HabsWorld.net -- 

As Alexandre Sylvestre belted out the National Anthems before Wednesdays night’s game, a nervous energy could be perceived in the Canadiens faithful in attendance. F1 had just passed through town, and in the contest, the Hurricanes came out like they burst from a starting line. They were, in fact, a storm of forechecking and puck-pursuit. Three goals in the first period put the Habs on their back with a broken arm needing to build some sort of a game for themselves over the next 40 minutes. They decidedly did not.

Every 50/50 puck seemed to be won by the Hurricanes and every 50/50 decision was made in the wrong direction by Montreal. Despite the fact that Carolina achieved their material and meaningful scoring in a relatively small burst, they established themselves as the dominant force in the game and dictated to the Canadiens when they would be permitted to make plays, shoot clean pucks, break out of their zone, and feed off a crowd. Montreal goes to Carolina with their season’s life in their hands. They know (or should know) they can beat this team. Over a seven-game sample size, they’ve already won four and lost three this season – something perhaps to focus on as they approach their fate.

Habs Lineup

Cole Caufield — Nick Suzuki — Juraj Slafkovsky
Alex Newhook – Jake Evans — Ivan Demidov
Alexandre Texier – Phillip Danault – Josh Anderson
Zach Bolduc – Joe Veleno – Kirby Dach

Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Lane Hutson — Jayden Struble
Kaiden Guhle – Alex Carrier

Jakub Dobes 

10 Thoughts

1) A weak shot on Dobes and an easy glove save put the first major faceoff in the Canadiens’ zone less than a minute in. K’Andre Miller received the won puck from Sebastian Aho and walked into a great shot that Jakub Dobes stood up to, and the Canadiens cleared the rebound only for a giveaway in front of Frederik Andersen to send the Hurricanes in on a breakaway. Dobes stayed with Jackson Blake as he tried to stretch the goaltender out with a wide move, and then Dobes had to make another cross-crease save on the same possession as Carolina outworked Montreal’s forwards in their own zone. Over the next few minutes, Noah Dobson, Mike Matheson, and Jayden Struble all sent soft chip passes into the slot in front of Dobes that were each picked off in succession.

2) Montreal took the first penalty of the game when Kirby Dach cross-checked Alexander Nikishin in the shoulder, but the stick rode up and seemed to graze his facial area. As contemporary hockey etiquette dictates, Nikishin threw his head back with as much gusto as possible and gained the call. Dach and Nikishin were next to the post to Andersen’s left. The Canadiens penalty kill kept the Hurricanes to the perimeter as much as possible and were able to get numerous clears as a result of blocked shots, and Dach himself earned a shot on net as the penalty expired.

3) Jalen Chatfield took the Hurricanes’ first penalty of the game in the most blatant open-ice pick play on Cole Caufield. Montreal had been playing the past few minutes in the Carolina zone, but Caufield sent a blind backhand pass the length of the blueline that was easily picked off and sent the visitors down the ice. Montreal’s top line defender and Caufield’s man at top of the zone tried to pass off the puck and Chatfield went for the pick play. Perhaps with more coverage, he might have gotten away with it, but with three white jerseys and one red one getting knocked over, he had nothing to complain about. A Carolina faceoff win was retrieved back by the Canadiens, but a missed pass gave Andersen an easy cover. The bouncing puck kept the Canadiens from finishing off some of their prettier passing plays, and the crowd delivered ooh’s and aah’s for each one, and momentum was gained if nothing on the scoreboard.

4) Immediately following the final clear, Taylor Hall got in on the forecheck and put a light crosscheck into Alexandre Carrier’s numbers, sending him (and his jaw) sprawling into the cleft of the boards. The second unit got the lion share of the power play for the opening minute, and gifted Martin St. Louis some four-on-four play when Zach Bolduc hooked Jaccob Slavin behind the net. The even time expired without action and Carolina took immediate advantage of their reduced man advantage. Aho and Seth Jarvis broke into the Canadiens’ zone and backed the defenders off by slowing down with numbers. Matheson gave both a wide gap, Jarvis sent the puck back towards the point, and Carolina had no pressure in the top of the zone to stop a cross-seam pass to Aho to fire a one-timer past Dobes. Carolina’s scoring-first streak intact, they came right back out on the attack and hemmed Montreal’s lines in once more. Jordan Staal would end up getting his stick on the ice as a perfect target for Miller to hit from behind Dobes and the net to double the lead.

5) Unfortunately for the attendees who paid to be there, the situation turned from bad to much worse as Logan Stankoven finished off a two-on-one rush with Blake. The third goal of the first period for Carolina, which came in a sequence that lasted three minutes from the first goal, left the building silent in that way that infers suspicion of their team’s effort and capacity to meet the moment.

6) If the Canadiens intended to participate in that crucial Game 4 at all, they would need to take a serious look at their method and decision-making process during the intermission. As it so happens, Montreal decided to switch up their lines, characterized by Alex Newhook lining up with Suzuki and Caufield for the first offensive faceoff. Six minutes into the middle frame, and Montreal had certainly added a modicum of urgency to their game and yet remained beneath the Hurricanes’ apparent baseline.

7) The Habs’ legs began to improve as the minutes crept by in the second period, but the officials struck again with a retroactive penalty call as Ehlers laid on the ice. He cranked his neck so sharply to the left as Matheson’s right glove grazed Nikolaj Ehlers that he needed to lie on the ice long enough for the whistle to be blown upon a possession change, but that clarion sound jarred him from his stupor. Back on the penalty kill with no room to spare, Phillip Danault leaned on Staal’s head following a faceoff scrum to give up the five-on-three.

8) Aho, Shayne Gostisbehere, Svechnikov, Ehlers, and Jarvis had one pass disrupted by Guhle for a whistle, one each by Evans and Carrier for clears, and were kept to only a single shot on net. The successful kill bought the Canadiens some energy and they were able to earn some time in Andersen’s proximity, however, that energy also translated to another penalty for Josh Anderson. The scrum that resulted in his penalty occurred after every single shift in Montreal’s first and second rounds. The penalty is an inexcusable indictment of the subjectivity that the officials have to manage their own personal expectations of a game. With a few seconds remaining on the penalty, the second period buzzer sounded with no progress on the scoreboard for a just-too-casual Montreal team that was showing signs of emotional dysregulation. 

9) Montreal had a mountain to climb starting the third period, down three goals to none against the best team in their conference, notorious for its shutdown defence. Some quick shifts at the outset saw the Habs looking to generate offence, but the lapses and lack of forward movement in their own zone led to more given away pucks. Montreal skaters had anywhere from 0.5-1.5 seconds to decide what to do with the puck once they got in anywhere near their own goal line, and they consistently played a stationary game and sent the puck backwards to a closest “open” teammate. That decision is further compounding the difficulty because the receiver is the player who most recently just escaped pressure of their own, and the winning, forechecking team always has more impetus as if skating downhill.

10) The chances for Carolina started to really chain and pile up as the time neared halfway; chip clears led to icings, faceoffs were lost every time, defenders bumped into each other trying to play man on man, and Dobes continued to keep his team in the game with massive saves. Each save made by the rookie goaltender, however, meant the puck continued to be in the wrong zone of play. Eventually, the fans couldn’t tolerate the effort they were seeing on the ice and decided their suspicions had been confirmed. The first boos came out with just over six minutes left, and Anderson caught another penalty when he retaliated on an uncalled high-stick by pushing Sean Walker over in front of Andersen. They gave a hollow cheer when Suzuki got a shot on net, and Andrei Svechnikov iced the final game into the empty net. Nobody was back to cover the middle of the ice since Suzuki, Dobson, Hutson, and Caufield all let the puck bounce and trickle through them along the boards.

HabsWorld Habs 3 Stars

1st and ONLY Star – Jakub Dobes

A flurry of three goals in the latter stages of the first period may have put the team on its knees, but watching Dobes play the rest of the game would not have given you a hint about it. He stopped every breakaway and was excellent on the unnecessary power plays the skaters in front forced upon him. He appeared controlled and calm moving side to side and there certainly shouldn’t be any question who starts in net in Montreal’s elimination game.

Stats: 39 SV, 3 GA, .929 SV%

Cole Caufield and Jayden Struble had especially tough games. Caufield himself killed at least three possessions with brutal passes and giveaways, as well as more terrible decisions in his own zone to float the puck behind him. Struble’s coverage and decision-making were nowhere near the crispness and precision needed to contend with the Canes energy, and his place in the lineup remains a confusing decision. He skates with Hutson, so therefore, he will be on the ice for significantly harder matchups and extended ice time. He will be trusted far more with backing up the dynamo of Hutson and covering down low in his own zone. He has been beaten on all counts in each loss to the Hurricanes this series. The defensive corps alone accounted for 10 giveaways, more than Montreal’s forwards. What is even more difficult for the Canadiens to wrap their minds around must be the fact that Carolina’s defence is just as guilty almost as often.