever a time ...). Vanek. You remember him? He used to play beside Max. Just over 7 minutes. 

- Here we go. Early powerplay chance.

- SUBBAN. LE CANNON. Tie game.

- Rangers continue to be besieged by penalties, mainly trips, and the officials are calling everything. While they haven't converted in all of the 7 received so far (except 1, of course), it's given the Habs plenty of tempo in this period, the Rangers spending most of the time so far on the defensive. Tokarski hasn't had much work ... yet ... but with the game settling, that'll change.

- Vanek's effort level right now is just slightly that above a sloth. At this point, he's dangerous to even shift. Therrien would be wise just to staple him to the bench.

- Period winds down, mainly controlled by the Habs, but it's a nervous finish. Looks like the game, and quite possibly the series, will be determined by a mistake.

- Lots of warriors out there for the Habs tonight, but also a lot of floaters. The difference is pretty stark.

- Sweet jesus of christ, Therrien puts out Briere, Vanek and Bourque with less than a minute left. What IS HE THINKING!?

- Well, the mission, at least the important part, was accomplished by the Habs. They tied the game, and will get their shot of taking some control over this series if they can score the next goal. But that won't come easy. This has been an extraordinary game with some incredible physical battles for the puck. These teams are pushing each other to their respective outer limits, and for hockey aficionados, it's been a joy to watch. The bottom line is that the Habs have been the better team since the start of the 2nd period, and are on the cusp of making a remarkable series recovery.


SECOND PERIOD:

- Amother sluggish start to the period for the Habs, their collective legs simply not moving.

- Habs bright spot - their PK. Rangers have decent passing but unable to penetrate the Montreal crease for a high chance scoring opportunity.

- Rick Nash barrels into Tokarski, full speed. When will this madness stop?

- Habs better this frame than last. Still getting outskated, but they appear to be more involved defensively - New York not nearly as free wheeling. Right now it appears the Habs are sticking around, looking for a mistake.

- And there it is, Rangers defense make a terrible pinch given Habs a three on one, and Bouillon, of all the players, beats Lundqvist high. Not sure how Therrien is doing this, but the defensive switch pays off.

- Markov shows JT Miller the consequences of taking runs at goaltenders. Face, meet goalpost.

- Rangers look disorganized, maybe even a little stunned, after that tying goal. Habs getting much more puck possession in New York zone now.

- Huge blocker save by Tokarski, about as good as the two gems against St. Louis Thursday night. He's doing about all you could ask and more.

- Vanek really struggled last shift, be interested to see if we see him again anytime soon.

- Tokarski with a sick glove save on a St Louis break - perhaps the best of the playoffs. Oh yeah. A shorthanded break. 

- Bouillon somehow totally misses a shift call as Habs changed after getting the puck deep. Brassard left wide open to receive a 150 foot pass and blasts a slapper past Tokarski. Unstoppable. Unforgivable, really. How Bouillon didn't go out when he was supposed to is utterly perplexing.

- Bouillion giveth, Boullion taketh away. Really shouldn't be surprised by that, but it's particularly maddening given how well the Habs played in that period, fighting to tie, and then very nearly taking the lead off a pretty good late period powerplay. But Bouillon, his head in the clouds, undoes all that hard work. And now the Habs find themselves down a goal with 20 minutes left in a must-win game.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Confirming what we've already reported, Stepan is out for the Rangers, as well as Beaulieu for Montreal. Bouillon slots in.

- Big question of the night, is Dominic Moore going to make the Habs deeply regret letting him walk four years ago?

- Crazy soft call on Gorges. Officials setting a very bad tone early.

- Habs defense continues to do a lousy job of getting shots on goal, even with the shooting lanes wise open. 

- Habs powerplay simply unable to gain puck possession in the rangers zone, tonight and the entire series. This team's powerplay units go into dreadful funks at the worst possible time.

- What the hell was that? Markov and Subban completely screw the pooch and surrender a shorthanded goal. Abysmal.

- Habs totally manhandled the first 15 minutes - trying to think of a bright spot, all I can find is Tokarski. Otherwise, nothing. All Rangers. This could be another 7-2 final.

- Rangers putting out top line, as we said earlier, whenever Bouillon hit the ice. New York totally dominating, swarming the Habs like a pack of infuriated bees. Tokarski keeping them in - barely.

Well, we've arrived. The pivotal fourth game of the Eastern Conference Final. The winner tonight gaining a substantial advantage towards determining who will play in the Stanley Cup Final. So a few pregame thoughts:

- By now you've heard about the kerfuffle over the Rangers sending a couple of assistant coaches to scout the Habs practice on Saturday, which is a long established no-no in the NHL playoffs. The coaches were called out mid-practice by Michel Therrien, in a rather loud epitaph containing some rather salty language, as you do if you're Michel Therrien.  The whole incident, including Alain Vigneault's silly expression of innocence today, is pure gamesmanship, mainly on the part of the Rangers. There are, of course, no actual strategic advantages to watching the opposing team practice - both teams know each other inside out, both are fully aware of the other's game plan and their key strategies. Hockey, especially in the post-season, is pure execution. Anyway, the Rangers are clearly doing what they can to get under the skin of the Habs - to that extent, I find attending the Canadiens' team practice totally transparent and juvenile, offering no real benefit, except to tick the Habs off (which might actually backfire).

- More gamesmanship nonsense today over Therrien's comments about being aware of what Derick Brassard's injuries are, the insinuation being that the Habs might try to focus exploiting that injury (upper body, almost certainly a mild shoulder separation). The Rangers took exception, of course, but the bottom line is this: If an opponent has a known weakness, it's your responsibility to focus on that vulnerability to gain advantage. Especially in a seven game series where there are exceptionally narrow differences between the two opponents.

- Although nobody has confirmed, it's a pretty safe bet the reason why Frankie Bouillon is drawing in tonight in place of Nathan Beaulieu is because the Habs rookie defenseman is nursing some sort of an injury. Putting Bouillon on at face value, makes little logical sense. Beside Doug Murray, he's the Habs slowest starting blue liner, which matches up very badly against the Rangers speedy forwards. Fully expect Vigneault and company to do line matching to the extreme whenever Bouillon and his defensive Mike Weaver, take a shift.

- Game Three hero Dustin Tokarski will be asked one more time, to deliver an excellent performance tonight, which is mandatory if the Habs are to stand a reasonable chance of evening the series. Tokarski as we know, was excellent on Thursday night, and his post-game comments were very impressive in how calm he maintained his demeanor. Still, you have to believe that Tokarski, at his age and experience, must be feeling some pretty tremendous pressure - his ability to overcome the focus of five million hopeful fans in Quebec will, more than anything, determine whether he can play the role of hero one more time tonight.

- Michael Bournival also starts tonight for the suspended Brandon Prust, which I think is a significant blessing in disguise. Bournival brings so much more to the table against an opponent like the Rangers, in that he's got tremendous speed, and has proven himself a far more effective checking forward than Prust. I fully expect the Habs to be better in generating more turnovers, and holding their own at centre ice, tonight.

- Speaking of Prust and his suspension, Derek Stepan, who someone sustained a broken jaw after taking a no head contact hit, will not play tonight, which won't be an easy spot to fill for the Rangers offense. They won't be as fast, or as skilled tonight.

- The three day break between games, I believe, were of greater benefit to the Rangers, the extra time allowing them to compose themselves after a disappointing Game Three loss. This is a series very much determined by momentum, and the 72 hour separation didn't do the Habs any favors towards capitalizing against a (somewhat) reeling opponent. If the Canadiens were to win game four, then the Rangers would almost certainly be fit to be tied, the Habs would be heavy favorites to win this series in 6 or 7 games.

Puck drops at 8:10 EST.

Game Three - EC Final: Habs vs. Rangers

SATURDAY NEWS 'N' NOTES:

- So it's two games for Brandon Prust for his non-head contact hit on Derek Stepan which, inexplicably, somehow broke his jaw. 

- Habs practice lines today, sans Prust:

Line 1: Pacioretty/Desharnais/Gallagher
Line 2: Galchenyuk/Plekanec/Gionta
Line 3: Bourque/Eller/Vanek
Line 4: Bournival/Brière/Weise

No shockers here, Bournival, as we knew, draws in for Prust, and Weise/Vanek trade spots on the 3rd/4th lines.

Markov - Emelin
Gorges - Subban
Bouillon - Weaver

Bouillion. BOUILLON. Good grief, Michel. Why? Why?! WHY!?!?

More later as it comes along.

=======================================================================

CBC (Darlene Tokarski)

ABOUT LAST NIGHT:A few thoughts the morning after the night of the Habs game 3 victory.

- Dustin Tokarski becomes one of the most unlikely heroes you'll ever see. If you pause and think for a moment where Tokarski was just a short time ago, toiling in relative obscurity within the Tampa Bay Lightening organization. Somewhere along the way, Tampa more or less gave up on Tokarski as a long-term project, and shuffled him off to Montreal, in return for another "lost" netminding project in Cedrick Desjardins. While Tokarski did get some NHL work this year, filling in as a backup to Peter Budaj while Carey Price recovered from a knee injury, the premise that anyone in Tokarski's position would not only be playing, but winning a Stanley Cup playoff Conference Finals game is nearly preposterous.

In any case, Tokarski was superb last night - the two pucks that crossed his line were unstoppable. His performance behind a team that was often overwhelmed, has given the Canadiens life, and most importantly, a glimmer of hope where almost none existed last Monday, after the devastating news was delivered that Carey Price would no longer be able to play in the series.

- Habsland, as you might expect, is buzzing with joy over Thursday night's result, although if you look at the bigger picture, it wasn't a particularly impressive victory. The Rangers had their game rolling, especially headmanning the puck out of their zone, and creating multiple turnovers in the Habs zone, which probably would have resulted in a scoreboard thumping if it wasn't for Tokarski's heroics. Surely in reviewing the game tape, the Habs will understand that their performance in game 3 wasn't acceptable, in particular, their total inability to muster together much of anything resembling a transition, and numerous instances where their forwards were dogging it back to cover the Rangers' rush.

- Thomas Vanek. I'm pretty much ready to throw in the towel. Last night's game was truly abysmal for the enigmatic forward. You know it's bad when there's a collective reaction of joy amongst the Habs faithful when Vanek finally got a shot on net during the second period. Vanek was on full coast mode last night, just gliding around the ice, occasionally making semi-hearted efforts digging out pucks along the board, by and large letting his linemates do most the tough work while he drifted around waiting to receive passes that of course, never came. His backchecking was almost non-existent. It was a totally unacceptable performance by a player who's banking on landing a huge free agent contract this summer. I have no idea what Vanek is thinking by going through the motions in a Conference Final, but be assured that there are many League General Managers monitoring this series, who'll have significant second thoughts about offering Vanek anything long-term come this July.

- While Thomas Plekanec got the assist on the overtime winner, he, and his linemate Brian Gionta, have been pretty underwhelming in the series. They certainly haven't done a whole lot to contain the Rangers' speedy forwards, and they've offered very little in the form of an offensive contribution, the biggest culprit being Gionta, who hasn't scored in nearly a month. Michel Therrien has rightly expressed outward frustration about their lack of contributions, but calling them (gently) out doesn't appear to be working. Long-term, Marc Bergevin has some decisions to make this summer, one of them being (I hope) that Gionta is not offered a renewal. His age and steeply declining production levels simply don't warrant the reward.

- Lots of questions this morning about whether Brandon Prust will be suspended following his late open ice hit on Derke Stepan. The reply shows that the hit, while high and clearly illegal (the puck was nowhere near), did not make any direct contact with Stepan's head. I was pretty unimpressed with Stepan's reaction as he lay face down on the ice.  In retrospect, it appears that the Rangers' forward tried to oversell the hit, especially with the over-the-top rant he presented while exiting to the dressing room. The League has formally notified Prust of a telephone hearing, which means he could receive a suspension. I think it's 50/50 that Prust gets a game. We'll see.

- Speaking of hits, what in the heck was Daniel Carcillo thinking after he took a swipe at linseman Scott Driscoll? Stupidity at its finest (or worst).  It's been fascinating to read perspectives from the Rangers' analysis camp, which have downplayed the assault as a mere "shove" at the official. It was no shove. Carcillo punched Driscoll in the face. The League will almost certainly come down hard, suspending Carcillo probably at least 10 games for the act. While Carcillo isn't an integral component to the Rangers' offense, his removal from the series does present a bit of a problem for Alain Vigneault, who's already lost Derick Brassard - possibly for the rest of the series. Minus Brassard and Carcillo, the Rangers offense just got a whole lot smaller and less physical, which might have significant ramifications if we end up playing 6 or 7 games.

 - Speaking of a long series, the magnitude of game four this Sunday cannot be underestimated. The series, in my opinion, will probably be decided by Sunday's outcome. A victory for the Rangers will give them a total stranglehold on the series, a win for Montreal will give them an enormous amount of confidence, momentum, and a restoration of home ice advantage heading back to Montreal. 


Montreal 3, New York 2 (OT)

OVERTIME:

- See what happen when you fire it at the net? Plekanec, who's had a huge struggle in this series, with a seemingly harmless shot that's redirected by Lundqvist off Galchenyuk's face and in the net. The Habs pull out an amazing, season-saving victory, and are now back in the series. Remarkable.

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs incredibly sloppy with the puck, especially in their own zone. This will come back to bite then, eventually.

- Vanek with possibly his weakest effort of the playoffs tonight, if that was even possible. His performance now richly deserved a healthy game 4 scratch.

- Crazy considering how poorly Vanek, Plekanec and Gionta have played tonight, that this game is one goal away from victory.

- Both teams playing extra cautious right now, waiting for a mistake. 

- Vanek ... With a shot on goal? No way.

- Markov with a monster shift to bail the Habs out, and Vanek, unvelievably, feeds Briere who astonishingly banks the puck off Mcdonagh, and Habs take the lead late.

- Tokarski with some astonishing goaltending to protect the lead, and then a feed in front banks off Emelin's skate, and in. Kreider, of all, gets credit. I cannot understand why Emelin was even out there in the first place, or Brain Gionta. What was Therrien thinking? So bitterly disappointing.

- That's a brutal way to surrender a win that would have gotten the Habs back into this series. Devastating.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Holy moly, Rangers had 68% Corsi in that period. That's horrible (for the Habs, of course). Eller line was particularly bad with the puck, but Plekanec and Gionta were particularly horrid. Man, I'm not sure what it's going to take to right this sinking ship, but Therrien simply must do something to get this team on track. Put Vanek with DD ... just ... something. 

- Habs breakout passing is about as bad as it could possibly be in this game of hockey.

- Habs finally do a proper breakout, and guess what? Goal. Weakish Lundqvist there?

- Desharnais and Pacioretty and Gallagher are working like monsters to score. Again, they're coming agonizingly close.

- Habs at least so far, with a decent bounce back period in comparison to the atrocity that was the first period.

- Kreider takes a run at Tokarski. Does not succeed injuring him. Maybe next time, Rangers fans.

- Habs powerplay picking a particularly bad time to go on summer vacation. Then again sending Plekanec and Gionta out there isn't helping.

- Disgraceful goaltending interference call on Gallagher. What was the referee thinking?

- That terrible call has given Rangers life, and momentum. It's so not fair.

- Kevin Pollock with two absolutely terrible calls on Gallagher in the 2nd period, the latest with just two seconds left, apparently a roughing, mere seconds after Gallagher received a nasty two handed slash from McDonagh.

- Well, a much, much better frame for the Habs, poor officiating notwithstanding. This is the situation the Habs wanted so desperately, a very good game by its starting goaltender, and a game up for grabs. Now, they must seize the opportunity to save their season. The key, I'm speculating, is some kind of production from their dormant powerplay. But that aside, this game can very much be won.


FIRST PERIOD:

- So reassuring to seek P.J. Stock think that Tokarski is a huge mistake tonight. The last time he was right about anything was ... ?

- So Vanek starts, but on the 4th line beside Prust and Briere, the later of which Vanek played with back in 2006 in Buffalo. Other lineup notables - Bournival out (Therrien, why do you always make this mistake?), and Prust, as mentioned, is in. Oh well.

- Pacioretty drives the net, gets good quality chance on Lundqvist. Exactly more of this, please.

- Desharnais way too cute carrying the puck into the Rangers zone. Less of this, please.

- Prust with a dirty elbow on Stephan at centre ice. He's incessed, so are the Rangers and everyone else on the arena.

- Rangers early momentum. Habs trying to get under New York's skin. Appears to be working.

- Tokarski, so far, so good. That's a good early sign.

- Canadiens with a little chip on their shoulder early. Also a good sign.

- Dorsett chases Prust around looking to even scores. Prust serves him lunch. More good signs.

- Maybe if Vanek were offered ten grand a shot, he'd be willing to SHOOT THE DAMN PUCK.

- Bourque with a terrible shift, just going through the motions. Not acceptable.

- Derek Stephan full of rage over the Prust hit. Borderline out of control right now.

- Thomas Plekanec has dodged a lot of criticsm this series. Not sure why, but he's deserved it for his inability to effectively check the Rangers offense.

- Pacioretty doing all the right things. Excepting beating Lundqvist.  

- Oh P.K., 1-0 Rangers.  

- Deaharnais line has come so close so many times scoring on Lundqvist, it's crazy.

- Well, tough game to figure. New York 14-4 SOG, but only a few were dangerous. Habs seemed too focused on clearing their zone, resulting in too many puck giveaways on the Rangers side of centre ice. Basically, the Habs transition game was MIA that entire period. Still, Tokarski was strong, and we'd be scoreless if it wasn't for Subban muffing his snap shot at the blue line (know Habs puck luck in this series, that shot probably would have gone in). Rangers won the period, but it wasn't quite as dominating as the shot clock might suggest.

GAMEDAY PREVIEW:

See the guy in the picture on the left? Yeah. You remember that guy, don't you? We picked him up on trade deadline day. A bargain, they said. A midling prospect in return for a star forward AND a draft pick. Man. That was some day.

How about the fellow on the right side of the picture? He was also traded away on deadline day, but the price was a tad steeper. Winger Ryan Callahan and two picks were needed to land St. Louis, who's got maybe two years left in his NHL body.


The thing about these trade deadline picks for big named stars is that buyers are more often surrendering known commodities (usually quality young talent and/or draft picks) in exchange for a snippet of elite performers. The price is heavy, but rational as long as the payoff is realized.

Well, it's been nearly three months since that trade deadline, and it's fair to say that based on the events that have led us up to the present, the unquestionable winners of that deadline day are the New York Rangers.

From the onset, it sure didn't look good for New York. Upon arriving with his new team, St. Louis' point production dropped through the floor, scoring a mere single goal and three assists in his first 17 games in a Rangers' uniform. But then, suddenly, on April 8, everything changed. In a relatively meaningless late season game against the Carolina Hurricanes, St. Louis stormed out of the game gate, setting up three Rangers goals on route to a easy victory. Since that date, St. Louis has scored 15 points in 18 games, and more notably, 2 goals and an assist in the first two games versus the Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Final.

A little further up the highway, Vanek's arrival in Montreal was hailed as a coup for Habs G.M. Marc Bergevin. It was difficult to argue differently. Bergevin gave up just a single prospect to borrow Vanek for a few weeks, which insofar as trade deadline sacrifices are concerned, wasn't exactly surrendering keys the organizational vault. Even though Vanek struggled at first to fit in with his new linemates, first getting paired along side Thomas Plekanec and Brian Gionta, where he scored just one assist in five games, Vanek suddenly caught fire when on March 16, coach Michel Therrien put him along side David Desharnais and Max Pacioretty. The net result? A hat trick performance against Patrick Roy and the Colorado Avalanche. With his new linemates, Vanek would score a total of 14 points the last 13 games of the regular season. The star had finally arrived.

But then, a funny thing happened. Vanek, mysteriously, stopped producing. Actually, he seemed to simply lose a skating step, somewhere along the line. Entering the first round of the playoffs, Vanek's point production didn't decrease significantly, but his effectiveness around the puck, and involvement with his linemates simple fell off a cliff. So far was the noted decline in play that Therrien began shuffling Vanek around, moving him down to third line duty, mainly. The net positive effect of this, however, has been pretty close to zero. Vanek's funk has only seemingly deepened.

The team and Vanek himself has repeatedly denied that he suffered an injury somewhere along the way, but I'm not convinced. No player as talented as Vanek can go from being so good, to being so listless and ineffective in such a short period of time. Looking back on scoring chances per possession stats, the turning point came somewhere around March 27th, in a game against Detroit, where somewhere during the second period, Vanek's possession numbers suddenly went very, very south. Something, I'm convinced, happened during that game that was significant enough to change one of the most dangerous snipers in the game of hockey, into a mere average, unremarkable forward.

So now it's come to this. Game three in which the Habs find themselves down 2-0, on the road, without their star goaltender, and badly, desperately needing production from the players who have been counted on to produce.

So tonight, many eyes will be cast down upon the stud acquisition - the player who many had counted on to help his team get over the post-season hump, towards a possible appearance in a Stanley Cup Final. It certainly can't get any worse for Vanek. He mustered up just two scoring chances in game one against the Rangers, the least amongst Habs forwards, and registered zero in game two.

It goes without saying, as goes Thomas Vanek, so too go the fortunes of the Montreal Canadiens.

Puck drops at 8:10 EST. Because NBCSN. 



NOT GAME DAY NEWS 'N' NOTES:

Happy Wednesday. Here's what's happening in Habsland today.

- Brassard practice! Wow. Hardly anybody from the public came out to watch. That's a pretty good sign local fan enthusiasm has taken a tumble. Habs simply need to win two in New York, and then this practice facility will have to start turning 'em away.

- Morning practice lines. Hmmm ... isn't this interesting?

1: Pacioretty/Desharnais/Gallagher
2: Galchenyuk/Plek/Gionta
3: Bourque/Eller/Weise
4: Prust/Briere/ and Bournival/Vanek rotating.

Wow. Weise gets bumped up to the Eller line (interesting), Bournival draws in for ... Vanek?

I mean, I agree with the general sentiment that Vanek hasn't been a sparkle in everyone's eyes this series, but to scratch him for game 3? That's a pretty radical move.

- Dustin Tokarski will start Game 3. That's a surprise - there's obviously something about Budaj's game that's caused Therrien to lose his confidence in him.

We'll update as the day progresses.

Game One - EC Final: Rangers vs. Habs

THIRD PERIOD:

- Budaj starts the 3rd, which isn't a surprise. But it's going fuel plenty of panic in Montreal about Price's injury status. No Price, Habs may as well just start thinking about October.

- Four Habs penalty killers all in the same corner, loose puck comes in front and McDonagh blasts it home. Best the Habs forget about the score, and look at the game tape.

- Habs coming completely undone now. Prust with a frustration penalty. Game will be 6-1 very soon.

- There it is. Rangers better be careful running up the score.

- 7-1. What else is there to say? Montreal will have to find their motivation for Game 2 via humiliation.

- Lars mutes the humiliation. Just a little bit.

- So Galchenyuk draws in, who comes out. CW says Bourque, but it could very well be Prust.

- Game two adjustments ought not be overreactive or radical. If Galchenyuk is game able, draw him in for Prust, who had a pretty awful game one. Maybe consider drawing Emelin, who was a disaster, out. I doubt, however, that Therrien would be willing to go that far.

- Must be philosophical about this. Habs were taken to the cleaners by an evenly matched team. So if you're going to lose, might as well do it with style and get it all out. The big question mark is a Price. Is he okay? If so, then the Habs can go to the board and recalibrare and figure this out. If not, the Habs are toast.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Rangers beating Habs at their own defensive game. Shot blocking anything remotely dangerous.

- Price. Hurt?  Oh god. 

- Little urgency in Habs game right now, finally starting to test Lundqvist.

- Habs really stringing together some impressive shifts strong on the forecheck, now generating high quality scoring chances, but Lundqvist coming up very big. Still, Habs have lots of 2nd period momentum here.

- Now we know what it felt like to be in Tampa Bay and Boston. Rangers brilliant shot blocking and goaltending. Transition ain't bad either. Don't know if there are any answers to this puzzle. Just keep crashing the net and hope for something resembling a rebound.

- In case you blinked, yeah Vanek is playing today. Sort of.

- Bourque gets Habs on the board, going to the net. Rangers protesting Habs had too many men. Still, the momentum factor pays dividends. We've got ourselves a game.

- Physical meter rising here. Lots of hits being dished out. Game taking another tone.

- Man, that's a good looking Rangers PK.

- Emelin's disasterous day continues. Blown coverage on his wing allowing Carter to walk in unmolested. 

- Disaster. Subban with neutral zone turnover, and soft retreat. Zuccarello makes it 4-1. It's a death chamber in the Bell Centre.

- Price doesn't look 100%. Pure speculation but he doesn't look right. Officially worried.

- Habs played an excellent 2nd period - for about 15 minutes. Then they flubbed a powerplay and the Rangers stuffed the game away leveraging their speed and skill. A horrible conclusion to what is now becoming yet another deadful afternoon of hockey in Montreal. 0-5 this season. 0-6 in 20 more minutes.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Habs going with the same lineup today as Games 6 and 7 against the Bruins.

- Therrien will try to match Subban against Richards line all day long.

- Speedy start both ends, McDonagh and Bourque especially so.  

- With all that speed out there, this series might be not as low scoring as everybody might think.

- St. Louis, with Bournival without his stick, open in front. Markov and Emelin with some soft slot coverage. 1-0. The emotional factor perhaps another dimension in the Rangers' favour. We'll see.

- Yikes. More soft slot coverage, again it's Moore as the setup man, this time it's Zuccarello. Therrien calls for time. Disasterous start for the sluggish and listless Habs.

- Good news, if there's any to be found for the Habs, is the time on the clock. There's a lot left.

- Markov and Emelin having real problems handling the Richards' line speed. Getting caught off the wing way too many times.

- Habs seemingly finding some footing here following the timeout. Shame they'd have to burn it just to gain some focus. How could you not have had any starting game one of a final four series?

- Crazy how much net there is with Lindqvist setting up so deep. The corners are just begging to be shot at.

- Wondering if it was a late Friday night for this lineup. Defense looks drowsy, faceoff percentage (30%) is abysmal. Team looks more zombie-like than inspired. 

- Therrien appears to be shaking up the lines, Bournival hasn't had a shift in some time.

- Bourque gets out of the box. Within 15 seconds gets nailed for another hook. Alex Galchenyuk now thinking about a game 2 start.

- Beaulieu with just 1:32 of time in the first period. Two shifts. That's perplexing given that he wasn't on for either Rangers goal.

- A total mess of a first period. Habs looked slow, unfocused, even disinterested? These are not the Bruins. The Rangers play the Habs style of hockey, which means the Canadians ought know their opponent inside out. Right now the Habs are playing catchup, the Rangers totally setting tone and pace. 

SERIES PREVIEW:

Well, here we are.  The Eastern Conference Final. Gotta say, it feels pretty good to write that.

Funny thing about rising to such rarefied heights. This year it feels different than in 2010. A lot different. Four years ago, the Habs were riding a tide of good fortune, backed by the unforeseen stellar performance of Jaroslav Halak, who led his team to two straight 3-games-to-1 series comebacks - first to the overwhelming favorites, the Washington Capitals (who'd finished first in the Conference), and then to the defending Stanley Cup champions from Pittsburgh.

But that was a crazy spring, the Habs lived each night on a prayer, getting destroyed on puck possession, which in turn led to some crazy final shot totals, often 2-to-1 in favour of the opposition. Still, the Habs managed somehow to find a way to the third round. The puck luck seemed endless.

Of course, everything came crashing back to earth once the Habs took on the Flyers, who easily brushed aside the undermanned Habs in five games. Our dreams were dashed, but the reality was, it was all a mirage.

But that was 2010. The Habs were undermanned. They didn't have four rolling lines. They had, at best, two functioning lines and a collection of make-do forwards who simply couldn't contribute as the playoffs went deeper.

But oh, how things have changed in four years.

This time around, it's different. Way different. The Habs, unlike 2010, are a functional four line team that's been blessed this spring no so much by bounces, but by health. As we type, there is literally no starting player on an injury list. Alex Galchenyuk, who missed the first two rounds with a knee injury, has been cleared for contact. So now the Habs are left with a problem most coaching staffs would kill for halfway through the Stanley Cup playoffs - they have too many players, and not enough slots.

This is not to say the Habs can waltz their way to their first appearance in a Stanley Cup Final in 21 years. Far from it. Their opposition, the New York Rangers, have a few things going their way as well.

First, and perhaps most importantly, the Rangers play a very good possession game, which as we all know (or should know) is a critical post-season component. During the regular season, New York ranked near the top of the League in this area, posting a League 6th best Corsi (53.2%) and Fenwick (53.6%). Both of these numbers have come back a bit in the post-season, but they're still indicative of a team that plays a pretty disciplined system.

So what to look out for? Well, aside from their top two lines which feature Rick Nash and Martin St. Louis, the Rangers have a pretty good bottom six core comprised of strong puck grinders like Mats Zuccarello (who I think could have a big series impact) and Derek Dorsett. It also features two ex-Habs in Benoit Poulliot, who could never find a footing in Montreal, and Dominic Moore, who was regrettably let go by the Habs after their miracle 2010 run (a move that was, in this writer's opinion, the worst decision made during the Pierre Gauthier era). These are all good core players, not elite guys, but battlers.

What the Rangers bring to the table, however, the Habs match. Aside from their two top scoring lines, which showed signs of heating up as the series against the Bruins drew to a close, the Habs have a nice thing going with their third line centred by Lars Eller, and featuring Habs captain Brian Gionta and Rene Bourque. While this line hasn't been producing some of the crazy good scoring results seen during the Tampa series, they were effective against Boston in a forechecking role, which helped stem some of the dangerous Bruins momentum swings.

The real Habs story of these playoffs, perhaps surprisingly so, has been the stellar performance of the Habs 4th line, with Dale Weise and a tandem of others like Travis Moen, Brandon Purst and Daniel Brière playing prominent roles not only driving the Bruins crazy with tenacious speed and checking, but contributing to scoring at the most critical times. I don't think this line has been given nearly enough credit for the Habs post-season success. It stands to reason at anytime, when your fourth line is producing, you're going to be an incredibly hard team to beat. On any night. Against any opposition.

The Habs have so much going their way. Four well balanced, productive and producing lines, (especially that 4th), a defense that's really found their footing since rookie Nathan Beaulieu was brought into the lineup, and of course, elite goaltending by the name of Carey Price. This is a team that as a collective, represents the Canadiens' best hopes for a championship in 21 years.

But first, the Rangers. While the Habs are favorites, and while most of the city of Montreal are banking on a quick an easy series win, I don't think it'll be as straightforward as anticipated. The Rangers bring four lines to the table, they have a solid defensive core, and while I don't think he's quite as good as Price, Henrik Lundqvist is having an excellent 2014 post-season.

That said, matching up one against the other, the Habs are the better team on offense, defense and goaltending. They're also putting up impressive specialty team numbers, currently holding a decisive post-season edge over New York with the powerplay (26.3-10.3%). Shorthanded, the teams are very even (82-80% in favour of the Rangers), but that man advantage differential could play a significant role in closely contested games.

It's really hard to argue with the paper on this. The Habs, who dominated the Rangers during regular season play, have no reason not to win this series in 6 games, and advance to the Championship Final.

Whatever happens, let's remember how rare these great playoff runs are, and borrow a phrase from Mr. Carey Price: Enjoy the moment.




FRIDAY NEWS 'N' NOTES:

Hey, Friday. Extra happy Friday. Those feet still floating a bit above ground today? Yeah, me too.

We've got the EC Final Preview coming up later today, but in the meantime, some news and notes:

- Alex Galchenyuk has been cleared for contact practice. This means he's just about ready for game action. His status for game one is questionable, but unless something drastic happens during practice time, he'll be game ready for this series. The big question though - who'll have to step aside to make way?

- Habs practice lines this morning. Identical to Games 6/7:

1: Pacioretty/Desharnais/Gallagher
2: Bournival/Plekanec/Vanek
3: Bourque/Eller/Gionta
4: Prust/Brière/Weise

- Milan Lucic. Man, this guy. Got a lifeline chance for some redemtion in an interview with ESPN. So what did Lucic say? "“I can’t take back what I said, so I’m not apologizing for what was said in the handshake."

Have a great summer, Milan.

More in a bit.