HabsWorld.net --
Though they clinched a playoff spot with a
loss, the Habs ended the week on a winning note with a pair of victories over
division rivals. In Hamilton, the Bulldogs picked up four of six points as
their tough road trip continues to keep their faint playoff hopes alive.
Montreal’s powerplay has struggled lately, my Final Thought discusses why this
may not be as big of a concern as it seems.
|
Cheers |
Cheers to…
1) Max Pacioretty, for obvious reasons.
We’re not used to seeing high goal scorers in recent years but not only is
Pacioretty having a career year, he’s among the league leaders in goals despite
missing nine games due to injury. Earlier in the campaign, he was known as one
of the better scoring left wingers. Now, he’s one of the better scoring
players, period.
2) Mike Weaver, who has been exactly what the
Habs were looking for and more. I wouldn’t read anything into his suddenly
surging offensive game but in terms of being a smart, stay-at-home player who
kills penalties and blocks shots, Weaver has been a perfect fit on the third
pairing. He should be a regular for the Canadiens in the playoffs.
3) Snapping a lengthy drought which is what
Jarred Tinordi accomplished. On Saturday against the Red Wings, he collected his first
point of the season in his 21st game. Even better still was that he had a
multi-point game in that one. That’s one way to bust out of a point-less
slump.
Jeers to…
1) P.K. Subban, whose defensive efforts have
been inconsistent as of late (and not just the two shifts against Ottawa that
got him benched). It’s clear he doesn’t have much confidence but remedying
that will involve making plays in his own end. The old saying goes,
defence leads to offence. Putting up points gets Subban’s confidence up
but to get there, he has to be better in the defensive zone.
2) The Habs’ start against Ottawa. Even
though it was the first game after formally clinching a playoff spot, they can’t
come out of the gate like that, especially against a rival. To their
credit, they responded well but they never should have been in that situation in
the first place.
3) Nathan Beaulieu, even though he didn’t play
this past week. It was revealed earlier in the week that he had voiced his
concerns after not getting recalled following the Olympics, despite his
performance in Hamilton over that time that would be best summed up as lousy.
Management usually is interested to see how a player responds to a little
adversity. I’m pretty sure this was not the response they were hoping for.
I wonder how he’ll respond when he gets sent back to the AHL later this week
when Murray and Gorges return to the lineup.
|
StatPack: |
|
SKATERS |
|
# |
Player |
GP |
G | A | +/- | PIM | SH | TOI |
| 6 | Douglas Murray | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 10 | 0 | 18:43 |
| 11 | Brendan Gallagher | 3 | 1 | 1 | +2 | 2 | 2 | 37:56 |
| 14 | Tomas Plekanec | 3 | 0 | 2 | +3 | 4 | 6 | 58:32 |
| 15 | George Parros | 1 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 12 | 0 | 8:23 |
| 17 | Rene Bourque | 2 | 0 | 0 | +2 | 2 | 2 | 20:46 |
| 20 | Thomas Vanek | 3 | 0 | 3 | +1 | 2 | 7 | 53:32 |
| 21 | Brian Gionta | 3 | 2 | 1 | +3 | 0 | 8 | 52:26 |
| 24 | Jarred Tinordi | 2 | 0 | 2 | E | 7 | 0 | 29:24 |
| 27 | Alex Galchenyuk | 3 | 1 | 2 | +2 | 6 | 2 | 40:07 |
| 43 | Mike Weaver | 3 | 1 | 3 | +7 | 2 | 3 | 66:03 |
| 48 | Daniel Briere | 3 | 0 | 0 | +3 | 2 | 3 | 26:01 |
| 49 | Michael Bournival | 3 | 1 | 0 | E | 0 | 2 | 27:24 |
| 51 | David Desharnais | 3 | 1 | 1 | +1 | 0 | 8 | 53:13 |
| 53 | Ryan White | 3 | 0 | 1 | E | 2 | 2 | 32:22 |
| 55 | Francis Bouillon | 3 | 0 | 0 | +4 | 4 | 3 | 53:30 |
| 67 | Max Pacioretty | 3 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 0 | 11 | 53:02 |
| 74 | Alexei Emelin | 3 | 0 | 2 | +3 | 6 | 1 | 66:37 |
| 76 | P.K. Subban | 3 | 0 | 0 | -4 | 0 | 2 | 50:19 |
| 79 | Andrei Markov | 3 | 1 | 0 | +3 | 2 | 8 | 77:09 |
| 81 | Lars Eller | 3 | 1 | 2 | +3 | 4 | 5 | 43:59 |
|
GOALIES |
|
# |
Player |
Record |
SV% |
GAA |
| 30 | Peter Budaj | 1-0-0 | .907 | 4.00 |
| 31 | Carey Price | 1-1-0 | .928 | 2.51 |
|
Scoring |
Goals: Max Pacioretty (39)
Assists: P.K. Subban (43)
Points: Thomas Vanek (67)
+/-: Tomas Plekanec (+13)
PIMS: Brandon Prust (121)
Shots: Max Pacioretty (258)
|
The Dog |
Although they only won once, the Bulldogs had a
relatively good week against some tough opponents, picking up four of a possible
six points. Their ever-so-slim playoff hopes are still mathematically
alive (though realistically next-to-impossible).
|
News and |
– Stefan Fournier has now recovered from his
lower body injury. He has been sent to Wheeling of the ECHL.
– With their junior seasons over, Brady Vail
and Connor Crisp have signed tryout deals for the rest of the season. This
is Vail’s second straight year where he finishes in Hamilton. Defenceman
Jonathan Narbonne has also signed a PTO.
– Since January 1st, Christian Thomas has
recorded 17 points. Danny Kristo, who he was acquired for, has 16 in that
same span.
– Lines from the most recent game:
Forwards:
Andrighetto – Dumont – Blunden
Sorkin – Macenauer – Holland
Tarnasky – St. Pierre – Thomas
Crisp – Vail – Leblanc
Defence:
Drewiske – Pateryn
Chouinard – Schiestel
McIver – Ellis
|
Results: |
April 2:
Oklahoma City 5, Hamilton 4 (SO)
April 4:
Hamilton 4, Grand Rapids 1
April 5:
Grand Rapids 2, Hamilton 1 (SO)
|
StatPack: |
|
SKATERS |
|
# |
Player |
GP |
G |
A |
+/- |
SH |
PIMS |
| 2 | Greg Pateryn | 3 | 1 | 1 | +1 | 6 | 5 |
| 4 | Davis Drewiske | 3 | 0 | 2 | +3 | 9 | 0 |
| 8 | Nathan Beaulieu | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 2 | 0 |
| 11 | Nathan McIver | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 10 |
| 12 | Maxime Macenauer | 3 | 1 | 0 | -2 | 5 | 4 |
| 14 | Michael Blunden | 3 | 1 | 1 | +4 | 3 | 0 |
| 17 | Brady Vail | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 3 | 0 |
| 20 | Louis Leblanc | 3 | 0 | 1 | E | 4 | 4 |
| 21 | Nick Sorkin | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 1 | 0 |
| 22 | Drew Schiestel | 3 | 1 | 0 | +2 | 2 | 4 |
| 23 | Joonas Nattinen | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Sven Andrighetto | 3 | 2 | 1 | +4 | 9 | 0 |
| 37 | Patrick Holland | 3 | 1 | 0 | -2 | 5 | 0 |
| 40 | Gabriel Dumont | 3 | 2 | 1 | +3 | 6 | 4 |
| 44 | Morgan Ellis | 3 | 0 | 2 | +1 | 6 | 2 |
| 48 | Connor Crisp | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 2 | 2 |
| 59 | Joel Chouinard | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 1 | 2 |
| 74 | Nick Tarnasky | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 4 | 2 |
| 92 | Christian Thomas | 3 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 6 | 0 |
| 93 | Martin St. Pierre | 3 | 0 | 2 | +1 | 4 | 2 |
|
GOALIES |
|
# |
Player |
Record |
SV% |
GAA |
| 29 | Robert Mayer | 0-0-1 | .897 | 3.69 |
| 34 | Dustin Tokarski | 1-0-1 | .969 | 0.96 |
|
SHOOTOUT |
|
# |
Player | G/ATT |
| 8 | Nathan Beaulieu | 0/1 |
| 12 | Maxime Macenauer | 0/1 |
| 14 | Michael Blunden | 0/2 |
| 20 | Louis Leblanc | 0/1 |
| 21 | Nick Sorkin | 0/1 |
| 27 | Sven Andrighetto | 1/2 |
| 37 | Patrick Holland | 1/2 |
| 40 | Gabriel Dumont | 0/2 |
| 44 | Morgan Ellis | 0/1 |
| 92 | Christian Thomas | 0/2 |
| 93 | Martin St. Pierre | 0/2 |
|
SHOOTOUT |
|
# |
Player | SVS/ATT |
| 29 | Robert Mayer | 5/7 |
| 34 | Dustin Tokarski | 8/10 |
|
Scoring |
Goals: Gabriel Dumont (18)
Assists: Martin St. Pierre (36)
Points: Martin St. Pierre (46)
+/-: Morgan Ellis (+8)
PIMS: Nick Tarnasky (130)
Shots: Gabriel Dumont (180)
|
Schedule: |
April 8:
Hamilton vs St. John’s
April 9: Hamilton vs St. John’s
April 12: Rochester vs Hamilton
|
Final |
Much has been made about Montreal’s recent
powerplay struggles and how this is a problem heading into the playoffs.
While this is a valid concern, especially for a team who in recent years has
lived and died by their performance with the man advantage, I’m not as concerned
at the moment as I normally would be.
When the postseason arrives, the teams that
have the most success tend to be those who can do well 5-on-5. For most of
the year, the Habs have struggled in this regard but in recent games, they’ve
showed signs of turning it around. They have one of the hottest lines in
the league that has demonstrated that they can score at even strength while a
few other players are starting to come out of some slumps.
Continued success from those players should
allow the team to be better in that regard than they’ve been for most of the
season. That alone should help keep them in some tight games. And if
the powerplay can resurrect itself as round one progresses, things could really
get interesting for Montreal.
