Montreal Canadiens Need To Improve Road Game As World Juniors Take Over Bell Centre
It has often been said that the Bell Centre in Montreal is one of the toughest buildings in the league for visiting teams to play in. The crowd in Montreal’s downtown arena is perhaps the most enthusiastic and knowledgable in the league, and the Montreal Canadiens have been taking full advantage this season.
The Canadiens currently stand alone atop the Atlantic Division standings, and can look to their terrific home record as the reason why. The Habs currently have the second best home record in the Eastern Conference behind the surprising New York Islanders at 13-4-1.
The Canadiens extended that record over the past two weeks with an impressive five game home stretch. The Habs won four of the five games, with the only loss coming at the hands of the NHL leading Anaheim Ducks.
Dec 20, 2014; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher (11) celebrates his goal against Ottawa Senators with teammates during the second period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports
Montreal started the five game home stand with a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks and followed that up with a 6-2 victory against the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings. This past week, the Habs sandwiched a pair of 4-1 wins over the Carolina Hurricanes and Ottawa Senators around the tough 2-1 loss to Anaheim.
It is not just that the Habs are winning on home ice, they have been dominating their guests recently. Montreal outscored the opposition 18-7 over the five game stretch in the comfy confines of the Bell Centre. Overall, in 18 games on home ice this season, the Habs have outscored the visitors by a combined score of 59-39. That’s an average of 3.28 goals scored per game for the Canadiens.
Unfortunately for the Montreal Canadiens, they are only allowed to play half their regular season games at the Bell Centre. It is the other 29 buildings around the National Hockey League that have been giving them trouble this season.
Though they average well over three goals per game on home ice, the Habs have scored just 29 goals in 16 road contests, a paltry 1.81 goals per game. Perhaps even more concerning are the 43 goals Montreal has allowed as the visitor already this season.
Dec 6, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars left wing Ryan Garbutt (16) checks Montreal Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban (76) in the third period at American Airlines Center. Dallas won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Failing to find the back of the opponent’s net on the road has led the Habs to having a mediocre 8-7-1 record as the visiting team this season. To be honest, they are lucky to have a winning record on the road. Being outscored 43-29 in 16 games, yet somehow collecting 17 points in those contests is a head scratching statistic.
Not to point the finger and place all the blame on the Habs top scorer, but Max Pacioretty has a very impressive 23 points in 18 home games, but a measly three goals and one assist for four points in 18 road games this season. Jiri Sekac has ten points in 14 Bell Centre games and just three road points in 13 contests.
Carey Price is not immune to a dip in play when on the road either. The Canadiens goaltender has a 2.06 GAA and a .929 SV% at the Bell Centre, but a 2.60 GAA and .917 SV% away from home.
It would be expected that a team is better on home ice than on the road, but this complete Jekyll and Hyde act can’t last if the Montreal Canadiens are going to stay near the top of the Eastern Conference standings.
The Habs road woes have been getting worse as the season has progressed. Dating back to a 5-0 drubbing at Madison Square Garden on November 23rd, Montreal is just 1-5-0 in their previous six road games. They scored just ten goals in those six contests combined.
The Canadiens came out of their most recent slump when they returned to home ice, but with the World Junior Hockey Championships about to invade the Bell Centre, it will be more than two weeks before the Habs play another home game.
Dec 6, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars center Tyler Seguin (91) at the net against Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price (31) in the second period at American Airlines Center. Dallas won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
The Canadiens will embark on a five game road trip that begins on Long Island Tuesday night. They will also face the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers before the New Year, and wrap up their road trip by taking on the New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins.
That’s not as difficult as a road trip through California against the tough west coast teams, but when you average less than two goals per game on the road, it could turn ugly.
Pacioretty has shown he can be a dominant player on home ice, but he is going to have to pick up his game on the road over the next few weeks if the Canadiens are going to avoid another road trip that results in just one win.