Written by: Iain Carnegie, AllHabs.net
Remember October 9th, 2011?
It was the day that the Montreal Canadiens walked into Winnipeg and spoiled the party for the Jets in their home opener. The Habs exploded for five goals, and Carey Price looked in perfect form. I remember writing a post about that game and the “new look” Canadiens, calling them “a full-blown 6-cylinder mid-sized North American machine.”
But then the wheels fell off. The team stopped skating, they showed a lack of desire, they seem to lose all drive that’s required to remain competitive in today’s NHL.
There were a few injuries that plagued the team as well. A pretty beat up defense lost Jaroslav Spacek, depleting the team of a much needed veteran. Michael Cammalleri fell victim to his own team-mate, suffering a laceration just above the knee ensuring the offense would be without the teams’ number one sniper. Then it was iron-man Max Pacioretty who was first rumoured to have fractured his wrist but instead played with torn ligaments.
Jacques Martin was forced to start the line juggling once again.
The result was six straight losses (including two overtime losses) coming at the hands of teams most fans felt they should have been putting up wins against. As a matter of fact, other than a solid outing against the Buffalo Sabres, which ended in a heart breaking loss, les Boys continued their lacklustre form. It wasn’t looking good heading into last week, when the flailing franchise would be tested against the Flyers and arch nemesis Bruins in a home-and-home series.
Instead of escaping the last three outings with the two points that I was projecting, something happened. Le Bleu, Blanc, et Rouge welcomed the Broad Street Bullies into the Bell Centre, and showed their ability to compete. They looked like a completely different team. In a decisive 5-1 win over the Flyers, a light seemed to be shining bleakly at the end of the long tunnel. Twenty four hours later, the Canadiens found themselves in Boston to face the defending Stanley Cup Champions, and in another solid outing, posted another convincing win (2-1) in a tightly fought battle.
The real test was coming back home to face the Bruins again. In front of 21,273 fans, Zdeno Chara made his debut back in Montreal playing against Max Pacioretty for the first time since injuring him last season. The atmosphere was palpable, and Canadiens fans around the world were thirsty for revenge. That is exactly what they received. In another effort filled match, the Habs pulled out a solid 4-2 victory, and it felt certain that a page in the book had been turned.
So why the sudden turn of events? The team is still missing some key players due to injury. Was it the firing of assistant coach Perry Pearns? After all, a mere 90 minutes after the firing was announced, the team took to the ice for that first solid win against Philadelphia.
To be honest with you, I don’t think it can be atributed to one single event. I think you have to look at the big picture to see what finally got the message sent.
There were some pretty high expectations heading into this season for the Canadiens. The off-season acquisition of Erik Cole brought more size to the top six forwards, and was supposed to enhance scoring opportunities for his line-mates. The re-signing of Markov and Gorges meant great depth to the “D” unit.
However, in the opening eight games of the season (with the exception of the Winnipeg and Buffalo match-ups), Cole was a disappointment. Gorges, Gill, and Subban were terribly weak defensively, Carey Price couldn’t buy a save and was not looking like his old self, and the power-play lacked any cohesion and was 2-for-25 at one point.
So I ask again, what turned things around?
Playing to the Montreal fan-base is no easy task, even when things are going well. But start the season as the Habs did this year, there was no shortage of fans eliciting their feelings to the team. The incessant “booing”, the shouting for the head of coach Jacques Martin, and the media call-in shows where fans constantly voiced their displeasure sends a strong message.
The firing of your assistant coach before a home match in front of that same unhappy fan base, sends a clear and strong message to the players that they had no option but to heed.
It didn’t hurt to add the large bodies of Petteri Nokelainen and Mike Blunden as forwards either. All of a sudden, a team that has always been known as small, has seven forwards over 6-feet and in the upper 190 to 220 pound range.
More than anything however, I get the feeling that the players realized that they weren’t on their game. They were becoming a burden to the best fan base in hockey. The fire was lit, and the team reacted.
Cole has gotten back to the basics, and it’s paying off. He’s using his size and explosive speed to get to the net and create opportunities. The defensive unit, although still marred in many ways is playing better defensively. They are moving to the puck with urgency more than they were before. A roster that looked like they were constantly standing still has begun to move it’s feet. They are skating now, and the difference is more than evident.
From a coaching perspective, one of the biggest changes has been to the power-play line-up. After being called out as to why Cole wasn’t being utilized on the power-play, Martin played with fire with an inappropriate response. Needless to say, a game later, Cole found his spot on the power-play, and things began to tick. Since his inception on the power-play, the Habs have gone 4-16 with the man advantage.
So after three solid wins against two tougher teams in the league, it would seem that the turnaround has begun. The question is, will it stick. Having gained some serious momentum in the last three outings, the Canadiens find themselves without competitive action for six days. A rest that many felt was timely before the slump ended, could now turn into a momentum breaker.
The only way to ensure that it doesn’t break their stride, will be with a concerted effort from the entire team to keep doing what they have started doing as of late. And something tells me that the players and coaching staff alike don’t have any desire to return to their losing ways.