On a night when the Buffalo Sabres were celebrating their fortieth anniversary in the N.H.L , someone apparently forgot to tell the players.
The fact that such an accomplishment was parlayed into an opening face – off between Buffalo alumni Floyd Smith and Hall of Famer Henri Richard of the Canadiens in the corner of the rink , kind a set the tone for the evening”s entertainment or lack thereof. Perhaps Habs fans are spoiled by the an amazing history which is punctuated three or four times a year by top of the line celebrations at the Bell Center. As a hockey fan – last night”s version of ‘where”s Waldo ‘ in reference to finding M. Richard and Smith was embarrassing. Minor league teams have shown more effort in celebrating a mother’s dedication to the annual team bake sale. It’s no wonder that the fans in Buffalo are part of a handful of cities in the NHL that do not consistently sell out.
The Game
Perhaps the current day players caught that vibe or else they were put to sleep. The first twenty minutes , aka the first period, brought more yawns to the observers than an audience observing a Lindsay Lohen bail hearing. The only player displaying a jump to his game was Hab goalie Carey Price.
Did this guy borrow something illegal from Lance Armstrong when Armstrong was in town just before training camp ? Last season Price was slow to react and the tiniest setback would repel Carey into his net where he was able to pout behind his goalposts and out of site. So far this season – Price is more animated than Robin William’ s voice over for the Disney movie Alladin. He ‘s attacking the shooters and their arsenals. Last year he fought the puck and the puck won, this season the pucks won’t want anything to do with him. Price appears to be relishing the number one job and if all indications come true – Gauthier can rest easy at that end of the rink and commence looking for that big center that has eluded the Habs for many years.
Alexandre Picard opened the scoring at 1 : 29 of the second period as his point shot careened off of two Buffalo players and past the disillusioned Miller. It was Picard’s first goal as a Hab as he took a pass from his defence partner – P. K Subban. Subban, who was ‘ demoted ‘ to the third defensive pairing after his ‘ not really a penalty ‘ penalty in the last two minutes of the game against Tampa, played a more reserved game than usual yet he continues to show an enthusiasm not seen in Montreal for a long time.
The period continued rather uneventfully until Gorges netted a goal with a booming slapshot from the right point. Hamrlik and Gomez earned assists on the play. That goal was scored at 18 :33 of the third period and the way things were going – the two teams should have declined the third period and directed their energies toward instructing Buffalo management on how to celebrate an anniversary.
Even when Sabre Derek Roy spoiled Price’s shutout at 3 : 22 of the third period, everyone just wanted to press fast forward on their remote control and punish this game by sending it to bed early.
The Habs played a strong defensive game and are still waiting for their offensive stars to wake up.
The top two lines showed no sustained pressure and Brian Gionta is – 1 for the season. It is still early but Gionta is not the same ‘ giant ‘ that appeared from New Jersey in last season’s overhaul. If this type of play continues, perhaps Saku Koivu was on to something when he decided that hockey was more important than french lessons.