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Montreal Canadiens: 7 Habs Headlines From Past 7 Days

By Sebastian High

Feb 1, 2021; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens Josh Anderson Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 1, 2021; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens Josh Anderson Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports /
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MONTREAL, QC – FEBRUARY 02: Josh Anderson #17 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates after scoring a goal on goaltender Thatcher Demko #35 of the Vancouver Canucks during the first period at the Bell Centre on February 2, 2021 in Montreal, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – FEBRUARY 02: Josh Anderson #17 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates after scoring a goal on goaltender Thatcher Demko #35 of the Vancouver Canucks during the first period at the Bell Centre on February 2, 2021 in Montreal, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

4. DSA

I’m just going to say it, the Canadiens have a new first line. Sure, this is a fairly meaningless statement given that the team’s top-three lines can be interchanged based on which trio is on a hot-streak; but the line of Jonathan Drouin, Nick Suzuki and Josh Anderson (DSA) has been phenomenal.

Offensively, they have just about everything a great line needs: skill, finesse, power, playmaking, smarts and a willingness to shoot. The three players complement one another beautifully and the chemistry that Suzuki and Drouin established in the bubble has simply been expanded upon to start the season.

The trio has dominated, scoring 10 goals at even strength through just 14 games (the three have scored exactly 13 in all situations); they have also controlled 67.63% of the expected goals! The line’s only glaring weakness has been with faceoffs; Suzuki has struggled mightily in this area, winning only 40.47% of his draws. This should improve with time, but is an area of concern in the present.

The DSA line has also seen very similar defensive results as the Tatar-Danault-Gallagher (TDA) line, and this despite having nearly identical defensive assignments as the former first-line. TDA has taken 40 defensive-zone faceoffs this season while DSA has taken 43 in 5:38 more minutes played. TDA has allowed 14 high-danger chances for the opposition while DSA has allowed 15; comparable.

TDA has allowed 3 goals, DSA has allowed 4. TDA has conceded 2.76 expected goals against, and DSA 3.22. The Danault line has been the better defensive line, but not by much; which is telling of how good the Suzuki line has been in its own zone since the Danault line has long-been an analytical darling at both ends of the ice.

The biggest reason for my calling DSA the first line isn’t seen in any one statistic or advanced stat; but rather through the eye-test. If hockey were entirely decipherable through advanced analytics, teams constructed with the aid of large analytics departments with the aim of targeting analytical darlings on the cheap (ie. the Toronto Maple Leafs) would consistently be at the top of the league. But this is not the case; there are intangibles and things you see but aren’t tracked.

Whenever the Drouin-Suzuki-Anderson line is on the ice, there is a feeling that something special can happen; that if the defence misses its coverage by just a foot or two, the Canadiens’ forwards will pounce and make their opponents pay for their oversight. In other words, they give off the sense of a first line.

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