Game 53: Caps vs. Habs

Washington 3, Montreal 2:

FIRST PERIOD:

- Well, those lineup questions we asked have been answered, and while adjustments have been made (highlighted), it's not what we were speculating. Desharnais is a healthy scratch (!!), while 2nd and 3rd lines have been blendered up:

Pacioretty/Danault/Radulov

Lehkonen/Galchenyuk/Byron

Andrighetto/Plekanec/Shaw

De La Rose/Mitchell/Flynn

Weber/Emelin

Beaulieu/Petry

Markov/Nesterov

- His point totals aren't very high, but Lars Eller is having one of his best seasons ever - he and his line have had excellent possession numbers - Lars has really established himself as one of the better two-way players in the NHL.

- Beagle top corner beats Price, and barely 3 minutes into the game, it's 1-0 Caps. Mitchell line just too soft in coming back to cover the zone, Beaulieu also not playing the slot nearly tight enough. This could be a long afternoon ahead.

So that's where Brad Marchand stays when he is visiting the Bell Centre. pic.twitter.com/pOgubGuyy2

— Mitchell Tierney (@mitchelltierney) February 4, 2017

- Caps are playing a rigorous trap right now, the Habs offence has been almost totally snuffed out. 

- But it's Radulov to the rescue with a Beagle-like snap shot of his own, beating Holtby blocker side to tie the game. Great work by Danault to work the puck to Radulov in the slot.

- Plekanec somehow misses a tap-in goal. That's the kind of play he was making while mired in a near half-season long slump. 

- Galchenyuk seems to be struggling, still not convinced he isn't deal with some issues related to that knee injury. His linemate, Artturi Lehkonen, however, has played a rambunctious period. 

- Caps stormed out of the gate, and looked intent on putting this game away early - and then the board behind Holtby broke, and it seemed like everything just ebbed away. So while the Caps were the discernibly better team in that first frame, it could have been a whole lot worse. Canadiens will be very happy to go to the 2nd tied up, especially against a team that so far this season, has dominated their opponent in the first period.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Caps with a very good, not-quite-dominative first period, Habs really hurt by some struggling shifts by the Danault and Mitchell line. Plekanec and Galchenyuk lines were "okay", Lehkonen playing some hard, fast shifts. Meanwhile, the Eller line (Lars included) has been a Habs-killer today.

- Habs first powerplay comes up blank, with Bordeleau matching up Eller against Shaw (no contest) on the first wave. Canadiens still hurt by the ongoing issue of disorganized zone entires with the man advantage. It's difficult to generate offence if you can't set up.

- Galchenyuk line being taken to the shed defensively - they've been a two-way mess today. So it's little surprise that the Caps take the lead, with Burakovsky (that Eller line!) with a nice snapper that beats Price top corner. That goal doesn't happen if the Galchenyuk and his mates make a simple play gaining the Caps zone, and bother hustling back after coughing up the puck. They did neither. 

- Andrighetto does a nice little pirouette do fool the ref into giving Orpik a tripping penalty. I guess we'll take it.

- Another zippo powerplay, Galchenyuk made a brief appearance and looked ... not good. I just don't see how he's playing at 100%. He's almost certainly still hurt, which begs the question, why the hell is he even playing?

- Eller line is having a monster day - just dominating the Habs almost every shift they've had in this 2nd period,

- Okay, Caps *dominated* that 2nd period, if not for a couple of goalposts saving the day, the score could easily be 4-1 Washington. Canadiens really hurt by some very sub-standard performances, most glaringly Alex Galchenyuk, who almost appears to be hobbling around the ice. When he's barely skating, he's been making bad decisions with the puck. Just no idea what's happening there (well, pretty sure he's still playing with a not-healed knee injury, but I digress). Canadiens have no answer to the Caps top three lines, which beside their offensive abilities, have had little difficulty in snuffing out an semblance of a Montreal attack - bottling up the neutral zone, and forcing the Habs to make mostly fruitless puck dumps. Everything is pretty much set up for a very ugly 3rd period for the Canadiens.

THIRD PERIOD:

- That 2nd period, woah ... so much ugly. The Eller line has been fantastic, the Caps defence across the board has been excellent, the Habs defence, also across the board, has been miserable. There's been some speculation the past couple of weeks about Marc Bergevin going "all in" for a Stanley Cup this spring, which if fine, Marc. Go for it. But if you want to win a championship, you'll have to find employment with another team, because as this game is illustrating, the Canadiens aren't even close to competing.

- Not sure why, but NHL refs don't like Alex Radulov. So many borderline (or just plain wrong) calls against him this season. Radulov goes to the box for a (very) borderline hook on Ovechkin behind the Caps net.

- Backstrom, 3-1. Habs PK again a weak link, just too much traffic is being allowed in front of Price. 

- Pacioretty via Radulov makes it 3-2. The Habs dare to dream of somehow making something out of this nothing game? Stay tuned.

- Alex Galchenyuk appears to have woken up in this 3rd period, thereby making the first 2 period all the more mystifying. Anyway, Habs been pushing pretty hard here past three minutes looking for the tying goal. 7 minutes left on the clock. We still have hope.

- Annnnnnnnnddddddd ... que Andrew Shaw ill-timed penalty. 

- Not a good day for the referees. Sure, call Shaw for that hold, but then you can't let the other team get away with pretty clear-cut holds and hooks and "let it go". You set a standard, you have to live by it.

- Price pulled, Habs swarm, Holtby holds. At least unlike the Flyers game, they're not going out with a whimper. 

- Two point blank shots with less than 5 seconds left for Shea Weber, and he fans on both. Caps hold on for the victory, deserved. But still, one gets the feeling that an opportunity missed for the Canadiens to pull a game out of the fire. Are you getting a sense that must-wins are now arriving for this team? I do. Tomorrow's game against the Oilers critical in helping this Habs team find the winning track, which somewhere along the line of getting healthy again, they've lost.

GAME PREVIEW: UGH. THE CAPS. I GUESS IT'S TIME TO GET SERIOUS

So how's everybody feeling after the debacle in Philadelphia Thursday night? Hey, it could be worse - you could be Andrew Shaw. Feel the shame, Shaw. FEEL IT.

Therrien on Shaw - "We can't accept to take that type of penalty as a team. Pretty simple."

— Dan Robertson (@DRTSN690) February 3, 2017

Five more years. Five. More. Years. That's how long Shaw's contract extends. That's how long Shaw will be playing in Montreal, unless somehow, some way, another G.M. believes his team's fans "will love" having Andrew Shaw.

Anyway, enough about that. It's time to get serious - and hoo boy, what a weekend awaits for the less-than-stellar Habs, as per the now Super Bowl tradition, they host back-to-back afternoon games, starting Saturday with the League's best team, the Washington Capitals, and then Sunday, Connor McDavid and the actually-gonna-be-in-the-playoffs-this-year Edmonton Oilers.

The Caps have, on most nights, dismantled their opponents this season, the latest being the Boston Bruins on Wednesday. The Caps have only lost 3 times this calendar year - interestingly enough, to underwhelming opponents that included the soon to be Hartford Whalers 2.0, the New York Islanders and the Ottawa Senators (oh yeah, and a thumping from the Black Hawks). Anyway, there's hope for the Habs!!

Across the line, the Caps are putting up elite League numbers. 7th in possession (51.2%), 5th in offence (3.22 GF60), 1st in defence (2.09 GA60), 4th best shooting percentage, 2nd best save percentage, on and on it goes.

The only "weak-ish" spot are the Caps specialty units. Their powerplay, is currently ranked "only" 14th overall, and their PK, which is 5th best, has struggled of late, having surrendered 7 goals the past 10 days. Otherwise, you've got roster world beaters like Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov, T.J. Oshie, Lars Eller having another excellent (and as usual under-the-radar) season as the 3rd line center ... defending Vezina winner Braden Holtby putting up more trophy-worthy numbers, and going into Montreal, winner of 10 straight. Yi. Yi. Yi.

The Habs - what to say. They're almost totally healthy for the first time in almost 3 months, and then they go a drop a turd on Broad Street. Apart from Shaw doing his stupid thing, the Canadiens were held to a pathetic 16 shots, the low mark for the season, against a Flyers team that's on the playoff bubble.

Will adjustments be made? Will Alex Galchenyuk be put back on the top line between Max Pacioretty and Alex Radulov? Will Michel Therrien shift the defensive deck chairs, splitting apart the struggling duo of Shea Weber and Alexei Emelin? Will the penalty killing unit under the eye of J.J. Daigneault stop being terrible? Will the powerplay be not as terrible as it was Thursday night? Will Carey Price do all of the work again and carry his team almost single-handedly to victory?

Eh. Probably not. But watch, we will.

Price vs. Holtby. Puck drops at 1:10 EST.

Game 41: Caps vs. Habs

Washington 4, Montreal 1:

FIRST PERIOD LIVE GAME BLOG:

- It's official, Byron back in, and Carr is out. Habs lineup will look at such:

Pacioretty/Danault/Radulov

Lehkonen/Plekanec/Byron

Flynn/Mitchell/Andrighetto

Farnham/McCarron/Scherbak

- Not an enthralling start by the Habs first 5 minutes, Caps much faster and aggressive team - looks like the Canadiens might be a tad overmatched tonight.

- I'll be a broken record about this until the day I die, but Bobby Farnham is a massive waste of a lineup spot. Hudon, De La Rose, just about anything else, would be far preferable.

- Plenty of questions were raised about whether Nikita Scherbak was "ready" for NHL action - and while  these are very early days, I've seen nothing that justifies these uncertainties. He's fast, he plays smart, and as we've mentioned previously, he's excellent with the puck. 

- Habs "3rd" line (which really is barely an NHL 4th) of Mitchell/Flynn and Andrighetto getting their clocks cleaned so far this period. Looking pretty flat footed, and the Caps offence has taken advantage.

- And quite literally 5 seconds after that last comment is posted, the Caps Backstrom opens the scoring - guess who was on the ice for the Habs? 1-0 Washington.

- Is there a "top 6" forward in the NHL with a less dangerous shot than Plekanec? I'm pretty there there isn't.

- Habs pretty much totally overmatched in that 1st period. Sorry, Habs fans, there's little chance they'll be able to compete tonight, barring some lucky hockey bounces. 

SECOND PERIOD LIVE GAME BLOG:

- Shot attempts don't really reflect this one-sided play in that period, in particular how badly the Mitchell line performed against, well - everybody.

- Danault line's first shift of the period as much of a total disaster as possible without actually giving up a goal - Caps swarming the zone, Habs basically chasing pucks with total disorganization, Price forced to make two hard saves. Washington continues to dominate.

- Caps about twice as fast on the puck, Habs are just taking punches turtled in a corner. It's nearly getting ugly right now, Washington on the cusp here of adding to their lead.

- Even Therrien has noted the disparity, but in true Therrien style, he's sending out puzzling line combinations - the first being Flynn/Danault/Andrighetto. 

- Tomas Plekanec. Just nothing left. Shot, finish - it's just gone.

- Farnham chipping in counterproductively, as anticipated. Gets nailed for an avoidable interference penalty. Caps to the powerplay.

- Habs first man advantage, whole lotta passin' going on, not a whole lotta shootin'. The Canadiens do realize they're facing the stingiest defence in the NHL, right? They know they can't take the liberty of looking for the perfect play, right?

- Habs forwards have done almost nothing to get in Holtby's face. I know this is part of the Gallagher effect, but could marginal guys like Farnham at least do something to mix it up, maybe get Holtby off his game - something? Anything??

- Maybe the Habs are hung over from their long road trip? This team looks not a whole lot more rested than they did the 3rd period on Saturday night. 

- Another pretty lopsided period in favour of the Caps, kind of amazing that the Habs are just a goal down, and could conceivably get a point or two tonight. Realistically however, Washington is owning this game - it seems but just a matter of time before they find some insurance goals in the 3rd  to wrap this night up.

THIRD PERIOD LIVE GAME BLOG:

- 2nd period was indeed, pretty ugly for the Habs, 5v5 CF just barely over 30%. Minor miracle the score is just 1-0.

- Scoring chances are interesting - Habs with some pretty choice chances right in the low slot, but Holtby has come up big:

- Habs 2nd powerplay, again looking too much for the perfect setup, lots of passing, no actual shots on Holtby. This is folly - the Canadiens are obviously letting Holtby into their collective heads.

- Lars Eller with a dumb penalty, which something Habs fans might remember him doing a lot of while in Montreal. Habs to their 3rd powerplay, will they actually get a shot on goal?

- Weber with a cannon drive so hard off the goalpost that the red light goes on. Tough luck for the Canadiens tonight.

- Plekanec scores (yes, that happened) on the powerplay, but Caps are challenging the goal, saying Byron bumped Holtby a moment before Plekanec put the puck in the net. Could be a close call.

- Challenge denied, and unbelievably, the Habs have tied the game.

- Not for long, as Jeff Petry makes a very bad play, getting snookered by some slick stick handling by Kuznetsov to make it 2-1. 

Great goal by Evgeny Kuznetsov to give the Caps a 2-1 lead. pic.twitter.com/OEOv7pCPBX

— Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont) January 10, 2017

- Price misplays the puck (a rarity), Jeff Petry with a meek poke of the puck creates deep zone turnover, Connoly finishes the play at it's 3-1. So, after the Habs threw us all a little shade for a minute by tying the game, the Caps have (finally) established scoreboard dominance. As we figured they would.

- Ovechkin ties the Rocket with his 544th career goal on the powerplay, icing on the cake.

- Not the Habs worst loss of the season, but a little wake up call from reality that they're still a step away from being legitimate contenders. The Caps (yes, they are healthy) totally overmatched the short-handed Habs, who are doing themselves little favours by playing AHL-level fodder like Bobby Farnham, instead of younger, more capable hands. Habs head west to Winnipeg to play the Jets, hoping to have Andrei Markov back in the lineup, and hopefully sooner rather than later, the return of Alex Galchenyuk.

HALFWAY HOME: CAPS - HABS PREVIEW

Wow, we've reached the halfway mark of the 2016-17 NHL regular schedule. What a season it's been for the Montreal Canadiens. Filled with ups and downs, but mostly ups, the Habs will be home for their 41st game tonight, as they take on the top-flight Washington Capitals.

The Caps, very much unlike the Habs, enter tonight's game riding the wave of a virtually injury-free season, while the Canadiens continue to deal with an onslaught of hurt bodies that has made putting together a full game lineup a slightly challenging task.

The Habs, who on Saturday were down 7 regular skaters, managed to string together a victory, albeit against a not-very-good opponent in the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Canadiens won't enjoy the luxury of inferiority tonight with the Caps, who sit, amazingly enough, in 4th place in the Metropolitan Division. If the playoffs were to start tonight, the Caps, with 55 points, just one fewer than the Habs, as the 7th seed in the 2017 playoffs (and would if the post season started today, face the Canadiens), testament to a playoff format the NHL might want to reconsider this summer.

The Caps key to success this year? Playing low event games. Through this weekend's games, the Caps have the League's lowest shot event total (comprised of shots for and against) at 42.2.  St. Louis ranks second at 42.1, while Pittsburgh, with their high-octane offence unsurprisingly rates the highest at 52.0, with Montreal not too far behind at 48.5.

Not that there's anything wrong with playing "boring" hockey - it's usually a pretty good formula for success, born out from the expertise of Caps head coach Barry Trotz, who's well established for developing teams that follow a fairly structured, if not rigid approach that's very emphatic on checking and being responsible in your own zone.

The key to beating the Caps? Open them up - find a way of making the game faster and freewheeling. The moment Washington stops playing their system, they become vulnerable.

Which means the return tonight of skilled and speedy Paul Byron, who'd missed the past couple of games from an undisclosed injury (likely concussion) all the more important for the Canadiens, who are hoping to extend their 3 game winning streak. With Byron returning, Daniel Carr will be a healthy scratch (which means, amazingly enough, Bobby Farnham will get another start - oh well).

Back to the Caps for a moment, here's their lineup for tonight

Ovechkin/Backstrom/Oshie
Johansson/Kuznetsov/Williams
Connolly/Eller/Burakovsky
Winnik/Beagle/Wilson

Alzner/Carlson
Orlov/Niskanen
Orpik/Schmidt

Braden Holtby

Speaking of Holtby, tonight's goaltending matchup should also be a dandy - featuring Carey Price, the 2015 Vezina Trophy winner, against Holtby, who is the 2016 Vezina Trophy winner.

Oh yes, one more thing - the Caps are hoping to extend their current winning streak - to six games.

Puck drops at 6:40, EST.

Game 31: Habs vs. Caps

Montreal 2, Washington 1:

FIRST PERIOD LIVE GAME BLOG:

- Chris Terry gets a chance! Called up from the Caps, he'll start tonight on the 4th line.

- Redmond out, Barberio in for the Habs tonight. After a couple of pretty good games to start his season, Redmond has visibly struggled, especially against faster and more structured opposition, and hasn't done a very good job guarding the crease/slot. Like their situation at centre, Habs seem to be riding out a thin 3rd D line until Greg Pateryn recovers from his injury sometime in January.

- More interesting Habs shuffles, it appears that the season-long struggles has finally resulted in demotion:

Pacioretty/Danault/Radulov

Byron/Mitchell/Gallagher

Lehkonen/Plekanec/Flynn

Carr/McCarron/Terry

McCarron had a very strong debut last night, so don't be surprised if Therrien shuffles him a few top 6 shifts, especially if the Habs are in need of quick offence.

- Barry Trotz, who's one of the smartest hockey guys employed these days, said earlier today that Price was going to have a statement game tonight. Bold!!

- Price seems to be pretty "on" early in the game. But, it's early. 

- Another early observation, two very strong shifts to open the game for Gallagher. Talk about someone goal-starved? Galley would be on that poster stamp.

- One concerning trend for the Habs have been the number of times they've been pinned in their own zone, which has cost them goals and even games (the Boston overtime loss a few days ago is an example). Two main reason for this - being outskated/worked, and poor puck movement by a defence that's really been struggling of late, in particular Shea Weber.

- Part of the being outskated narrative, McCarron called for a slash, which is mainly a penalty from not being able to catch your check. Habs really can't afford to be sitting in the box - surely they've learned that lesson given how they were burned so badly less than 24 hours ago.

- Decent 1st PK by the Habs unit, leaning more on Markov and Petry than the usual Weber/Emelin pairing. 

- Injury woes are really starting to hit this team hard - just one shot in more than half a period, Habs offence not even able to gain the Caps zone so far. 

- Nearest scoring chance for the Habs through 13 minutes? Chris Terry, who beats Holtby skating down the off wing, but slips the puck about 2 inches wide of the right post.

- Puck is rolling quite a bit - an indicator that the ice is pretty bad. Makes it tough to set up scoring attempts. 

- Lehkonen, who's played some pretty fine hockey since his return from the injury list, wraps a goal in behind a surprised Holtby, giving the Habs a 1-0 lead. 

- An "okay" period for the Habs, they were visibly outskated and out-possessed by the Caps, but did have some pretty good individual performances by Lehkonen, Terry, Radulov (as usual), and Price looks be very solid tonight (not surprising). Canadiens will have to do a better job exiting their zone in the 2nd and 3rd period, taking some of the pressure off Price, while improving the team's overall possession bottom line.

SECOND PERIOD LIVE GAME BLOG:

- As we suspected, not a great period for the Habs possession-wise - they were doing most of the chasing. 4th line Carr/McCarron/Terry particularly struggled keeping pace, even though Terry was able to generate a couple of decent scoring chances. Still, Therrien may be forced to scale back their ice times if we don't see improvements. 

- Another dumb penalty by Torrey Mitchell, this time a totally unnecessary hold. Add that to his two intellectually challenged penalties he took during the 1st period last night that helped directly lead to an insurmountable Sharks lead an eventual victory.

- Still mostly Caps game here, they're dictating the tempo, and having a much easier job gaining the zone. Nonetheless, Carey Price is really on his game, which creates a big problem for Washington.

- Caps not cashing in, largely because of Price. The more this goes on, the greater the possibility the Habs might score a demoralizing 2nd goal. 

- Dismal first powerplay for the Habs, the only scoring chance going to the Caps after a poor turnover by Weber. Michel Therrien taking Markov off the first unit in favour of Petry, he seems to think Andrei is part of the Habs recent PP issues. An odd move, since Weber is the guy who's been unable to score two points in nearly a month.

- Lars Eller, what an invisible force. Mysterious career for a guy that has so much natural talent. 

- What a crazy deployment call by Therrien. Beaulieu gets called for interference, and instead of sending out Markov/Petry, who played very well on the PK in the 1st period, Therrien sends out Weber and Emelin. Second later, Emelin gets nailed for an interference, which of course, the Caps convert. What a terrible piece of coaching. Backstrom with the goal, tie game.

- Jeff Petry off a beauty feed from Pacioretty, deflects one past Holtby to give the Habs the lead again. Petry is having an excellent outing tonight, an example that others like Emelin and Weber ought to follow.

- Nice bounce back here by the Habs after giving up the Caps PP goal - the Petry goal, and now good pressure around Holtby draws another powerplay. 

- More evenly played 2nd period, Habs holding their own despite poor play by the defence, and some questionable decision making by coach Therrien. The Danault line is really motoring tonight, generating plenty of attempts, in spite of the blue line still struggling with handling and forwarding the puck. Petry has been good, Markov too ... but Emelin, Weber and Beaulieu - inconsistent bordering on poor. Habs simply can't afford their blue line to play this sloppy with so many injuries up front. Expect the Canadiens to lean on Carey Price in the 3rd period in an attempt to scrape out 2 points. 

THIRD PERIOD LIVE GAME BLOG:

- Habs had a pretty decent 2nd period, 57.7% CF, just under 50.0% total through 40 minutes. But with Shea Weber apparently out from a LBI, Habs blue line will be bending, possibly breaking in the 3rd period:

- Weber back on the bench. Even though he's struggling, it still helps to have all hands on deck for this 3rd period.

- Barberio with a very good shift early in the 3rd, which is also helpful. Weber still taking regular shifts, so it's likely he suffered just a deep bruise from that 2nd period shot block.

- Keep an eye on ice conditions, which are poor to begin with. As the period progresses, the ice will get chewed up, and the puck will bounce and roll on edge, making it much more difficult to pass/handle, which in turns, tends to stifle offence. Ergo, pressure is on Caps to score sooner rather than later. 

- Habs better defensively in this period, more resembling a classic road period, emphasis on tight checking, better than average aggressive forecheck, cautious neutral zone possession. It's working out well ... so far.

- Markov out with a LBI. Hoo boy. When it rains it pours.

- Caps really struggling to get shots on Price, a good reason because the puck won't settle down. Washington really needed to even the score early in the period, hill gets harder to overcome as we get towards the finish line.

- Plekanec really being leaned on this period. He essentially got benched last night, but Therrien knows he's the best the Habs have for defensive forwards. 

- Holtby pulled, Therrien recognizing Barberio's strong play this period, putting him out for late period shifts. 

- An awesome win tonight, the Habs playing an excellent road game even with their roster undermanned by injuries. Really solid play in the 3rd period, Habs were very disciplined checking and puck possession, aided by some bad ice that made it difficult for the Caps to gain the Habs zone with any kind of authority. Really gutsy two points, well earned. 

THE STARE THAT SHOOK THE WORLD

Seriously, have we moved on from this yet? At least the coach said the right thing:

"I'm responsible to make sure our team is ready to play. I'm responsible for that" - Michel Therrien

— Аrpon Basu (@ArponBasu) December 17, 2016

And Carey Price will start against the Caps.

Story, fini.

Game 61: Habs vs. Caps

FIRST PERIOD:

- So what chances to the Habs have, realistically? Condon has the game of his life, Habs stay out of the penalty box, Caps can't stay out of the penalty box, Habs score on the powerplay. And one or two other miracles tossed in to help push them over the top.

- Caps, no surprise, more or less overwhelming Habs first three minutes, Justin Williams misses a wide open net off a juicy Condon rebound. This game might get ugly before it even really begins. 

- Hmm ... well, hmm. Habs seem to be hanging in so far. A stupid boarding penalty by the stupid Tom Wilson seems to have given Montreal a little momentum here.

- Well, well. Alex Galchenyuk drives the net and picks up a sweet rebound for an easy mark, 1-0 Habs. Caps look very much like a team that assumed tonight's game would be a gimme, maybe? Let's see how they respond.

- Eller/Galchenyuk line by far the best the Habs have put out this period, doing a particularly good job with the forecheck, zone play has been mainly in the Caps zone.

- One moment I think there's no way this Caps team won't be in the Stanley Cup Final, and then I see guys like Tom Wilson making stupid play after stupid play, and doubts emerge.

- Off a dumb Wilson penalty, Gallagher picks up a rebound off a Markov shot, and puts the Habs ahead 2-0. Caps, I'm assuming, are slightly stunned by what's transpired. 

- Huh. Go figure. One of the better periods of hockey played by this Habs team in three months. I'm sure Barry Trotz will read his troops the riot act during intermission, and expect the Caps to come out full guns blazing in the 2nd period. 

SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs and Caps after 20 minutes. As you can see, Habs hung in there pretty good, putting out a 56.1% CF (5v5): 

- Um, okay. Another big rebound surrendered by Holtby, this time its Fleischmann who cashes in, and it's 3-0. Holtby yanked. Crowed stunned. I'm stunned. Hey, Victor Bartley with an assist! Nice!

- Chris Lee with a terrible interference call on Subban, probably because it's Subban. Draw your own conclusions. 

- Except for the first three minutes of this game, Caps lacking the kind of intensity we've seen from them all season. They've had trouble finishing plays (Justin Williams the culprit there), and don't seem to be taking advantage of Condon's weakness in handling the puck (surrendering rebounds, covering the puck). 

- Welp, there it is, point shot, relatively harmless, that Condon can't control, surrendering the puck at the side of his net, and Chimera easily tucks it home to make it 3-1. We've still got a lonnnng way to go.

- Gallagher isn't the guy you want to go to bat on a penalty shot, but you don't turn down the opportunity. Anyway, Brendan, stay in front of that net.

- Alex Galchenyuk, he can play hockey. So can Lars Eller who sets him up beautifully off a two-on-one. Habs lead by 3 again. The kids are putting on an outstanding demonstration of hockey tonight for the Canadiens.

- Condon with a ridiculous, if not incredibly lucky right toe save to keep the score 4-1. Seems like the bounces are all Habs tonight.

- Caps all over the Habs during a powerplay, Condon with some nice saves, a couple of the desperate variety, to save the bacon. Caps, however, seem to be feeling it here. Definite momentum swing in their favour. Clock can't tick down fast enough for the Habs.

- Here's that ridiculous save by Condon. I was wrong about it being his toe, it was his arm reaching back to save a goal. So awesome:

Let's talk about this. #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/leGXU3xEiy

— yasmina (@galchengoal) February 25, 2016

- Habs taking advantage of their opportunities tonight, their powerplay chipping in, Galchenyuk and Eller looking awesome, and the Caps, for the most part, doing a lot of puck chasing. Habs with a big lead with 20 minutes left in a game virtually nobody thought they had a hope in winning. Tonight's effort, helped greatly by a fine performance (so far) by Condon, has been a group one. Canadiens getting rewarded richly.

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs and Caps through 40 minutes. Late push in the 2nd period helped to boost the Caps numbers a bit. 

- Habs playing very cautiously the first five minutes. Not exactly a sit-on-it approach, but very tight, especially in the neutral zone. Attempting to trap their way to victory, no doubt.

- We're not quite done here, as the Caps make it 4-2 off a shot that Condon plays far too deep in his crease (beating him over the shoulder, sharp angle). For the most part, the Habs have been doing a fine job protecting their zone, but not burying some pretty good odd-man break chances. That's the difference between a winner and a loser I suppose. Can this loser team hang on to a (now) two goal lead?

- Now Mitchell gets nailed for a pretty clumsy high stick. We sit, and grow restless. This game could unravel very quickly. 

- Habs survive the PK, but can't fight another iffy goal surrounded by Condon, through the legs off a Burakovsky wrister. Nearly three minutes left on the clock, and the lead is down to one. Hoo boy.

- Empty net, Caps calling time, still think the Habs are gonna find a way of blowing this.

- Still kind of pathetic that the Habs are having to cling to dear life to win this game. No way the Caps should even be whiffing at pulling this out.

- Habs win, barely. The plan for tank is pretty much toast now, but still, it's nice to beat the best team in hockey. Sooooooo ... I guess we'll take it. Sparkling night by Galchenyuk and Eller, Condon, save a couple of lapses, was excellent. And for once, the Habs 4th line looked pretty decent tonight. 

YOU MAY WANT TO AVERT YOUR EYES. HABS VS. CAPS PREVIEW

Hooboy. We saw this coming down the calander, and now the day has arrived. The Montreal Canadiens, the worst team in the NHL (by a large margin) since December 3, against the powerhouse Washington Capitals, who haven't lost two games in a row this season.

Still not frightened? The Caps own the League's best offence (3.29 GPG), 2nd best defence (2.28 GAPG), best powerplay (23.2% efficiency), 4th best PK. Alex Ovechkin with 39 goals. Evgeny Kuznetsov with 64 points. Braden Holtpy with 48 wins on the season and a .924 SV%. Oh gawd, oh gawd. It's going to be a massacre.

What are the Habs going to do? VICTOR BARTLEY TO THE RESCUE! Yeah, Bartley, who was recently acquired as part of the abysmal John Scott deal which cost the Habs Jarred Tinordi, will make his Habs debut tonight because ... why not? Well, mostly because the Habs are now missing three defencemen from injury - Nathan Beaulieu is day-to-day, Jeff Petry is gone for who knows how long, and Tom Gilbert is done for the whole damn year with a broken leg. Soooo ... enter Bartley.

Also, for reasons that I can't quite understand, the soon-to-be traded Dale Weise will be in the lineup at the expense of Lucas Lessio. Why the Habs are willing to even risk Weise's health over a meaningless game that the Habs stand almost no chance of winning is baffling, But there you go.

Anyway, puck drops tonight at 7:10 EST. Mike Condon will start for the Canadiens.

Game 37: Habs vs. Caps

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs and Caps through 40 minutes:

- Okay, I think a Bergevin intervention is needed. After 40 minutes, forward ice times are 1. Pacioretty, 2. Weise (really?), 3. Plekanec, 8. Galchenyuk, 12. Eller. Lars' CF%, by the way, is 81% so far tonight. Therrien has no idea what's happening. 

- More Therrien follies. Emelin still getting regular shifts, but instead of sending Tinordi out, he's double-shifting Subban to take Tinordi's place. 

- Chimera with the dagger, totally outracing ... guess who ... Alexei Emelin to the puck, and beating Condon high. We've been begging, pleading, screaming all night about how awful Emelin has been tonight, and yet, Therrien has been giving him regular shifts. Well now the Habs are probably toast for the sixth straight time.

- Well, same old story, another game, another loss. But unlike the other losses earlier in the month, the one tonight against the Caps, and others earlier in the week, are different. These losses the Habs have been the worse team, they're failing to produce any sustained offence because their line combinations make little sense. Their defence deployment has been awful, the use of Emelin tonight underscores that. And while their goaltending hasn't been very good, it had zero factor tonight. Condon played well, this game could easily have finished 5 or 6 to 1 for Washington.

This loss also feels different - as though we're on the cusp of a major shakeup. If that happens, or what it is if it happens, is yet to be seen. But it just feels like a shoe is about to drop, because we're now seriously approaching a point where the entire season may be lost. 

SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs and Caps 5v5 through 20 minutes of play:

- News during the intermission that Brendan Gallagher is seeing a specialist this week for a possible green light to play as early as January 1st. 

- Hey, Galchenyuk isn't near the bottom for ice time - 5th most played Habs forward in the 1st period, believe it or not, more than Desharnais. 

- Mike Condon whiffs, it's 2-0. He simply can't miss those shots - not the way the Habs are playing right now. Another killer goal surrendered by Condon.

- Carr gets Habs on the board off a Markov shot rebound, because Carr and Galchenyuk are the only players apparently capable of scoring. 

- Desharnais is just a mess. He doesn't seem to have the slightest clue, perhaps shred of confidence, with the puck in the opposing zone. More inclined to give the puck away then to actually shoot or complete a meaningful pass to another teammate. 

- Alexei Emelin is a one-man defensive disaster tonight. Seems totally unable to track his assignments, is constantly either totally out of position, or scrambling to find position. How Therrien is giving him shifts, and benching Tinordi, is baffling.

- Speaking of disasters, Dale Weise. Constantly played on powerplay, producing nothing, and making horrible passes through the neutral zone generating Caps odd-man breaks, with Condon, full credit, making huge saves to keep his team in this game.

- Condon rising to the occasion, with Emelin being absolutely horrible again. Habs are getting destroyed at the moment, and while the score is 2-1, this game is dangerously close to going totally off the cliff for Montreal.

- I'm not sure if anyone is noticing this, but because Desharnais is so badly failing, his job of centre has largely been taken over by Pacioretty shift after shift. How the coach can't see or recognize this problem is very troubling.

- I think it's a more than reasonable bet that the Habs powerplay, by some time in February, will be near or at the bottom of the League. 

- Caps really flexing their muscle in the period, and while Condon gave up a soft 2nd goal, he more than made up for it the remainder of the period to keep his team, however barely, in this game. The Canadiens are a mess right now - Alexei Emelin is, as we noted in the first period, a one-man disaster, and yet, Therrien keeps giving him regular shifts. The decisions being made right now simply defy logic. The worst you play, the more you get played, while Tinordi struggles to get 6 minutes of ice time tonight, while Sven Andrigehetto watches from above. 

FIRST PERIOD:

- Horrible giveaway by Plekanec with a pretty meek backhand pass behind his net is easily intercepted. Habs generally looking pretty nervous and rattled, lots of unforced errors being made, Caps with early chances.

- This does not look good. Habs are slow, disorganized, Caps are not. This is just not going to end well tonight. I foresee ... catastrophe. 

- Just ... abysmal. Alexei Emelin, who has no business being in a lineup when somebody like Greg Pateryn is sitting in a press box, coughs up the puck to Kuznetsov, and then fails to even bother covering him as he skates in front of Condon to redirect a high slot shot past Condon. Yup. This is looking really, really bad. 

- Okay, whose bright idea was it to fly the team out this afternoon from Montreal? 

- Soft interference call on Carr off a faceoff. NHL officiating is just a mess - too many referees are happy to call soft stuff like hooks and holds, but steadfastly refuse to crack down on nasty stuff that really slows the game down and creates injuries - stick infractions and nasty boarding checks. League officiating, in general, is a mess. 

- I guess the Galchenyuk line looks the best. I guess. It's hard to tell - the Habs in general look like a sluggish bunch - too much turkey perhaps. Or maybe it was the incredibly stupid decision to have a pointless morning skate and have the team take an afternoon flight. These plane rides, by the way, take much more out of you than any practice, as far as recovery is concerned. 

- Among the many interventions this team needs is to get Smith-Pelly off that 4th line, and out of the lineup. Since he was brought back, his contribution to that line (or any line) has been pretty much nil.

- Well, I guess the score isn't any worse than 1-0, which is a kind of victory. Still, Habs look listless, even somewhat disinterested. Moral looks terrible on the ice, body language on the bench not much better. This is a team slipping towards a full-fledged crisis of ineptitude. Unless something dramatic happens quickly, this spiral won't stop.

GAMEDAY PREVIEW: IT GETS EASIER TONIGHT, RIGHT?? OH GAWD, THE CAPS

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Was Santa good to you? He was? Great! He screwed me over again. I put out some old Crown Royal next to the cookies, and still, nothing. Damn you, fat man. Damn you.

Well at least we have hockey again, right?? December 25 seemed to drag on forever since the only thing on was the NBA, and that's terrible. BUT ... it's full engines go tonight as the NHL mercifully returns to action, with the Habs going to (gulp) Washington to take on the Caps.

Hey, are we gonna get a team that isn't hard to play against ever again? Man, the schedule has been brutal, almost as terrible as Michel Therrien's deployments AMIRIGHT?

Before Santa's night to screw me over, we bemoaned the coach's decision to yet again, scratch Sven Andrighetto leading up to the (loss) against the Minnesota Wild. So with the holiday break, we were hoping, I mean, really, really, really hoping that coach would finally see the light today and tonight. 

#Habs lines vs #Capitals: Pacioretty - Desharnais - Weise Eller - Galchenyuk - Carr Fleischmann - Plekanec - Byron Flynn - Mitchell - DSP

— John Lu (@JohnLuTSNMtl) December 26, 2015

... and ... there you have it. Desharnais and Weise get top billing status, because their combines three points since the beginning of the month is the sure-fire solution to this team's abysmal offence.

Oh well. Bright news? Jeff Petry is back tonight - he'll play along side Andrei Markov on the 2nd line, with Jared Tinordi getting a start tonight along side Alexei Emelin. In case you missed the news, Tom Gilbert, who sustained a lower body injury in St. Paul's, won't be playing again for the remainder of this road trip - meaning he's out a minimum two weeks.

So ... what to hope for? Do we hope for this log jam of losing continues to build towards some kind of monumental bench shake up that might involve the dismissal of Therrien? It's tempting, considering how Therrien continues to make the same odd deployment decisions each and every game. Of course, don't hope what you wish for, because if the spiral genuinely goes out of control, then the Habs might find themselves scrambling just to qualify for the post-season. Failure to do so would be a monumental failure - one of the greatest in the 106 years of this team's history.

These are the Caps - the best offence in the Eastern Conference. The second best powerplay in the NHL. The best rated defence in the NHL. Alex Ovechkin. Nicklas Backstrom. Evgeny Kuznetsov. That's just about 100 points right there. If there's any soft spot on this team, it's ... well .. uh ... I guess ... possession? They're 5v5 CF% is a shade under 50%, which is not the number you usually associate with a team that's so dominate in major statistical categories.

Thing is, as Habs fans should know well by now, it matters not how much you own the puck, if you can't bury it, nothing really matters. The Caps, by and large, are a good team at doing the later.

Mike Condon will start tonight, and he'll have to have one of his great lifetime performances if he and his team hopes to end the losing.

Puck drops at 7:10 EST.

THE END IS NIGH?

Probably not. But it sure feels like we're getting warmer.

Happy holidays.

Game 27: Caps vs Habs

The THIRD PERIOD:

- Shorhanded Byron to Flynn with a sweet move to beat Holtby. Habs deservedly take the lead.

- Man, that puck luck is so very strong with the Caps tonight, as Oshie blindly gets his stick off a harmless a looking point shot. 3-2.

- Habs powerplay, Caps basically conceed the passing lanes but stack shooting lanes with bodies. It's a crude way to kill penalties but it's working.

- Habs being more aggressive with defence being more involved at centre ice, seeking turnovers. Montreal continues to utterly dominant puck possession. 

- Without Holtby's performance tonight, Caps have no chance winning. Zero.

- And Dale Weise takes dumbass award, a slash with less than 2 minutes to kill his team's chances.

- Habs might have lost on the scoreboard tonight, but that doesn't take away from a most excellent and impressive effort. Even considering that Therrien again struggled to identify his best playing forwards (Galchenyuk line), the Canadiens really demonstrated tonight they're still the team to beat: 

 

SECOND PERIOD

- Habs and Caps through 20 minutes. Habs won shots on goal and shot attempts, but Caps still seemed to control period tempo:




- One significant (very) bright spot for the Habs in the first period - the utter lack of production by one Alex Ovechkin.

- Subban, still stuck on one goal, rings a 60 foot shot off the post, beating Holtby clean glove side. Holtby a couple of lucky plays so far to keep the Habs scoreless.

- Galchenyuk with a perfect pass setup to Andrighetto, who misfires with gaping net to shoot at. Holtby again catches a big break.

- Puck luck now owes the Habs. Whether or not that repayment will come tonight is yet to be seen. Still, the 2nd period has been very strong for Montreal - on the whole, they're easily outplaying their opponent tonight. Just can't quite seem to cash in.

- There we go. Eller as the powerplay comes to an end with a nifty backhand to forehand goal in front of Holtby to the the game.

- Habs totally dominating play as period progresses. Zone control and shot attempts, especially dangerous ones. Holtby just hanging on.

- Wow. Hockey. Oshie with a flukey goal off weird deflection gives Caps late period lead. 

- Habs with an outstanding 2nd period, a class way above the Caps with puck control and offensive pressure. Also dominant defensively. Puck luck a huge factor in the Caps holding an incredible 2-1 lead, however being completely outplayed.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Watching CSN's coverage of this game tonight. So far it's been pretty unbearable. We complain about the quality of hockey coverage in Canada - but it could be worse. Much, much worse.

- Caps strike on their first shot on goal, Condon caught snoozing a tad - Canadiens' defence penchant for wrapping the puck up the boards (yes, this time it was again Emelin) leads to a turnover and half a second later, 1-0 Caps.

- Habs first powerplay as usual, with good puck movement, but focused too much on setting up for high slot shot, which is easily being broken up or blocked by Caps PK defenders.

- Caps with 11 blocked shots before the game is even 7 minutes old, which is kind of insane. Credit for the blocks to Washington, but Habs shot attempts are coming from places where many bodies are in the way (i.e. from the high slot, as we noted earlier).

- Condon not exactly enthusing me confidence so far. More than a couple deer-in-headlight reactions to Washington shot attempts.

- Habs appear to be trying to suffocate the pace of this game, lots of puck dumps and icing attempts. Typical road game strategy, so odd that they're doing this on Bell Centre ice.

- Another odd piece of gamesmanship - Therrien essentially playing only 9 forwards in the period - 4th line has received just one shift, 59 seconds long. That's been it.

- Habs playing a pretty conservative period, the new lines struggling to find any sort of chemistry. But then we know that would be the problem well in advance. Therrien pretty much deploying just 9 forwards in the period, which is a strategy that cannot be maintained through 60 minutes. Looks like Habs are overmatched tonight, further hampered by Therrien's poor line deployments.





GAMEDAY PREVIEW: THURSDAY NIGHT HOCKEY!!! ARE YOU READY FOR SOME DIVIN'?!?

Huzzah! We've finally arrived at the game. The two very best teams in the Eastern Conference going head-to-head for Conference supremacy. This is the think that hockey dreams are made of. An orgy of brilliance. A titanic struggle between two ice weary titans. THE GAME TO END ALL GAMES.

Okay, well maybe tonight's game isn't quite as significant as I'm proposing, but it still should be a pretty good game! The Caps are riding a 5 game winning streak, and in the eyes of some analysts, have surpassed the Habs as the East's best team.

Yeah yeah, I know, it's Pierre LeBrun. That's all I could find. But still, the point is raised for discussion - are the Caps that good - nay, even better than the Habs?

This might come as a shocker to you given that you're reading a blog that only covers the Habs, but no. No. They're not.

Yes, the Caps stack up pretty well in the major stats -  3rd ranked offence (behind Montreal), 5th ranked defence (behind Montreal), 2nd ranked powerplay (ahead of the Habs), 9th ranked PK (behind Montreal), 7th in even strength offence (behind Montreal) ... I'm sensing a trend ...

More fundamentally, the Caps to date, haven't exactly had much of a challenging schedule. Of the 23 games played so far, Washington has played only 8 games against teams that now have above .500 records. EIGHT. Of those eight games, the Caps' record is 3-5. Not exactly compelling evidence that Washington is, indeed, currently the "best" in the East.

Hey now, what about the Habs schedule, you might ask? Well, here's the answer. Of the 26 games played by the Canadiens so far this season, 14 games have been played against opponents with +.500 records. FOURTEEN. Of those 14 games, Montreal's record is ... wait for it ... 11-1-2.

Indeed, if there's a marked difference between these two teams it's in how each has handled "lesser" opponents. The Caps record versus sub .500 teams is 14-0-1 (!!!), while the Habs are 8-3-1.

So ... who's got the better base stats, and who's been better against tougher opponents? The answer is pretty clear.

Of course, things have changed a bit the past week. The Habs have been hobbled by recent injuries to some of its franchise players, while the Caps come into tonight's game pretty much injury-free, save for Brooks Orpik, who's basically defensive addition through subtraction.

So, even with a little demonstration in reality about how the Caps aren't yet in the Habs league, this game won't be easy, injuries considered, and also that coach Michel Therrien is terrorizing his lineup with a series of line combinations that baffle the brain, referencing to putting Max Pacioretty along side David Desharnais, in a bid to get the later producing offensively again. Desharnais, if you hadn't noticed, has come back to earth the past 10 days or so - which was to be fully expected given how DD's percentages were unsustainable.

Regardless of that and any other bizarre inept ideas that Therrien will bring to the table, tonight's game should be entertaining - the fun starts at 7:40 EST, Braden Holtby vs. Mike Condon.


Wednesday News 'N' Notes:

Hey ho, here we go. Habs lines at practice this morning. Apparently "sleeping on it" had zero affect on Michel Therrien's brain:

Pacioretty/Desharnais/Weise
Eller/Galchenyuk/Andrighetto
Fleischmann/Plekanec/Byron
Smith-Pelly/Flynn/Thomas

Desharnais en rouge (Pacioretty aussi) et Plekanec en blanc. Changements de trios en vue. #CH #tvasports

— Marc-André Perreault (@MA_PerreaultTVA) December 2, 2015

Le sigh.

Also, this gem:

#Habs advise that the NHL's concussion spotter did not notify the team's medical staff about a potential concussion sustained by Beaulieu.

— John Lu (@JohnLuTSNMtl) December 2, 2015

Some days, it's just better not firing up the Twitter feed. The NHL's attitude towards head injuries continues to be a joke.

Annnnnnnnnnd ... looks like Michael Bournival won't get his opportunity to prove some worth - he was yanked from playing at practice, and will hit the waiver wires at noon. Betcha somebody scoops him up.

More in a bit.

Game Fourty-Eight: Caps vs. Habs

OVERTIME:

- Officials miss blatant Caps too many to start the OT.

- Lars Eller appears to struggling with confidence issues again, especially carrying the puck.

- OH my goodness. What a brilliant game winning goal by Max Paxioretty, driving the net and tipping a pin-perfect backhanded pass by Plekanec. Play started after excellent stutter step by Plecks, which created space along the wing that created a very narrow passing zone. Brilliant.

- Habs just do it again. Price with 2nd straight shutout, carrying his team through two brutally bad opening periods. This team totally defies gravity, except for Carey Price. MVP.

THIRD PERIOD:

- Habs better in the third, which feeds into the season-long pattern. Habs, I think, are a horribly prepared team for each and every game, and it takes the players a couple of periods to figure out their opponent and make the adjustments themselves. Coaches are glorified gate keepers.

- Habs powerplay back to being dreadful. Largely because they are again dumping the puck instead of carrying the zone. Net effect is that it takes this team way too long to set up their unit. Everything is systematically stunted and dysfunctional.

- Christian Thomas has arguably been the Habs best (most consistent) forward today.

- Oh man, Holtby has been great this period. Third period has indeed become a goaltenders showdown, unlike the first two when it was Price against the world. Habs will get another point, and for perhaps the umpteenth time this season, two points even though badly outplayed by their opponent.

SECOND PERIOD:

- Habs adjusted possession in the first period was 36%. I'm not going to say they played badly in the period, but they played badly in the period.

- Ovechkin can't out-muscle Subban in the crease so it's on to plan B: take a flop.

- Manny Malhotra. I actually wonder if he could beat 60 on the shit clock with his wrist shot. 40?

- Stupid, stupid play by Emelin crossing full-flight Ovechkin into a defenseless Price. The guy never observes, never learns, never thinks before "being physical". A true liability in just about every sense.

- Emelin double-downs with the stupid, gets nailed with a cross well after the whistle is blown, put Habs two short. Crazy stupid.

- Two posts hit in the span of five seconds, and Brown flops on top of Price. No interference call. Sigh.

- Ovechkin just took a 4 minute shift. That's Emelin stupid territory.

- Gee, I thought the Habs looked bad in the first period, this second period is making the first 20 minutes look like a walk in the park. Just a terrible, terrible afternoon, execution has been awful.

- The brief moments this team isn't playing on its heals, everything else is off the mark. Passes too far or too short, shots on Holtby wide of the net. It's making this an incredibly frustrating game to watch.

- Speaking of off the mark, Gallagher takes a Subban shot off the leg, and has gone to the room. In considerable pain. Oy.

- Well just a terrible period, even worse than the first. Caps outshooting 16-6. With MVP Price taking on the entire Washington team, and the Habs offense being just terrible, our early game forecast of few goals has come to fruition.

FIRST PERIOD:

- Weise is a significant defensive liability on the first line, and if not for a brilliant last moment check by Markov, it'd be 1-0 Caps before the one minute mark.

- Caps defense blocking everything in sight. Holtby nearly unecessary so far.

- Carey Price being Carey Price again. Therrien looks on and thinks "I'm the coach of a first place team!"

- Speaking of our esteemed coach, he appears to be matching Weise against Ovechkin, which is all sorts of insane.

- More than a few Caps forwards playing with a nasty attitude today. Let's see if that results in some stupid Washington penalties.

- Price appears to be in another Price-level zone today. Goals are not going to come easy today.

- That said, with exception to one or two even strength shifts, Habs are getting their socks played off today. Caps have almost all of the initiative, Montreal in total reaction mode.

- Not a good period for the Habs, they looked ill-prepared for the Caps speed and strong forecheck. It's the regular Habs pattern this year - their game preparation has been, for at least 80% of their games, simply atrocious.

HEY ALEX, MIND BEING DRUNK THIS AFTERNOON?

Woah, afternoon hockey! This Superbowl Habs weekend day game stuff. Whatever. We'll take it! Gets the important hockey out of the way early so the rest of us can devote the rest of our weekend to fun stuff!! Me?!? I ... uh ... will ... probably wash my floors.

Today, Habs will be going with the same lineup tonight as they did against the Rangers, which is fine as long as they play another game like they did against the Rangers, even with Weise on the top line, Emelin and Malhatra in the lineup, etc. etc. etc.

The matchup today is pretty simple. The Caps offense vs. the Habs defense ... sorry, I mean, Carey Price. Washington is playing well, beating the Pens with relative Wednesday night 4-0. They're a better possession team (which applies to just about anyone matched up against the Habs, I suppose), with a 52.5 relative. And of course, there's Ovie - who's leading the League in goals, as per usual.

Habs have been pretty good with these Superbowl weekend events, which of course, means exactly nothing. Washington last lost a regulation game in Montreal back in 2009 which means, of course, everything.

Here's hoping they can somehow overcome their self-imposed disadvantage courtesy Therrien's lineup choices, and muster up another win today. Which is to say, go Carey!

Puck drops at 1:10 EST.