10 Thoughts: An Ugly End to the California Trip
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The Habs looked to make it a clean California sweep on Saturday as they took on Los Angeles. Instead, they put forth one of their ugliest efforts of the season, falling 4-0.
The Habs looked to make it a clean California sweep on Saturday as they took on Los Angeles. Instead, they put forth one of their ugliest efforts of the season, falling 4-0.
Montreal’s prospect pool has certainly gotten deeper over the last few seasons as a result of the extra draft capital they’ve had. We go similarly deep in our annual rankings as we begin with the players ranked outside the top 40.
The schedule makers weren’t kind to Laval last week, putting them in a tough situation of playing five games in seven days with two separate road trips in there. To their credit, the Rocket did relatively well, picking up a trio of victories despite a long list of injuries.
With the Canadiens needing an extra body on the back end for their upcoming California road trip, they recalled Jayden Struble from Laval. To make room, Rafael Harvey-Pinard was placed on injured reserve.
The Habs continued shuffling their lines and their goalies in an effort to get the team back in the win column. Neither approach worked, however, as they dropped all three games despite some quality contributions from some of their role players.
After falling to Calgary on Tuesday, the Habs looked to get back in the win column as they hosted Vegas on Thursday. They held the lead for more than half the game but a late penalty proved costly as they fell 6-5.
Starting extension talks with Samuel Montembeault so early in the season might seem a bit strange after no movement on that front in the summer. But it just might be the domino that needs to fall to solve the three-goalie challenge.
Last week was an eventful one for the Habs. They picked up a pair of overtime victories but those were book-ended by a pair of losses to keep the Canadiens just outside the playoff picture.
With Jordan Harris being a game-time decision tonight against Vancouver, the Habs needed to get an extra defenceman on the roster. That player is Gustav Lindstrom who has been recalled from Laval. To make room, Joel Armia was sent to the Rocket.
The Habs were back on the road on Thursday as they travelled to Detroit to take on the Red Wings. While they gave up the lead in the third, they were able to overcome it with a 3-2 overtime victory.