Montreal Canadiens: 24 Thoughts On Habs Finally Beating Bruins

The Montreal Canadiens came off an overtime win against the Detroit Red Wings which snapped a four game losing streak to take on the top team in the Eastern Conference.

The Boston Bruins were not supposed to be this good after losing Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and Taylor Hall in the offseason. But here they are, atop the conference yet again with an 11-1-1 record as the puck drops and they face the Canadiens for the first time this season.

Here are 24 Thoughts on the latest installment of the old rivalry between the Canadiens and Bruins.

First Period

So, Sportsnet is having the Vancouver Canucks announcers do a Canadiens vs. Bruins game on Hockey Night In Canada? Interesting, they introduced the game as Canucks vs Bruins…. good start Sportsnet.

The Canadiens allowed a goal 22 seconds in against the Tampa Bay Lightning recently and it did not go well, but they are trying the same strategy again! Allowing a goal 36 seconds is a bold strategy, we will see how it works out!

Juraj Slafkovsky hard on the puck in the corner and slowly moved up the boards waiting for teammates to get open. He kind of got tied up with the ref which knocked the puck loose but he immediately jumped on his horse and created a turnover that led to a Christian Dvorak scoring chance. It is so easy to see what kind of player he has the potential to become and that is a terrific puck possession monster who dominates opponents with his size, puck protection and passing ability as well as the option to drop his shoulder and drive the net at any moment.

Slafkovsky again just dropped Hampus Lindholm twice along the boards in the offensive zone. If you just get off Twitter and watch the games, this is not difficult to see, but it will take a few years for him to reach his potential.

Mike Matheson does a lot of great things for the Canadiens but almost all of them are in the offensive zone. His defensive game leaves a lot to be desired. For example, handing the puck over the David Pastrnak, one of the best goal scorers in the world, in the slot in the defensive zone is not a good idea, but the Habs got away with that one.

Okay, so Slafkovsky made a bad read and turned the puck over trying a cross ice pass leaving his own zone. I never said he was perfect. At least not yet. He did get back defensively and break up the play showing good recovery on the play.

Johnathan Kovacevic was really a no-name when he was claimed off waivers but boy did the Canadiens get good value on that one. He makes so many subtle defensive plays that keep the puck from ever entering the Canadiens zone or allow the team to quickly get it out. He may never score another NHL point but he doesn’t have to do that to be a positive influence on the team.

Overall, a pretty good period for the Canadiens against one of the NHL’s best, especially considering they fell behind early. Got away with a couple of turnovers but created as many chances as they allowed, came on strong late in the period but just couldn’t convert.

Second Period

The referees miss an obvious too many men as the Bruins defensemen make a change after Brandon Carlo breaks his stick but maintain possession because they play the puck long before Carlo leaves the ice. It is frustrating, but somewhat understandable when a ref misses a hook or a high stick, but it is mind boggling when they can’t count to six.

John Beecher plays for the Bruins and it reminds me of Cole Caufield’s first World Juniors when Beecher was his center. It seemed an odd choice as Caufield was clearly an elite goal scorer and Beecher was not an offensive player at all. Beecher has two points in 13 games for the Bruins this season after a 23 point campaign in the AHL last season.

Michael Pezzetta has a dominant shift but just can’t get the puck to cross the line. He blasts a one-timer from long range but gets stopped. He gets a partial breakaway because of a great defensive play by Kovacevic but his hard shot is turned aside. He gets another chance from the slot at the end of his shift but Jeremy Swayman stops that one as well. You would love to see such a hardworking player get rewarded for a great shift, but Pezzetta couldn’t buy one there.

I complain a lot about the lack of penalty shots called in the NHL but I am okay with them not giving Pastrnak a penalty shot. You may as well just throw the puck in the net and make the score 2-0, but the Canadiens do (barely) kill off the minor penalty.

The Sean Monahan line continues to be extremely effective at both ends of the ice. The Canadiens are going to have some tough decisions to make, especially on Monahan, if this continues until the trade deadline. Trade Monahan for a quality package of picks and prospects or re-sign him to an extension? Tough call.

Arber Xhekaj continues to bring an element to the Canadiens that no one else really does. He steps up in the neutral zone and lands a thundering body check that is clean and nearly knocks a Bruins forward into next week. You have to wonder how he fits on the team with Lane Hutson coming to take a roster spot on the left side, but he does things no one else can so how do you take him out of the lineup?

Whose power play is this anyway? They crisply move the puck around the offensive zone, create several scoring chances in a variety of ways and then the second unit comes out and does the same. They sit middle of the pack in the league which is lightyears better than last year.

As good as the power play has looked, they have not scored and had the only three calls go their way. I’m expecting a couple of calls to go the other way quickly in the third period as the referees inevitably step in and try to even things up.