Montreal Canadiens: Three Standout Performances vs St. Louis Blues

Second Star: Jonathan Drouin

Two years ago Jonathan Drouin was traded to Montreal for the Habs top prospect, was asked to move to center, take on a first line role and become a franchise superstar for his hometown team. Somehow, the pressure got to him and he returned middling results for the past two years.

We have seen flashes of the brilliance that Drouin can bring to the rink. What we haven’t seen from Drouin is consistency. Until the beginning of this season, that is. Drouin has been great since the puck dropped on opening night and had another tremendous game last night against the defending Cup champs.

With the game tied at one late in the first period, Drouin hopped over the boards like he was sent out on a rocket. He grabbed a pass from Ben Chiarot at the attacking blue line and fired a laser of a wrist shot over the shoulder of Binnington to give the Canadiens a 2-1 lead.

Just as impressive, Drouin made a huge defensive play shortly after scoring. Brett Kulak carried the puck out of his own zone but tried to beat a pair of Blues at his own blue line. The puck was knocked off his stick and a potential 3 on 1 was developing just inside the Canadiens zone. Drouin quickly jumped in front of the Blues player who was headed for the puck and separated his man from getting possession.

Drouin then chipped the puck away and out of danger, thwarting a dangerous scoring chance before it ever materialized. Drouin finished the night with 14 minutes played and four shots on goal, but the two plays he made late in the first period, one at each end of the arena made him a star last night.