We’re nearly three months into the season, but the Montreal Canadiens are already in a position to constantly check the results of other games in the league.
The out of town scoreboard isn’t brought up too much until the end of the season. Usually, around that time, two or three teams are in a dogfight for a single playoff spot, and a win or loss by another team affects their positioning in the standings. What’s the most interesting about this season, at least when it comes to the Montreal Canadiens, is that it feels like the scoreboard watching is happening a lot sooner.
There’s currently a five-team battle for third in the Atlantic Division between the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, Florida Panthers, and the Habs. After Montreal’s 3-1 win against Columbus on Monday, they sit two points out of third place with 23.
It stayed that way thanks to the out of town scoreboard from Tuesday night. The Panthers lost to the New York Rangers 5-4 which keeps them at 22 points and most importantly, the LA Kings were able to put away the Red Wings keeping their point total at 25.
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The Atlantic is definitely the worse of the two divisions in the east, and because of that, this claustrophobia among teams is most likely going to last all season. The Montreal Canadiens have already gone through some ‘must-win’ situations, but those were mostly for their pride and confidence. These next set of games aren’t really in the same category, but they can be huge for the Habs as the season continues.
Wednesday, they finish their three-game homestand by facing the Sens. Ottawa is continuing to fall in the standings, and a win against them would have them tied with the Red Wings. Unfortunately, they win the tie-breaker because the Montreal Canadiens would have one extra game played. But when you think back to the beginning of the year when the Habs were last in the Atlantic, getting to that position would be pretty telling of the team’s resolve.
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That’s all fine, but Montreal will have to turn to the out of town scoreboard as well. Boston is facing Tampa Bay, and if they win, they will leapfrog Detroit with 26.
I know the Habs will be focusing on what they can control in their game, but it wouldn’t hurt to have our fingers crossed hoping for the Bruins to lose. However, with key pieces in Carey Price, Brendan Gallagher, and Jonathan Drouin to name a few leading the way, there’s no telling what the team will be able to do.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s always room for improvement, and Andrew Shaw brought up a good point after the Blue Jackets game in that they can’t continue to rely on Price every night. Very true, but what the 30-year-old netminder allows the Montreal Canadiens is time to work on those issues now so that they’ll be ready for the rough stretches of the season later on.
It’s going to be a stressful, frustrating, and engaging couple of months for the Habs. Are you ready?
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Will you be paying attention to the out of town scoreboard every night? Let us know your thoughts down below.