Below is an excerpt from the article by Manny Almela of Canadiens.com:

He might make it look easy once he’s out there, but Saku Koivu isn’t the Canadiens’ most lethal shootout threat by accident.

Now 11-for-22 in career shootout attempts, Koivu is the thinking man’s shooter. While the rest of those in attendance were biting their nails fixated on Alex Tanguay’s penalty shot attempt in the first period, Koivu was busy putting the finishing touches on his scouting report on Cam Ward.

“I saw that he took the blocker side away from Alex, so I kept that in mind,” admitted Koivu. “I know what move I’m going to make before I reach the puck at center ice. Sometimes if the goalie takes something away, I’ll adjust, but I didn’t have to tonight.”

Koivu’s decision to slip a back hand between Ward’s pads was also in part thanks to Tomas Plekanec’s attempt, which preceded the Montreal captain’s crack at Ward.

“I noticed that he stayed really deep in his crease for Pleky’s shot and that told me what I needed to do,” said Koivu, who is now 1-for-2 in shootouts on the season.