The first quarter of the 2018-19 season provided a surprisingly strong start for the team. A high number of passing grades are among the forward group in this article, the first of two such sets of early report cards.

Despite one of their best efforts on the season, one where they outshot the opposition 49-22, the Habs were sent to the showers with a 2-1 defeat against Carolina on Tuesday night.

With Shea Weber set to come off injured reserve on Tuesday, the Habs needed to free up a roster spot. Karl Alzner is the casualty as the team has placed him on waivers.

The Habs came off their Western Canada road trip on a high note and were hoping to carry that over to this past week. Suffice it to say, that didn’t happen.

The Habs were looking to close off the week on a winning note on Saturday night. Unfortunately, a late penalty proved to be costly as the Bruins skated away with the 3-2 victory.

Despite a much improved defensive effort, the Habs dropped their third straight decision on Friday afternoon as they fell 3-2 in overtime to Buffalo.

The Habs have moved past the quarter-season mark and are continuing to hold down a playoff spot with the perceived weakness of the team being its strength so far.

It took 22 games, but on Wednesday night, the Canadiens looked every bit like the basement dwellers they were supposed to be this season as they fell 5-2 to New Jersey.

Monday was yet another game that was so much fun for the fans to watch. With a 5-4 final score in favour of Washington, it’s obvious that there were plenty of goals, but there were also many highlight quality stops by the goaltenders, plenty of rough stuff, and some solid defensive plays.