Montreal Canadiens Drive for 25: The 10 Keys To Winning Round 2

Apr 24, 2015; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens forward

(51) goes around Ottawa Senators defenseman

(65) during the second period in game five of the first round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

Key #5 to Winning Round 2

Alex Galchenyuk and Davis Desharnais need to be better.

I know the Habs managed to come out of the series with the win, but nobody will tell you it was easy. If they’re going to beat the Lightning, they’re going to need better play from some of their players, and it begins with Alex Galchenyuk and Davis Desharnais.

Both of these guys are key cogs in ensuring the Habs get contribution from all lines, and Desharnais in particular seemed all out of sorts during the series. Sometimes he disappeared for long stretches, other times he seemed to be falling down whenever he was knocked into. Plain and simple, he just wasn’t effective and took too many penalties at the same time.

Apr 26, 2015; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Montreal Canadiens right wing Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau (15) and center Alex Galchenyuk (27) chase the puck in the third period against the Ottawa Senators in game six of the first round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Canadian Tire Centre. The Canadiens won 1-0 and take the series 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

If Desharnais is going to be a force in the rest of the playoffs, it’s going to be with Galchenyuk on his Wing. Alex was the hero for one game, but aside from that great moment, there was a lack of production from the line in general. The important part is that neither looked absolutely horrible and both can be more effective. They’ve proven that during the regular season.

Alex, who is only 20 years old and is already experiencing his 3rd playoff season, needs to show he can become an offensive force. I’m not sure if he would fare better with Lars Eller as his centre (my intuition says yes), but it doesn’t seem like Michel Therrien is open at all to moving him up in the lines, so that question is moot. Chances are that if Alex is going to score, he’s going to need to do it with the current second line set up, one that has Desharnais as his centre and P.A. Parenteau on the wing.

Back to Desharnais for a moment, it isn’t out of the realm of possibility that he winds up on the 3rd or 4th line, or being scratched at some point if he doesn’t play better. The Habs need better than 2 assists, a -2, and 4 PIM from someone on the second line getting over 16 minutes per game in a 6-Game series.  However, the Habs and David would be better served by having him becomes the contributor they know he can be.

Key #6 to Winning Round 2

Get Physical.

Apr 26, 2015; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Ottawa Senators right wing

(27) is checked by Montreal Canadiens defenseman

(74) during the second period in the game six of the first round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports

Alexei Emelin, Brandon Prust, Dale Weise, and Greg Pateryn. These are the names of some of the guys that will have to get physical with the Lightning in order to give the Habs an opportunity to win. All of them played their roles extremely well in the first round, and I expect nothing less from them in this round and beyond.

Believe it or not, the Habs actually hold an edge physically on the Lightning. They could really make it hard for the Lightning to get into open space or manoeuvre comfortably. While the Ottawa Senators had a major size advantage on the Habs and used it to their advantage when they wanted to, many people pointed to the fact that they didn’t use a nasty side enough to make that part of their advantage as effective as it could be. This is something the Habs have to avoid if they’re going to ensure they can use their physical advantage over the Bolts.

Even guys like Jeff Petry, Brendan Gallagher, and Torrey Mitchell have an important role to play in ensuring the Habs remain a physical team. All three have an ability to make key hits. The more the Habs can make the Bolts uncomfortable, the more they can slow them down.

One last point I want to make here is that the physicality the Habs use has to avoid being reckless. It’s easy to get carried away and try to hit everything in sight when the adrenaline of playoff hockey gets going. I don’t expect this to be a problem with a Michel Therrien coached team, but it’s always a possibility when talking about playoff hockey.

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