Canadiens: Three Keys to Victory Against Jets Tonight

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The Montreal Canadiens will take on the Winnipeg Jets Thursday night at the Bell Centre. The Canadiens will look to build off of their 3-1 win against the Senators, which saw them snap a 5-game losing streak.

Winnipeg comes into town having won their most recent game against Vancouver 5-2. This will be the third of nine meetings for Winnipeg and Montreal, with the Jets having won the first two matchups 6-3 and 2-1(OT).

The Jets boast a record of 14-7-1 on the season, good for 29 points. Montreal remains hot on their heels with a 10-6-5 record, good for 25 points. The Canadiens hold a game in hand over Winnipeg.

There are four players on the Winnipeg roster that have averaged at least a point per game so far this campaign. Having all played 22 games, Mark Scheifele leads the way with 31 points, Blake Wheeler has put up 23 points, and Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor have accumulated 22 points a piece.

The Canadiens will sport their Reverse Retro Jerseys on Thursday night, and will aim to collect their first win while wearing the throwback uniforms. They are 0-3 while wearing them thus far.

There are a few things the Habs will need to do in order to come out victorious against the Winnipeg Jets tonight. Here are the three keys to victory.

MONTREAL, QC – FEBRUARY 11: Jonathan Drouin Montreal Canadiens (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

Play Fast

There is a difference between playing fast and being fast. Being fast is what I would’ve referred to when the Canadiens were amidst their five-game losing streak. Sure they looked fast on the ice, but the plays they were making were not in sync with their speed. They were kept to the outside in the offensive zone, and weren’t controlling the gap in the defensive zone.

When the Canadiens are playing fast, they apply a heavy forecheck and seem to be in sync as a five-man unit. Their decision making is on the same level as their speed and isn’t lagging behind.

We saw tastes of it Tuesday night against Ottawa, where the Habs were breaking out of their zone with quick tape-to-tape passes, providing support all over the ice, and finding the middle of the ice for high-danger scoring chances.

The Canadiens are a speedy team as it is, but when they’re playing fast and making quick decisive plays, it makes it that much more difficult for the opposition to defend against them.

MONTREAL, QC – FEBRUARY 11: Tyler Toffoli Shea Weber Montreal Canadiens (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

Special Teams

The special teams has been a hot topic in Montreal over the past couple weeks, and not for the good reasons. The Habs rank 16th in the NHL in powerplay percentage, sitting at a 21%, while their penalty kill is operating at 76.8%, good for 21st.

This may have been in part to Kirk Muller being in charge of the personnel deployed on the power play for the first part of the season. The Habs lacked zone time and puck possession, two essentials to an effective powerplay.

Things may be looking up however, as Alex Burrows has revamped both power play units for the Canadiens. Jesperi Kotkaniemi has assumed the role of power play quarterback on both units and everything is running through his hands on the half wall.

With these new changes, the Canadiens were able to go 2/3 on the power play against the Senators on Tuesday and controlled the majority of zone time while having the man advantage.

The Habs also had a strong penalty kill on Tuesday night, killing off all three Ottawa power plays.

Montreal will look to build off Tuesday’s special teams performance and apply it again tonight against the Jets. They will need to be strong on the penalty kill, as Winnipeg has top-end talent on both of their power play units.

Having both a strong power play and penalty kill will swing games in the Canadiens’ favor more often than not.

MONTREAL, QC – FEBRUARY 04: Nick Suzuki Montreal Canadiens (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

Trust The System

Dom Ducharme has only had a few days to implement his new system, but the positive returns are starting to show already.

The Canadiens are at their best when they are creating scoring chances off of the rush. Ducharme’s system seems to be based on the Canadiens playing a sound defensive game with puck support, but also providing the freedom to take calculated risks in the offensive zone.

Ducharme has made the Canadiens clog the neutral zone with a 1-1-3 formation, not allowing teams to gain the Canadiens blueline with ease. This provides for quick turnovers, allowing the Habs to transition from defense to offense very quickly.

Offensively, Montreal’s defensemen are jumping up into the play to create an extra passing option more often than not. The forwards are also getting far more high-danger scoring chances as they do not have the mentality of shooting the puck from anywhere, rather they keep possession and wait for a better opportunity.

Although it has been a small sample size, Ducharme’s system seems to be effective and drive play North to South very quickly for the Canadiens.

Trusting the new found system will be crucial for the Canadiens to be victorious against the Jets, as it has proven to be effective and efficient if executed properly.

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