The Montreal Canadiens were facing a tough task in their home opener as they were playing the defending Stanley Cup champions and were going to do it without one of their top players. Earlier in the day, it was announced that Ivan Demidov would miss 2-4 weeks due to a lower-body injury.
While the Canadiens were without a key part of their roster for this game, they certainly kept the game close against the Hurricanes but it just wasn't enough as they would lose by a final score of 6-4. These are some of the top takeaways from the loss for the Montreal Canadiens.
Zachary Bolduc steps up in a big way for Montreal
Without Ivan Demidov, the Canadiens were going to need someone to step up and the thought was it might be Kirby Dach, as he was the direct replacement. However, in the end, it was Zachary Bolduc who made the biggest impact, as he had two goals, with both in the first period.
The young forward is off to a great start to the season as he now has three goals after scoring in the season opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Last season, his first in Montreal, he saw his goals decrease from 19 the season prior to only 12.
If he can keep this early season momentum and get back to being a 20-goal scorer, it will be a big boost for this offense.
Canadiens need to consider splitting their third pair
It has often been mentioned that the Montreal Canadiens have too many defensemen and don't have enough spots for everyone. However, after the game on Tuesday, Martin St. Louis needs to leverage that depth and make some changes to their blueline.
For the Canadiens' head coach, it has to start with the third pair of Jayden Struble and Arber Xhekaj as they were both -2 on the night and both had under 10 minutes of ice time. Meanwhile, Lane Hutson was close to 30 minutes of ice time, and Noah Dobson was close to 25.
Both of those players should be leading the team in ice time but it is clear that St. Louis didn't trust the third pair enough to at least balance it a little bit. When looking ahead to Thursday against Nashville, it would be surprising if Struble and Xhekaj are together as the third pair.
Canadiens should be a little bit worried about Jakub Dobes
Jakub Dobes was incredible in the playoffs and one of the reasons they got as far as they did in the playoffs. However, he has not been nearly as effective to begin this season and for the second straight game allowed five or more goals.
There is no question that Dobes was busy as he faced 33 shots, but it felt like every time the Canadiens got close to mounting a comeback, Carolina would be able to respond with a goal and keep the lead.
With how well Samuel Montembeault played in the preseason, it makes perfect sense for the Canadiens to turn to their backup for the game on Thursday night. Hopefully, it gives the team a little spark but also gives Dobes a little break to be able to bounce back after a tough start to the season.
The Canadiens next game will be on Thursday against the Nashville Predators and the Canadiens have a lot of questions they need to answer before then.
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