HabsWorld.net -- 

The Habs rebounded from a 3-0 loss Thursday night in New Jersey by defeating
division rival Ottawa by that very same score.  Andrei Kostitsyn got the
scoring going in the 1st as well as scoring the final goal of the game, while
Benoit Pouliot tallied his first of the season just after a powerplay. 
Carey Price made 19 saves for his first shutout in nearly 2 years while Brian
Elliott stopped 31 of 34 shots in the loss.

HW 3 Stars of the Night:

1st Star: Andrei Kostitsyn (2 goals, +2 rating, 3 SOG, 1 block,
17:56 TOI)

Forget it being a contract year, perhaps Kostitsyn simply needs to play
Ottawa more often.  For the second straight game vs the Sens, he was
productive and had several strong opportunities.  With Mike Cammalleri
being snakebitten, him stepping up is even more important.

2nd Star: Carey Price (19 saves on 19 shots, 3 giveaways (team
high), 0.00 GAA, 1.000 SV%)

The giveaways aside, he had another solid night, making all the key saves
when he needed to, killing any chances of an Ottawa rally.  What was also
nice to see was that he didn’t allow a 3rd period goal, this is only the second
game of the season it hasn’t happened.

3rd Star: Benoit Pouliot (1 goal, +1 rating, 2 SOG, 3 hits, +1
TK/GV, 15:25 TOI)

It was only a matter of time before he popped one and tonight turned out to
be the night.  It should be noted that he was right in front of the net
when he scored, a place Hab fans alike would like to see him on a more regular
basis.  His 3 hits led all Montreal forwards as well.

Honourable Mention: P.K. Subban (1 assist, +1 rating, 4 shots,
4 hits (team high), 2 blocks, 22:51 TOI)

He was solid defensively tonight for the most part – the only concern I had
was that he let his emotions get the best of him in the 2nd when he wanted to
fight the Sens’ Peter Regin after a scrum when it wasn’t necessary.  He had
this problems several times with the Bulldogs last year, and it needs to stop –
I’m sure it will as he matures though.  The only blemish on an otherwise
solid night, but that issue drops him to the HM position.

Stat of the Night: One week after going 21/30 on the draw,
Tomas Plekanec was simply awful on the draw.  A late faceoff win actually
doubled his win total, he wound up 2/13 on the night for a whopping 15.4%
success rate. 

Note: For those itching for hockey tomorrow, the Hamilton Bulldogs
game vs Oklahoma City tomorrow will be televised on CBC (and on the NHL Network
in the US) at 1 PM EST.