Afternoons are made for drinking tea . Not to play hockey .
Given the fact that all of the Cups are in Montreal – Les Habitants would not allow the San Jose Sharks the pleasure of either drinking tea or play hockey . The hometown team skated away with a 3 – 1 victory in a game that took fifty minutes for both teams to kinda wake up .
This was supposed to be a coming of age for the Habs as they faced a formidable foe from the West . Sure the San Jose Sharks are coming perilously close to becoming the Buffalo Bills of hockey yet they remain a very good hockey club. Any team that boasts Joe Thornton , Dany Heatly , Patrick Marleau and Stanley Cup winning goaltender Antti Niemi can be that bad – can they ? The Sharks arrived in town 5- 3 – 2 in their last ten games and fresh off Niemi`s and the team`s first shut -out , a 4 – 0 victory over the Ottawa Senators .
In a Bell Center that was transformed into a daycare for a day as parents took the opportunity to bring their toddlers instead of business associates , the two teams skated as if it was past their bedtimes . The Sharks , having two days to adjust to the East Coast time zone , appeared sleepier than the two and woke up when Mathieu Darche played `bounce the tennis ball off the garage door`. Darche took a shot on goal that was wider than Jeremy Roenick`s mouth . It hit the back boards and like a shortstop keying in on a well hit grounder , Darche `scooped `it up and delivered a quick snapshot past Niemi . It was Darche`s 5th of the season as the Hab continues to make the most of his last chance in the NHL.
Mathieu`s goal knocked some sense into the Sharks yet both teams continued to play sloppy hockey . Passes missed , incoherent plays and general confusion ruled until Benn Ferriero took a pass from Couture at the 13 : 04 mark and rifled a wrist shot past Carey Price. The Montreal netminder was still looking for the puck as Ferriero and his mates were breaking out the Champagne. If this was last season , the Montreal crowd would have been very worried as to the outcome of the match. This is not last season however and Carey Price is more like Patrick Roy than Andre `Red Light `Racicot .
The fans in Montreal are settling in as they are getting the type of goal tending that they are used to. Jacques Plante , Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy would all allow a weak goal time and again . One weak goal was all they allowed and after that they would slam the door on the opposition . Like a husband allowing a stranger to kiss his wife on the cheek – the home crowd will not allow anything more if they are to respect their goalie and remain married for many years .
The First Intermission is Over Guys….
It took 13 : 58 for Tomas Plekanec to score a goal . Plekanec , the Habs most consistent player for the season and the game , capped off an energy charged shift with an outstanding individual effort . He picked up a hard earned puck from the corner and drifted into the slot . Instead of firing the puck right away ( see Gionta, Brian ) , the Czech showed more patience than a Chilean miner and put himself into position as two Shark defenders went the way of the Do – Do . In what may have been Tomas `best decision since spurning Kaberle`s Leaf invitation – Plekanec shot the puck against the grain , fooling Niemi and putting the puck inside the right post.
It was Tomas`9th of the season and his 25th point in 26 games as he continues to lead the Montreal scoring. San Jose `s offense sputtered although they earned 13 shots on goal for the period . The times they did muster a threat , their top gunners were blanked by Price , Hamrlik and Spacek.
Spacek and Hamrlik are using their veteran savvy as they are consistently put on the ice against other team`s top units. Spacek started the season on `borrowed `thirty – seven year old legs yet in the past seven games – he is showing that he is not quite ready to pack it in. The Sharks inability to gain any sustained pressure was a combination of the Montreal duo and the afternoon game.
Is it Ten O`Clock Yet ?
Les Canadiens came out of the dressing room leading the Sharks 2 -1 . Unlike the Habs of seasons past where they would go into a defensive shell that would have made even the oldest Turtle blush , this year`s version of La bleu, blanc et rouge seem to have found the proper combination of the two main components of the game. Offence and defence. The Habs did not sit back nor did they attack full out. The Sharks did not know what to do to gain momentum until Mike Cammalleri took the credit off of Hamrlik`s hard work and scored his 8th of the season. Hamrlik outskated the Shark defense on a super individual effort only to be thwarted by Niemi. Mr. Cammalleri was following Hamrlik to see what he was up to and luckily for the Mike and the Habs , his wrist shot solved Niemi and the Habs earned a two goal lead.
San Jose upped their game in the last 12 minutes realizing that it was seven – thirty their time yet Price was solid again. He stopped the four shots thrown his way . The Sharks easily fired 15 but the Habs went into Capital and Penguin mode from last season – blocking more shots than at a Dean Martin Celebrity Roast .
All in all a disappointing game entertainment – wise .
Satisfaction – wise , two points in the standings as the team hopes to avoid an early Spring tee – time.
Habs Notes
Subban sat out his second consecutive game against San Jose. Weber has replaced him in the line – up for now and is playing great hockey . Depth is good and Subban will be a much better player as a result of Martin`s `time – out `.
Andrei Markov is gone for the season and word is maybe for his career ! He will undergo a major knee reconstruction for the second time in as many seasons although this time it is reported to be much more major. Stay tuned…..
The Habs play tomorrow night at home against the Ottawa Senators. Game time is 7 pm. Check with Tony Mendes at SenShot to see how white his hair has become following Alexei Kovalev.
Too Many Men on the Site Fansided has decided to get some tickets off of Stub Hub and we are giving away two tickets in the 100 level for you to see the Detroit Red Wings host the Los Angeles Kings on Monday December 13th at “The Joe”. Go to Too Many Men on the Site and see how you can win !
Don`t forget to answer this week`s poll !
The answer to last week`s question is Chris Nilan.