By CoachK, AllHabs,Net
SAINT-LAZARE, QC — With baited breath, Canadiens’ fans waited for Sunday evenings tilt with the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center in Minneapolis. Having lost their last game, in what was deemed as an embarrassing performance by many, the Habs needed to rebound to get themselves within a single point of the Big Bad Boston Bruins. As scheduled, Alex Auld got the start in goal for Montreal. What wasn’t scheduled was an effort for the ages by “Les Glorieux”, and complete meltdown by the Minnesota Wild.
It all started just 31 ticks into the first period, when Benoit Pouliot, who was playing in his first game against his former team, spun of a check at the blue line, and made a sweet feed to Ryan White for the Habs’ first tally. For White, it was his first NHL goal, and his elation showed in his exuberant celebration. Pouliot added two more assists on route to a three point performance, but he wasn’t the star of this game.
Ryan White, who has shown a propensity to defend more physically challenged teammates, wasn’t done either. At just past the six minute mark of the first, Minnesota defenseman Clayton Stoner, know for his physical prowess, took a run at Canadiens’ rookie Aaron Palushaj along the half-wall. As he exploded into Palushaj, it was clear that Stoner left his feet when making contact, sending Palushaj to the dressing room in accordance with the NHL’s new concussion protocol.
Seconds later, White came to the defense of his teammate, dropping the gloves with the bigger Stoner, and scoring more brownie points with his teammates. Adding an assist in the third period, White finished with a “Gordie Howe” hat trick, an unofficial stat given to a player who scores a goal, an assist and a fighting major. But he wasn’t the star of this game either.
The star ended up being Canadiens’ defenseman P.K. Subban, who after scoring two goals in the second period, added a third tally in the final frame, and registered his first career NHL hat trick. Not only was it a first from an individual perspective, it was also the first time in the Canadiens’ illustrious 100-plus year history that a rookie defenseman had accomplished such a feat. Subban also added an assist giving him four points on the night. For a player whose on-ice shenanigans have drawn the ire of many opposition players, his performance on this night reminded us that he’s a rookie player with superstar caliber offensive talent, mixed in with a bunch of charisma.
It was also the first time this season that the Canadiens had managed to score eight goals in a single game. They had scored seven on three other occasions.
Firsts in the NHL are what keep drawing us as fans to our beloved game. Seeing a player register his first NHL goal, or hat trick, allows us, for a brief moment in time, to live vicariously through their eyes. It allows us to share in their emotion, and bask in their personnel triumph. It reminds us of our childhood dreams of playing with the Canadiens, and accomplishing the same wonderful feats.
(Featured Photo: Bruce Kluckhohn / Getty Images)