After a tough loss in Toronto on Saturday, the Habs continued their road trip on Tuesday with a visit to New Jersey. They were outshot and outchanced by a significant margin but in the end, goaltending was the difference as Montreal picked up the 5-2 win.
From the moment he was acquired, it has been expected that Sean Monahan would be moved by next Friday’s trade deadline. However, given his injury situation, perhaps another approach makes more sense now.
The Habs were able to finish up their homestand on a winning note but things didn’t go anywhere near as well on the road as their four-game road trip kicked off with a pair of tough losses to two of the stronger teams in the Eastern Conference. Plus, some thoughts on Jonathan Drouin’s recent improvement.
While the Canadiens were able to open up the scoring on Saturday night in Toronto, things went downhill from there in a hurry as the Maple Leafs picked up five unanswered goals to take the 5-1 victory.
Thursday’s game was close through 40 minutes as it looked like Montreal might be able to pick up a win in Carolina. However, things fell apart in the third as the Hurricanes scored four unanswered goals to pick up the 6-2 win.
After a pair of victories over the weekend, the Habs looked to make it three straight as they hosted Chicago on Tuesday. They got some scoring from some unexpected players to help lead the way to a 4-0 win.
After a long layoff, the Habs were back in action over the weekend with a pair of matinee affairs. While many were expecting them to be rusty, the opposite happened as they put up two strong efforts against the Islanders and Oilers to pick up two unexpected victories.
The Habs played the back half of their weekend matinees on Sunday against Edmonton. Alex Belzile scored his first career NHL goal and Montreal’s offence came to life as they skated away with a 6-2 victory.
Following a long layoff for the All-Star break and the bye week, the Habs were back in action on Saturday afternoon against the Islanders. It was a back-and-forth affair that needed over time and after Montreal killed off a penalty, Mike Matheson potted the winner for a 4-3 victory.
January wasn’t a great month for the Habs overall but a few players managed some decent performances. The votes have been tabulated and here is who our readers voted for as Montreal’s three stars for the month.