Price is Right – Habs Are Wrong: Early on in the game on Tuesday, March 15th, 2011, it looked like both goalies were going to have one of those nights. After a bounce of the photographer’s lens hole in the corner, Carey Price, who was trying to play the puck, left the net open for Marcus Johansson. A few moments later, Capitals’ goalie, Bradon Holtby, got caught late getting back to his net by Travis Moen.
While the Canadiens manage 26 shots on the Washington rookie netminder, the Capitals peppered Carey Price with 41. Andrei Kostitsyn got the other marker for the Habs with a “Belarussian Wrister” after a drop pass by Lars Eller. The only However, the Habs looked lethargic at certain points of the game. The result was a 4-2 Capitals win. Couple that with a Bruins win in a shootout, and that leaves les Glorieux four point back of Boston, with the Bs holding a game in hand.
Christmas Isn’t Until December, James: Canadiens; defenseman James Wizniewski was having his share of problems during the game. He was only credited with four turnovers, but it seemed like so many more. He also got caught trying to get cute in the defensive zone. He received a penalty for holding the stick of Capitals’ forward Mike Knuble, who got a penalty on the same play for tripping. Wiz finished the game +1.
The Infirmary Runnith Over: The names of Jeff Halpern and Tomas Plekanec can be added to the growing list of casualties on the Habs. In his usual, boring way, Habs’ coach Jacques Martin said both players had “lower body injuries” and “will be reevaluated tomorrow.” From what I could gather, Plekanec tweaked his groin in a battle along the boards in the second period. I did not see what happened to Halpern.
And while we’re on the subject of injuries, although Michael Cammalleri was one of the better forward in Tuesday’s contest, he still showing signs of apprehension when playing anywhere near the boards.
Referees’ Out to Lunch: Officials Dean Morton and Brad Watson had their minds on something other than the game. Along with the aforementioned double penalty call, which is their way of saying they missed something, they totally botched the call on a sure goal by the Capitals. Darby Hendricks looked to have scored in the first period, pushing a puck off the goal line behind Carey Price, but Brad Watson immediately waved it off. He claimed he was about to blow the whistle. Looks like the boys in Toronto were trying to apologize to the refs for leaving them out to dry on the Pacioretty-Chara incident.
Et Cetera: The Buffalo Sabres will be wearing Rick Martin’s number 7 on their helmets for the remainder of the season. And the Canadiens, deemed the classiest organization in the league by many people, honoured the victims of this week’s earthquake and tsunami in Japan with a moment of silence before the puck dropped tonight. A beautiful gesture by both clubs.