Game Forty-Eight: Habs vs. Sens

OMG OUTRAGE! THIS MUST STOP! HOW DARE HE??

Fair to say P.K. Subban's post-goal celebration didn't go over well. #Sens
— Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) January 17, 2014

@SunGarrioch making a save there was "necessary".
— Jeff O'Neill (@odognine2) January 17, 2014

Hey Bruce, I've one more response to your pathetic trolling. From last night:

OH, SO NOW THEY CALL THEM UP?

 - Habs announced this morning that Nathan Beaulieu and Joonas Nattinen have been called up. Nattinen to (finally) ensure that Parros doesn't play, and Beaulieu to hopefully (forever) replace ... Doug Murray.

UPDATE: Oh of course. It's not like the coaching staff were motivated to do the right thing by calling up Beaulieu. Seems as though the flu bug is running through the team - both Lars Eller and Raphael Diaz are home today trying to get over the bug.

So Nattinen and more importantly, Beaulieu might just be protection if either/both Eller and Raphael can't play.

IOW, Murray ain't going anywhere.

Ugh.

- We got a biggie post coming up that examines how this year's roster is playing compared to last year's roster. Are we better? Worse? The same??

Stay tuned.

HAPPY FRIDAY

Montreal 5, Ottawa 4 (OT)

Overtime:

- Okay boys, do it for Carey. No way this game ends 4-4 through 60 minutes without Price's performance.

- SUBBAN. Habs grand larceny complete. Unbelievable.

Third Period:

- Really wonder if Bergevin can continue to look the other way with respect to Therrien's tenure if the Habs do indeed go on to lose.

- Doug Murray's shots from the line I'm sure aren't much faster than 20 mph. What's even the point of trying?

- Plekanec is horrible at these breakaways so Cowan decides to help out. Insane. Tie game.

- Well at least the third hasn't been completely lopsided in Ottawa's favour. Sens maybe guilty of sitting on this too much. Habs would be incredibly fortunate to get out of here with a point.

- Bourque with lazy, sloppy turnover at centre ice creates great scoring chance for Turris. Just keep him off the ice, already.

- Well, we got a point. Gladly taken. Can Price steal us one more?

Second Period:

- So good to see Plekanec on the ice to start the period. Habs were outplayed in the first, but the scoring chances weren't ridiculously lopsided: 9-6 in favour of Ottawa.

- Gorges with two consecutive failed zone clearances there - Continutes to struggle with making successful transitions.

- Seems inevitable that the Sens are going to tie this - Habs will need a lucky bounce or two to stay in front. That's unlikely.

- Above all, Bourque does a lousy job working himself into a clear scoring position. Most of the pucks/passes fed his way are usually broken or cleared away by opposing defense.

- It's been years since I've seen a Habs defense so collectively poor at feeding passes forward. It's suffocating this team's offense to death.

- Price can't hold the floodgates indefinitely.

- Sens on pace for 60 shots. Not a typo. 

- Death pool for when Ottawa ties this up. I'll say at 15:30 of this period.

- Carey Price. On Bobby Ryan. An astonishing save. His performance tonight has been incredible.

- Price on Stone. I can't believe my own eyes. Incredible.

- At some point in this game the Sens are going to go insane, thanks to Carey Price.

- Floodgates finally breeched. Ryan. 3-3.

- Gallagher 5 shots tonight, nearly half of all the Habs shots.

- Turris. Price can only do so much. Habs defense in completely disarray, not being helped by shoddy backchecking. Sens should pull away easily in the third.

- Totally abysmal period for the Habs. Price did all he could but really, there's only so much one person can do. Scoring chances line should be embarrassingly one-sided for the Sens. The Habs in general are embarrassing.

First Period:

- Figures that given how horrible the Habs PP has played of late that they'd get offensive production from their PK unit. Plekanec makes it 1-0.

- Carey Price. Oh my. What a glove save on Greening on the break. He couldn't believe Carey made that save. Neither can I.

- Habs might have the early mark, but Sens look to be in full motion. Price will have to steal this one. If he's good, it won't be good enough for the Habs to win tonight.

- Plekanec down after taking a very hard shot off the leg. This is not looking good, and potentially disasterous for the Habs since Pleks has been playing out of his mind the past two weeks.

- Ottawa dominating this - Habs haven't registered a shot in 8 minutes.

- Oddicials just won't call it the Habs way - whether it's disallowed goals or pucks fired into the crowd that are clear-cut delay of games.

- Doesn't matter. Pacioretty with a rocket one timer snap shot top corner, 2-0.

- Good news - Habs lead 2-0. Bad news, Pacioretty is nearly almost the only player on the roster who's scoring goals.

- Holy moly. Sens totally reeling as the gates are opens up for Desharnais to waltz right to Anderson, beats him like an old rug, and the Habs take a 3-0 lead. 

- Well huh. MacArthur with a redeflect that Price really ought to have stopped. Habs are terrible at these 3-0 leads, so here we go again.

- Karlsson. Unchecked. Moen in la la land. 3-2. Yup. Sigh.

- Habs got an incredible start on the board, but coughed it up. Habs gave up one he shouldn't have. Habs yet again soft in their zone, and what seemed like a cruise game has turned right back into the Sens' favour. 19-7 shots on goal., Habs will have to do much much better, or an Ottawa comeback will be inevitable.

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Gameday Goo

Okay, stop me here if I lose you, 'cause I don't understand the math.

With David Desharnais a *big* question mark to start tonight's game, the Habs are dressing just 11  forwards. We hope.

This against a very, very red hot Sens team, which has lost just one of its past 10 games?

I don't get it.

Could be a suicidal mission tonight. I'm feeling bad for Carey Price already.

More in a bit.