Montreal 5 Florida 4 (BankAtlantic Center)
Was it the early 5 p.m. start? Perhaps it was the distractions of the pool, the beach or that it was New Year’s eve. Maybe it was that odd feeling of having Habs’ fans outnumber the home side at the BankAtlantic Center.
Whatever the reason, we can safely say that this was not a classic. No need to worry that the game recording will be clogging up PVR hard drives of Habs’ fans. Having said that, it was an entertaining match.
Its best that Jacques Martin and crew simply forget about this game, one that was characterized by sloppy play, and poor goaltending.
“A tremendous hockey game,” coach Martin said. “We battled hard and they battled hard. It could have gone either way.”
Well, it seems that Martin is not yet ready to forget.
Just when you thought the Canadiens were getting back to full health, a number of Canadiens went down with injuries in the game.
It’s probably due to the blue moon that people were talking about.
The medical alerts started even before the game began with Sergei Kostitsyn experiencing a lower body injury. Fortunately the Canadiens have instituted a no-sleeping policy during games so it wasn’t hard to find Max Pacioretty. He was in the dining room enjoying a meal and was rushed into service taking Sergei’s spot in the line-up.
Andrei Kostitsyn went to the dressing room in the second period and did not return after receiving a low hit from Keith Ballard. Glen Metropolit, Marc-Andre Bergeron and Matt D’Agostini also were injured to a lesser degree.
Josh Gorges continues to look out of place on the number one defense pairing with Markov. Keith Ballard easily walked around Gorges for Florida’s first goal. Gorges was victimized again on the Panthers second goal as he was caught too deep giving Nathan Horton a breakaway.
The Canadiens penalty killers have been superb during the road trip, but it should be clear that Max Lapierre and Benoit Pouliot are not effective penalty-killers. They were on the ice for the Panthers power-play goal tonight.
Lapierre held his own in a fight with Ballard. Lapierre went after Ballard for his low hit on Andrei Kostitsyn that put him out of the game. Pouliot scored his second goal in a Canadiens’ uniform.
Many questioned Jacques Martin’s decision to start Jaroslav Halak especially given that Carey Price was the number one star in the Tampa Bay game. It would seem the question was justified. Halak looked uncomfortable and shaky all night. At least three of the Florida goals could be considered soft.
Tomas Vokoun wasn’t much better at the other end of the ice.
But it was an important win, giving the Canadiens six wins in seven road games. The month of December was supposed to be one of the most difficult given the schedule. The Habs are no doubt pleased with their 9-7-1 record.
Andrei Markov continues to prove just how valuable he is. The Canadiens are 7-1-0 with him in the lineup. Markov had three more assists tonight giving him 11 points in eight games.
The Canadiens return home for a game against the Sabres on Sunday afternoon.
Rocket’s three stars
1. Andrei Markov
2. Nathan Horton
3. Tomas Plekanec
Special mention: Brian Gionta
Material from wire services was used in this report.
(photo credit: AP)
That was one sloppy hockey game from the very start. Fun for the fans to watch, but afficionados of the game, not to mention coaches, were probably keeping the puke bucket close at hand. This was as close to pond hockey as NHL hockey gets!
Still, a 6-1 roadtrip has to be considered a success no matter how ugly each of the wins were (except for Carolina), considering it is a year when the Canadiens typically fall apart.
I truly hope the injuries to everyone are minor, especially Kostitsyn. Just for a little while I'd like to see this team play together, and I'm sure the team's brass would as well. It's hard to assess what you have if you can't evaluate the team as a group.
Markov has been splendid since coming back. There's no other word for it. He's been good defensively (though I think we've seen him better in his own end), but he has been a revelation in the other end. His ability to draw defenders and find the open man is a thing of beauty! He's now 11th in team scoring despite playing only 8 games. Next to surpass will be Spacek, who, with just 12 points in 41 games, probably is not putting up the points that were expected of him.
I'm starting to feel bad for Josh Gorges. His first few games were terrific, but it has been steadily downhill ever since. He is often out of position or overwhelmed by opposing player's size and skill. We could overlook some of that if he was putting up some points, but he isn't doing that either. He needs to just stay at home on defense and concentrate on staying in position, unless he finds a way to grow 3 inches and add 30 pounds.
For the past 2 games, it seems like the Canadiens have answered my wish for secondary scoring. Scott Gomez has snapped to attention over the past couple weeks, and alongside Gionta and Pouliot, seem to have come together to form a legitimate second line. They look good out there together, and now teams have 2 lines to worry about.
The team has also shown the discipline that it has been sorely lacking. The Canadiens "only" took 4 minor penalties last night, and only 3 the night before vs Tampa. Could they also be improving in this department?
I think that as satisfied as we have to be with the result of the road trip, we need to keep in mind how the majority of the victories were obtained – from Halak's goaltending. He was the 1st star of the week last week and with good reason. The Canadiens left him out to dry on most nights due to their coach's brilliant passive system. I guess things sometimes are as simple as "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". We also have to keep in mind the quality of the opposition we played. The Islanders, Thrashers, Hurricans, Leafs, Senators, Lightning and Panthers are not the Penguins, Blackhawks, Devils, Sharks, Capitals, or even the Sabres, who the Habs face next. We've got to be able to beat them at least once, no?
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