Montreal Canadiens: The defence corps is too generous

The goals against numbers for the Montreal Canadiens are beyond missed assignments as the blueline leads the league in giveaways.

Generosity is one of the virtues we learn growing up. However, professional sport is a place where it’s not always welcome. As of last night’s game, the Habs are tied for sixth in the league in goals against. Their goal differential isn’t as bad as it was at the beginning of the season – relative to the other 30 teams – but it’s still up there (or down there depending on how you look at it) at -29.

Defence is obviously the culprit here. We can take Jeff Petry‘s and Karl Alzner‘s screen as recent examples. It’s a six-man effort to keep pucks out of your net every shift, but the work starts with the blueliners in most cases. However, what’s been making the Habs an easier team to score against is the number of giveaways they allow.

Andrew Zadarnowski tweeted a series of graphs detailing team leaders in giveaways per season. The Habs have been at the top of that stat since the 2014-15 season. This year’s team leads that category by a landslide.

Who’s to blame? (via hockey-reference.com)

• Jeff Petry – 70
• Karl Alzner – 66
• Jordie Benn – 51
• Victor Mete – 41
• Shea Weber – 31
• Joseph Morrow – 29
• Jakub Jerabek – 25
• David Schlemko – 19

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Something like giveaways can’t be avoided. Even the NHL’s best defencemen turn the puck over from time to time. But the number of times the Habs’ defence do it are one of the things that Claude Julien harps about after every game.

In many ways, it’s the same effect as losing a faceoff. It sets you back where instead of being in a position of possession, you have to work to get the puck again. That limits your time in the offensive zone as well as your opportunities to score.

Hopefully, this consistent stat for the Habs is looked over as the season continues and even into the offseason. Just because the playoffs aren’t happening, doesn’t mean the coaching staff can’t begin to implant the things they expect to see next year especially in Mete and Jerabek (assuming he’s resigned).

Next: A Lack of Response

What are your thoughts on this? How can the Habs improve this stat? Let us know in the comments.