Since the All-Star break over two months ago, the Habs have struggled to win consistently. However, they frequently play against bad teams.
Let’s be honest: the Capitals, Ducks, Coyotes, Predators, Blue Jackets, and Kraken aren’t all NHL elite. While Nashville and Washington do not have a horrible team,
This suggests that a good club playing the Canadiens likes its chances of gaining two points at the end of the game, while a bad team facing the Flanelle is likely to lose.
The players on the ice want to win. On the other hand, when the GM of an unsightly team faces the Habs, he must be pleased, given the lottery nature of the next selection.
Yesterday, the pattern continued.
The Kraken was defeated 5-1 by the Habs, dropping Trevor Letowski’s squad from fifth place in the NHL on Tankathon, the ideal site for fans of a rebuilding team.
That was true yesterday, but not on this lovely spring Monday morning in Montreal.
Sure, Kent Hughes might be tired of “winning four-point games” from a lottery standpoint, but he can’t be unhappy with what the Habs did yesterday.
After all, even if the Kraken doesn’t exactly have a Stanley Cup contender on its hands, the Habs came out strong on the ice last night.
And, after three defeats in Western Canada earlier in the tour (Flames, Oilers, and Canucks), seeing the Habs perform like today is a positive indicator for collective improvement.
What do I take away from this win, which will shorten the lives of many Quebec chickens?
1. Once again, Cayden Primeau has met his goal of keeping the Canadiens in the game. He needs to improve his consistency (as has every young player in NHL history or so), but when he’s on, he’s on.
Last night, he kept his side in the game with 36 saves. An offside trap deserves honorable attention, as does David Savard’s assist.
Primeau makes the first save, then David Savard makes another at the goal line. pic.twitter.com/zHc4K6pXHF
– Matt Drake (@DrakeMT), March 25, 2024.
2. Juraj Slafkovsky scored a point in his sixth consecutive game. We assumed it was by scoring in the first, but he did not deflect Kaiden Guhle’s shot.
In the first period, the top choice of 2020 scored a goal and assisted twice. Guhle was on form.
Slaf added an assist later in the game. He now has eight points in his previous seven games, which is amazing for a developing player like him.
So much the better.
3. The Canadiens won for the first time since Trevor Letowski took over as head coach. The players gave him the game puck.
Letowski said the players miss Martin St-Louis, who is remaining with his family for an indefinite period after what happened to his son, but he loves the players’ reaction.
“What I’ll remember from this week is how the players rallied around him, and we tried to make it feel as normal as possible without…”I mean, we obviously miss Marty.” Trevor Letowski on the Habs. pic.twitter.com/eHxHeD6ahx.
– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit), March 25, 2024.
4. Mike Matheson’s goal will be remembered as one of his career highlights.
Take a look at Matheson’s beautiful skating, speed, and scoring ability with his hands. He may not be dominant defensively every night, but he is a superb offensive defensemen.
Mike Matheson’s beautiful shorthanded goal makes it 5-1 for the Montreal Canadiens.
He used his speed effectively to put Tatar in a tough predicament. pic.twitter.com/0TGPUdWPac
– Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont), March 25, 2024.
5. Nick Suzuki is gradually developing confidence in his shot. He scored his 28th goal of the season yesterday (an NHL high) and might have easily passed Cole Caufield.
Instead, he chose to shoot with surgical precision.
I’m not sure if Suzuki will end with a point per game, but he’s approaching the 30-goal threshold with 66 points in 70 games. He’s developing defensively and appears to be an effective captain.
He’s having an excellent season.
WOW.
Check out this Nick Suzuki photo. 3-0, #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/HcQP6dT0dO.
– Marc Dumont (@MarcPDumont), March 25, 2024.
6. Alex Newhook may not be having the best season in Flanelle history, but he does have 24 points in 43 games. That’s progress for a player who scored 30 points in 82 games in Colorado from 2022 to 2023.
Yesterday, his two goals (he has 12 this season and 14 last year) made the difference for the Habs.
7. There’s no denying that a goalie’s impact is significant. Philipp Grubauer abandoned the Kraken yesterday, allowing four goals in only six shots.
Joey Daccord stopped ten of the eleven pucks coming his way. The Habs were outshot 37-17…
Overtime
The Canadiens’ tour has come to an end. The squad will train in Seattle at 2 p.m. (Quebec time) today before traveling to Denver for the final game of the trip.
The guys will return tomorrow night to round out the week at home against the Flyers and Hurricanes.
