Patrik Laine scoring against the Maple Leafs feels right

As a Montreal Canadiens fan, any Habs player scoring against the Toronto Maple Leafs feels right.

But Patrik Laine scoring against the guy (Auston Matthews) drafted just before him in the 2016 NHL Draft. The pair are two of the NHL's premier shooters, and anytime they play against each other, it is must-watch hockey. The fact that Laine is wearing a Canadiens sweater while doing it is even better.

Few players shoot the puck like Laine, and his goal against Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll shows why. The puck comes off of his stick so fast, and he gets so much whip on the shot that the goalie can't react. Laine simply does what Alex Ovechkin does, he gets the puck in his office and his shot is so powerful that he just has to shoot, and there is a fair chance he will score.

Nick Suzuki continued his strong season, with an assist on Laine's eleventh goal of the year. Suzuki's assist on the tally is his 33rd of the season and 46th point in his 45th game. The captain continues to be a reliable defensive center, who gets the job down on offense also.

Suzuki has inched closer and closer with each passing season to achieving point-per-game numbers, and this year he looks primed to do it. Adding a player like Lane Hutson into the Canadiens' lineup has certainly helped pad the stats of the Canadiens' point producers. The majority of Suzuki's assists on the power play are primary before a Hutson assist, or secondary to a Hutson assist.

Laine has added a genuine threat to score every time he shoots the puck to Montreal's lineup, and I think this has allowed other players to perform better. Cole Caufield for example, was scoring and playing quite well without Laine in the lineup, but the difference with Laine there is noticeable. Simply icing Laine and Caufield on the power play together affords Caufield space, because teams will cheat to Laine's side.

Matthews is far and away the best player from his draft class, with arguments to be made for a few other guys. Laine, on the other hand, has shown elite abilities but has missed time with injury trouble, and dealing with his mental health. I think Laine can very seriously go down as one of the best from the 2016 draft, but as we speak, there are a few ahead of him.

But I am ready to watch Laine continue doing what he does best, and hopefully for a long time in La Belle Province. Watching Laine and Caufield score goals is fun because it is what they work at every single day. They do it better than most of the league, and the emotion they exude doing so, is what makes them huge parts of what the Habs are trying to do.

Renaud Lavoie's 4 Nations news

Renaud Lavoie mentioned during the Habs-Leafs broadcast that Team Canada added two Montreal Canadiens to the replacements list. If a defenseman or forward gets hurt, Nick Suzuki or Mike Matheson will get the phone call to replace said player. Both have been playing strong hockey this season and consistently over the past few seasons.

We all have our own opinion about the snubs, and I don't think that Matheson was snubbed. There are plenty of other Canadian defenders that deserve to be there over Matheson, in my opinion. Noah Dobson in New York is one guy, who makes a lot of sense to me, and I quite like Mackenzie Weegar in Cagary as well.

But Suzuki, I feel like was the biggest snub, and I believe down the strech, at some point, Canada will need a player to do the things that Suzuki can do. He is a gamer, and if you need something done, he is a reliabe player. Montreal named him captain for many reasons, and his ability to thrive under pressure is one that Canada would have benefitted from.

It's great news to hear and well-deserved for both players, but the primary focus is making the playoffs, and from there, anything can happen.