Two minutes into the game and Tomas Plekanec carried the puck hard behind the Islanders net. A slick pass out front to Kovalev and it was a early 1-0 lead for the Canadiens. This was the Islanders. This should be an easy night.
30 seconds later, Andrei Markov was assessed a hooking penalty. No problem, the Canadiens PK unit had successfully defended 10 powerplay opportunities for the Wild on Thursday night. In addition, the Islanders were 0 for 15 on the powerplay last year against the Habs. So why not experiment? Carbo the chemist decided to send out Begin and Lapierre on the first wave of the of the PK. After all, its the Islanders! Hmmm, after a giveaway by Begin, it was time to change up the penalty killing unit. A Streit shot from the point deflected off Higgins stick and the game was tied.
As the game progressed, it was clear that this was not going to be an easy night for the Habs. At a time when the Canadiens should have regained control of the game, they didn’t. New York was skating. And an aggressive forecheck/trap by the Islanders caused turnovers and sloppy play by the Canadiens. Coach Carbo has seen this system used to bottle up his team before but so far, he has failed to develop a strategy to beat it. So again tonight, the Canadiens breakout suffered. With the Habs having a hard time completing passes out of their own end, the Islanders kept skating hard and throwing pucks to the net.
Mid-way through the first period, Jon Sim wristed a shot that deflected off Ryan O’Byrne’s stick and past Price. Up to that point O’Byrne had been the Canadiens best defenseman. (He would recover and play well in the second.)
For the first two periods the Canadiens struggled and many contributed: Kovalev led the team with 7 giveaways…Lang was awful on faceoffs…the 4th line was invisible…Hamrlik was having his worst game of the year…open net chances were missed…brutal penalties were taken.
After the Lapierre/Begin combo gave the Islanders their second powerplay goal and a 3-1 lead, Georges Laraques was sent out to do his thing: decisively win a fight and change the momentum. Well, that’s strike two Georges! He failed to stand up for his teammate when AK-46 took a brutal headshot in the Phoenix game and tonight his dance with newcomer Mitchell Fritz was at best a draw; certainly not a momentum changer!
When Hamrlik left his man alone to chase Islanders all over the zone, Neilsen made it 4-1 for the Islanders.
Hang the heads? No. Cue the come back!
Some may say that Carbo peeled the paint on the dressing room wall between the second and third period. Perhaps. But more importantly, Carbonneau finally woke up and moved Higgins to the Koivu line. (contrary to CJAD, it was not the first time this line was together. by the way, is there any worse than Moffat and Wilson?)
Koivu, Higgins and Tanguay started the 3rd period with a great shift. Tanguay drew an Islander penalty (by Streit, no less) and the large number of very vocal Canadiens fans in the crowd started to stir. Although the Habs didn’t score, it was clear that the 3rd would be a different period.
The Canadiens first two lines were dominant. Koivu, Higgins, Tanguay, Plekanec, Kovalev and Andrei Kostitsyn pressured with speed, and the Islanders were outmatched. Four goals in seven and a half minutes and the Canadiens had a lead and a tremendous victory. What a comeback!!
Despite giving up 4 goals, Carey Price played well facing a game’s worth of shots in two periods. He also had some game saving saves at the end of the third. At the other end, Yann Danis looked very beatable all night. Once the Canadiens began to shoot straight, he was!
After playing well for two periods and still being a -2, O’Byrne sat for the entire third period. Carbonneau is killing this guy’s confidence.
Why in the world was Begin on the ice for the final 35 seconds of the game? Kostopoulos and Dandenault were sorely missed on the 4th line tonight.
It should be acknowledged that the Islanders of the first two periods didn’t show up at all in the third. They abandoned their aggressive forecheck. Sitting back waiting for the Canadiens often left them flatfooted and unable to cope with the Habs speed. The Islanders confidence completely disappeared.
On a positive note, the Islanders skated well and stuck to their system for two periods. On a team that may struggle all year, Richard Park is a hard working and can be effective at both ends of the ice. He is the opposition player of note tonight.
Pre-game:
Happy 26th Birthday to Tomas Plekanec (October 31)
Rick DiPietro will be out 4-6 weeks after knee surgery. Yann Danis in.
O’Byrne, Laraque, Begin – in Kostopoulos, Dandenault – out
Rocket’s 3 stars:
1. Tomas Plekanec
2. Chris Higgins
3. Bill Guerin
(photo credit: Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)