Montreal Canadiens Week in Review: 3 Stars of the Week

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Examining the Montreal Canadiens first week of the season and the teams top players of the 1st week of the NHL Season

Overall the Montreal Canadiens had a good first week of the season, as they started the year with two games on the road. The week started with the team traveling to Buffalo on Thursday night, and then they traveled to play Ottawa on Saturday night. The Habs were able to earn 3 out of a possible 4 points this week.

Speed and creating turnovers is how the Canadiens beat the Sabres. Brendan Gallagher scored the teams first goal of the season and he later added another in the teams 4-1 win. Al Montoya was solid in net making 30 saves.

In Ottawa, the Montreal Canadiens failed to come out with speed and were out played for most of the game. The Canadiens were able to rally and even take the lead in the 3rd period. However, they blew the lead late in the 3rd period, and later lost in a shootout.

Montreal was able to show some grit and resiliency this week. When they were being outplayed by the Senators, Montreal was able to claw their way back in the game. This is something the Habs can build off of, and have confidence that they can create offense when needed.

Habs Upcoming Schedule

This week the team will host the defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night at 7:30pm. Then Habs will stay at home for another game on Thursday at 7:30pm, playing the Arizona Coyotes. Montreal will then travel to Boston to take on the Bruins at 7pm on Saturday night.

Habs 3 Stars of the Week

Montreal had some young rookies making their NHL debut. A couple of the Habs key players were out due to injury and the team got excellent performances from their replacements. The Montreal Canadiens had some excellent individual performances in week 1 of the NHL season.

Jeff Petry deserves honorable mention for 3 stars consideration the way he played against the Ottawa Senators

Jeff Petry started the week being injured for the Montreal Canadiens and was unable to play against the Sabres. Petry was then available to return against the Senators, and he returned in dramatic fashion. He scored 2 goals in the game which were very important goals that helped the Habs come away with 1 point in a loss.

Petry’s Goals

Petry’s first goal came on the Power Play during the 2nd period on a wrist shot that fooled Craig Anderson. The play developed off a Tomas Plekanec face off win in Ottawa’s zone and the pass to Petry was by Nathan Beaulieu. This goal got the Habs on the board.

Petry’s second goal camel in the third period just as after the Canadiens Power Play had expired. Petry scored on a hard slap shot from the Senators blue line that put the Canadiens in front at that point in the game 3-2. Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher drew the assists on the play.

Petry’s Value

Jeff is a very fluid skater who also does very well in moving the Canadiens up the ice with good first passes and was missed last season when he went down to injury. Petry stepping up on the second unit of the Habs Power Play gives the team great balance with the first unit of Markov and Weber.

Jeff Petry’s return helped us appreciate how important and valuable he is to the team. Petry will no doubt play a big role for the Canadiens again this season. His performance on Saturday was great but he only played the one game last week and it was difficult to rank him any higher.

Shea Weber‘s strong physical play earns him the 3rd star on our weekly rankings this week.

The P.K Subban for Shea Weber trade will be debated for years to come by Montreal Canadiens fans. When the trade happened if felt as if we lost the most likeable personality and best defender that we had in Subban. However, Shea Weber did very well earning respect and likability from the fans and team this week.

Weber’s Tough Play

Shea Weber had two very strong showings this week for the Habs. The teams new number 1 defender played two really strong physical games while amassing 7 hits through both games. Weber also added 3 blocked shots this week as well.

Weber is also the currently the Canadiens leader in ice time averaging 26:45 through two games. He has also spent an average of 4:08 of ice time on the Habs Power Play which is leading the team. While playing that much he was also able to earn the second highest plus minus rating on the team being a plus 3 to start the season.

Shea’s week has shown us that he is everything as advertised, including his absolute cannon of a slap shot. He plays such a tough physical game making life very difficult for the opponent, especially in the corners as demonstrated on numerous hits.

Weber’s Value

Weber has clearly established himself as the teams number 1 defender and already established himself as a leader on the team. It also looks like Weber will be playing a ton of minutes this season for the Canadiens.

He is also doing a great job of complimenting his speedy defense partner Nathan Beaulieu. The two make a great tandem and will be a joy to watch this season if they can play that well every week.

Al Montoya did a tremendous job for the Montreal Canadiens establishing himself as the teams backup goalie.

The Montreal Canadiens needed to find an improvement in net behind Carey Price for the teams backup duties after last season. The Habs needed someone who could not only give Price a break during the year, but also play solidly in case Carey were to get hurt again.

After winning the teams backup job during training camp it was announced that Price was sick with the flu. This gave Montoya the chance to build confidence in everyone that he could be the guy in case something should happen to Price. Montoya did a great job establishing himself in that role this week.

Al Montoya’s Solid Debut

Montoya didn’t win both of his starts this week, but what he did for his team is all you can ask for from the goaltender position. Give your team the best possible chance to win the game. Montoya was able to do this for the Canadiens this week.

Overall Montoya’s number look sparkling after two games with a .942 save percentage making 65 saves on 69 shots. He also boasts a 1.92 goals against average for the week.

It was very important the way he handled himself in those games. Against Buffalo he was able to settle in and look calm and composed throughout the game earning the Victory. Versus the Senators the Canadiens were badly being out played and were out shot 38-24, but Montoya was able to hold the fort helping the Habs earn a point.

Montoya’s Value

Last season when Price hurt his knee a second time, it was clear the by way the Habs played that they lacked confidence in Mike Condon. Montoya won’t always be in the spotlight this season but his performance this week was key in the team building confidence in him. Montoya showed that he could hold his own and give his team the best chance to win when called upon.

The Montreal Canadiens best player of the week was Brendan Gallagher

Brendan Gallagher does what Brendan Gallagher always does for the Montreal Canadiens. He plays a very hard style, driving the opponents net, and screening the goalie with maybe some questionable contact. Gallagher’s play was no different this week.

Gallagher’s Performance

In his two games this week Gallagher was able to score 2 goals against the Buffalo Sabers. When the team played Ottawa he added an assist on Jeff Petry’s goal in the third period. That gives Brendan the early scoring lead for his team this season with 3 points.

More from A Winning Habit

It was the way that Gallagher made everyone else around him better which earned him this weeks first star. When Gallagher assisted on Petry’s goal he was standing right in front of Anderson, not letting the goalie see anything.

Michel Therrien started juggling the lines against the Senators to find offensive production. However, it was usually the line Gallagher was on that started producing the majority of the scoring chances for Montreal. His constant effort through out both games proved very valuable to the Habs this week.

Gallagher was also not shy in antagonizing his opponents. He could clearly be seen chirping and trying to get under their skin in both games. This clearly effected both the Sabres and Senators as their players were making an effort to hit him.

Next: Montreal Canadiens are Wisely Developing Sergachev

Gallagher’s Value

Gallagher will be one of the Habs most important offensive producers for the Canadiens. If not for injuries last season Gallagher was on pace for 61 points and 29 goals last season which would have been career highs. If Gallagher remains healthy it wouldn’t be shocking to see him break the 30 goal plateau this season.

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