There is no place like home, and for the Montreal Canadiens, they maybe have the best home in the entire league. The Bell Centre is one of the most legendary barns in the NHL, and the Habs fanbase is one of the most rabid, loud and passionate fans you can find.
And the Montreal Canadiens definitely felt that during Game 3 and Game 4 of their first round playoff series against the Washington Capitals. Game 3 was an absolute barn-burner, with many lead-changes, big hits, bench brawls and a huge Canadiens win.
And the crowd was absolutely electric, and the Canadiens definitely fed off the crowd in the early stages of the game.
Much has been made of Montreal's slow starts and low shoot totals, especially towards the end of the season, and the start of this series was no different. In Game 2, the Capitals outshot the Canadiens 27-12 through two periods, and it was a little too late when Montreal poured it on and took 14 shots in the third.
But in Game 3, the Montreal Canadiens consistently outshot, and outplayed the Washington Capitals and ended the day with 40 shots and 6 goals. Game 4 was a bit of the same, with the Canadiens only taking 5 shots in the first, but it was a relatively low shot game for both teams.
It seems like both teams grew a bit more familiar with the environment of the Bell Centre, and despite the scoresheet, the Capitals scored two empty net goals and the game was tied up until the last 4 minutes of the game.
Game 4, and the games that were played in Washington really proved that the Montreal Canadiens need to provide their own momentum in order to turn this series around.
Josh Anderson and Arber Xhekaj
If there was a main turning point in Washington's win in Game 4, it was Tom Wilson lighting up Alexandre Carrier, who was shaken up, and couldn't get off the ice in time, which resulted in the game-tying goal.
Its about as hard of a clean hit as you are ever going to see, and it completely changed the make-up of this game. On a side note, what a rough game physically it was for Carrier, who left late in the first period after an awkward collision with Alex Ovechkin, but returned for the rest of the game.
The game had fundamentally changed after this. There is a reason why Tom Wilson is probably the most talked about Capital in this series, even before the infamous brawl with Josh Anderson in the second intermission of Game 3.
But the Montreal Canadiens have two players that can spark the Canadiens with their physical play.
The first is Arber Xhekaj, the Sheriff that patrols the blueline who returned from an extended visit to the pressbox since early April.
There are few players that are more feared than Xhekaj in the NHL. Especially when it comes to fighting. But even during the regular course of play, Xhekaj can lay down the body and deliver truly bone rattling body-checks.
The only thing is that Xhekaj had the most penalty minutes of the entire roster this season, and he did take a quite unnecessary interference penalty in Game 4. Xhekaj needs to be a difference maker, but needs to stay out of the box while doing it.
The other physical difference maker is, naturally, the player with the second most penalty minutes, Josh Anderson.
Anderson is big, fast and is not afraid to lay the body. And for opponents, that is a dangerous combination. Anderson has been about as good as he could be short of scoring a goal. He has been exactly what he could be in this role and it has been fantastic.
A few big, legal hits from Xhekaj or Anderson early in the game would really get the Canadiens into the game and get their legs moving.
Score First
For the love of all that is good and holy please score first. It has been a struggle for a long time now, these slow starts, and it has continued into their postseason run.
On top of not being able to outshoot the opponents often in the early stages of the game, the Canadiens have only scored first once in 4 games, thanks to Christian Dvorak.
First off, it is always harder to play when behind. Sure, the Canadiens have had a fantastic time making comebacks throughout the season, but it's never an enviable position to be in. Especially as the competition gets harder in the playoffs, those comeback wins become more and more unlikely.
And then there's the crowd. While no crowd is Bell Centre crowd, no other crowd is like it, any playoff crowd is loud and rowdy. The easiest way to quiet a crowd is to score early, and it's very important for the Canadiens to score early to get the lead and nullify the crowd.
Either way, the Canadiens have their fate in their own hands. They have proven that they can hang with the Capitals, now its just about execution. And on Wednesday, the young stars of the Montreal Canadiens will face their biggest game of their careers. Time will tell how they respond.