Now the Habs have a chance to get on a real roll.
Following their victorious Super Bowl weekend the Canadiens had 10 games left in the month of February. As expressed on the air, they needed to win at least eight of them. Or, if you’re Marc Bergevin you don’t count the leap year game in San Jose on the 29th because his work for the season will be done by then. So Bergevin is looking at Saturday February 27th at home against a captain-less Toronto Maple Leafs team as – with apologies to CNN – Decision Day.
This was an impressive win over a Tampa Bay Lightning team that had been the hottest in the NHL, (before they decided to take the night off in Ottawa the night before). The Habs scored first. They didn’t fold when adversity struck – as we’ve seen way too often of late. Like when Valtteri Filppula had a much too easy time scoring just 40 seconds into the second period to tie the game. Or when a quiet Steven Stamkos took a holding the stick penalty 11 minutes later and their power play threatened to suck the life out of them – before they were forced to take a penalty of their own. Or when they lost two players during that subsequent Tampa Bay power play.
In the end it was an undermanned Canadiens team that beat nemesis Ben Bishop for the second time this season. Any kind of mastery he held over them should be gone by now (0-1-1, 3.46, .885). They’ve climbed over Carolina in the standings and are now three points (and two teams) out of a playoff spot. So yeah, it was a good night. Which won’t mean anything if they stumble in Buffalo on Friday.
THE GOOD
- Tomas Plekanec-Brendan Gallagher-Alex Galchenyuk. The dominant trio on the ice for the second time in three games. Combined for three goals and six points and 14 shots on goal and – just like they were against Edmonton – +9. Terrific give and go started by Plekanec in his own end when he broke up a pass by Jonathan Marchessault (did Jon Cooper really decide that Marchessault is a better option than Jonathan Drouin?) to send Gallagher away with the young Lightning winger in pursuit. Gallagher charged to the net like a baby bull and seemed to catch Bishop by surprise with a shot of the rolling puck high stick side. Less than six minutes into the game and the Habs knew Bishop was beatable. So they scored three more – two by Plekanec, including the clincher early in the third when he waited out the big goaltender to cap off his first multiple goal game since October 11th.
- P.K. Subban & Andrei Markov. Back in the groove. Helped keep Stamkos to one shot on goal. Subban made a tremendous play to set up Montreal’s third goal while extending his point scoring streak to seven games. Even as hot as Plekanec has been with 8 points in his last 4 games, Subban continues to lead the Canadiens in scoring with 43 points, which is also the third highest total among NHL defensemen behind only Erik Karlsson (an other worldly 59), John Klingberg and Brent Burns (both with 44). Anybody who thinks Subban is a problem on this team needs to get “Hockey Idiot” stamped on their forehead.
- Ben Scrivens. Ordinarily after stopping 37 of 39 shots against Tampa Bay the winning goaltender would be named one of the Three Stars but the Plekanec line was rightfully rewarded. In his last three starts Scrivens has stopped 94 of 98 shots for a save percentage of .959. He has driven up his season save percentage to .912. Know this about Scrivens – as bad as he was for a bad team last season in Edmonton (.890) – two seasons ago in a total of 40 games for the Oilers and Kings he was at .922, better than (among others) Henrik Lundqvist, Jonathan Quick, Roberto Luongo and Jaroslav Halak. The Habs have needed a lot more saves and Scrivens is providing them. The 29 year old Cornell grad might have been even slightly more motivated playing in front of the most famous Cornell goalie of them all – Ken Dryden.
- Tom Gilbert & Alexei Emelin. A lot of focus on Gilbert moving up to the second D pair with Jeff Petry out of the line up again. And he passed the test. Emelin continued his recent string of solid outings.
- Mark Barberio. Kind of meaningful for the former Lightning defenseman to set up the first Plekanec goal by sending the puck to the net.
- Lars Eller. Not exactly centering a line with the Flying Frenchman. But putting him back in the middle revitalized his season.
- Devante Smith-Pelly. Coincidence that his play picked up considerably after he was moved up to play alongside Eller early in the second period? Finished with more shots on goal than any Montreal player not named Galchenyuk or Gallagher. He ran into people. And he scored his goal – following a brilliant display of puck handling by Subban – by going to the net.
- Michel Therrien. That he’s made it this deep into the season is a minor miracle. Made all the right moves. Recognized early that a key forward was lost in space. Forced to juggle his skaters with a shortened bench and he did so in a winning way.
- Nathan Beaulieu. Played an eventful six and a half minutes before leaving after blocking a Stamkos shot late in the second period. Took on Cedric Paquette early in the game after Paquette targeted Eller. The fight ended after Beaulieu literally punched out Paquette’s visor.
THE BAD
- Injuries to Beaulieu and Brian Flynn. Beaulieu should be ok but Flynn is gone, perhaps for the season. It’s never ending for Montreal this year, almost on cue after a very healthy 2014-15 season. The Habs will miss Flynn’s skating, versatility and especially his face off acumen (team leading 57.8%). But at least speedy winger Paul Byron appears ready to return.
- Torrey Mitchell. He appears to have lost a step. Almost overnight. Unless he’s playing injured which is quite possible. There was a moment during the game against Edmonton when Mitchell blocked a pass while killing a penalty and appeared to be ready to break in alone. But he couldn’t out skate the Oilers defender. Mitchell’s game is all about speed and right now he doesn’t have any. He and his line mates are spending way too much time in their own end of the ice.
THE UGLY
- David Desharnais-Dale Weise-Max Pacioretty. Totalled two shots on goal, both by Pacioretty who’s effort isn’t lacking. Weise had a horrible first shift and the night didn’t get any better as Therrien spotted Flynn in his place as early as seven minutes into the game. Maybe the Habs #22 was contemplating the deeper meaning of the Maple Leafs sending Dion Phaneuf to Ottawa as part of a nine player trade earlier in the day. Maybe he was contemplating a potential Donald Trump-Bernie Sanders victory celebration in New Hampshire. Maybe he was wondering where his potential 20 goal season went. Whatever was going through his mind it wasn’t the game against Tampa Bay. And Desharnais? It must have seemed like some kind of cruel joke that he was forced to spend most of the final three minutes on the ice as Tampa Bay had Bishop on the bench for an extra skater and the Habs, with the safer two goal lead, kept icing the puck. How bad is it for Desharnais right now? In the first minute of the third period Pacioretty had the puck behind the Tampa Bay net and fed it into the slot for Desharnais who had as much company as you’d find these days at a Ben Carson rally. With plenty of time and space Desharnais whiffed on his shot. He’s pointless in his last seven games. His single game ice time in that span – 17:19, 19:09, 16:53, 18:51, 16:24, 16:49, 18:11. He’s helped turn Pacioretty (one goal in 9 games) into Tomas Fleischmann. That’s no joke. Neither is the waiver wire.
