by Christopher Nardella, Staff Writer, All Habs Hockey Magazine
POINTE CLAIRE, QC. — So there I lay, face in hands, coming to the eclipsing, and incorrect for the time being, realization that this isn’t the Canadiens’ season. The thought followed watching Brandon Saad, while being hooked, one-handing a puck from centre ice with two players checking him into the empty cage. It was the Canadiens goal yearning for the days of a kid from Anahim Lake guarding it.
As I headed upstairs for a bed waiting to catch a few overhand rights a la Mike Komisarek, the blanketing depression forces me into looking through the roster, for something, anything redeeming or antithetical to the way the team has played over the past couple months. This stretch has been one of feculence, disillusionment and desperation however, hasn’t been completely inconsequential in terms of positivity.
Braden Holtby’s Phenomenal Play
As the Canadiens gimped towards the off-season like a paraplegic horse, there were underlying and inconspicuous signs of vitality and optimism, one of which came in the form of Braden Holtby. The World Cup of Hockey is undoubtedly one of the utmost blatant forms of capitalism we’ve seen in the NHL in the last pair of decades, and with it comes an odd sense of socially pressured National pride coupled with the trepidation of risking your health for a trivial tournament.
With Carey Price’s recovery nowhere close to the timeline initially set near the end of November, Price’s season could be over and should he come back, being thrust right into a playoff race will undoubtedly exhausts a goaltender fresh off of injury. With the seriousness of the injury he is rumored to have, according to Elliotte Friedman — “We all believe it’s an MCL sprain in the right knee” — it would be constructive for him to get as much recovery time as possible. A couple of phenomenal netminders are going to facilitate that process.
Formerly a shoe-in for team Canada’s starting role, Carey Price has been supplanted by Vezina favorite, Braden Holtby. The 26-year old Capital backstop has lead his team to an NHL-leading 33 wins, a 2.06 goals against average, good enough for second among goalies with more than 40 games played, and a .929 save percentage. Should an unforeseen circumstance arise, such as an amorphous lower-body injury, two-time Stanley cup champion Corey Crawford is having an equally impressive 2015-16 campaign, with a .931 save percentage, 2.13 goals against average and 31 wins.
The Kids Can Stay Where They Are
There was pure and evident frustration in the voice of Nathan Beaulieu when he addressed the state of the locker room following the aforementioned loss to Columbus saying, “We all care for each other and want each other to do well but, it starts here in this room, we got to really look ourselves in the mirror now.” There were, and might still be, problems behind the scenes with the Montreal Canadiens, without a doubt, which might be beneficial for the organization’s youth.
Had this Canadiens team stayed afloat between December and January with the injuries to Brendan Gallagher, Torrey Mitchell, Devante Smith-Pelly, Daniel Carr and Lucas Lessio, among others, there was a valid question to be asked: ‘Would the Canadiens have called up more enthralling rookies?’ While Sven Andrighetto has made his mark on the team, there were spots to be occupied and it might’ve been done by the likes of Michael McCarron and Charles Hudon.
Despite the fact Hudon has made strides to improve his defensive game, there are nevertheless clear inadequacies when speaking about his all-around game. At this vital juncture in the 21-year old’s development, just prior to his jump up the professional ranks, it’s important to round off the player’s undesirable propensities prior to taking the next step, a process potentially accelerated had the team been in contention with key injuries to the forward core. The more time to develop the merrier.
While there was pervasive exhilaration when the Canadiens called upon AHL All-Star Michael McCarron, the 6-foot-6-inch forward must be further cultivated to the point where the transition period is minimal. In his first season of pro hockey, the one-time perceived bust has fallen off a tad following a hot start, thus are the ebbs and flows of pro hockey. In his brief stint with Montreal, he was deployed in a bottom-six role with some powerplay time, however refining his craft in the AHL is unquestionably the path one should take with McCarron. Had he continued to play the way he was, meaning acceptably, the Canadiens might’ve kept him around to generate offense, a detriment to his development.
The Leaders Have Been Identified
In the upheaval and exasperation of one of the grandest drop-offs in professional sports history, the previously solid, yet once stouter, leadership of the Montreal Canadiens was put into question. The likes of Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, Andrei Markov and P.K. Subban all had their abilities as a bellwether questioned, sometimes justifiably so.
One he reappeared on the Canadiens’ scorecard, Brendan Gallagher made an immediate impact. In spite of the meagreness surrounding him on a nightly basis, his unremitting style never sufficed to be present, so there’s no questioning his leadership qualities.
There’s no getting around the atrocious play of Tomas Plekanec, possibly the facsimile of mediocrity throughout the past two months. Plekanec did, however, post a faceoff percentage of over .500 in all but one game between December 19th and the Canadiens’ first of three wins this week. The Kladno, Czech Republic native is very much relies upon his one-ice play t lead by example, which was lacking during the sequence of mediocrity that saw his team descend into the depths of professional sport.
P.K. Subban is the most dissected defenceman in the NHL, and with his team plummeting, completely adverse to his turnover rate, the blueliner, somewhat detrimental to his team, put it on his shoulders. Whether to the benefit of the crest he dons or not, Subban put it upon himself to turn the team around, which made him look horrific. The brutal turnovers on a nightly basis overshadowed his offensive output only perversely noticed once the team looked to turn it around. Despite his sometimes perilous play in his own end Subban showed emotion and a will to win absent in the Canadiens lockeroom.
Max Pacioretty was heavily criticized during the team’s run of sub-ordinance for being a bystander and not engaging enough for the insatiable fan base’s liking. During an episode of “24/7” on HBO Pacioretty uttered the phrase “Play with some f*****g pride” which some interpreted as hypocrisy, but was likely an amalgam of self-frustration and team irritation. Not only had he never deal with losing as the only pure goal scorer on the roster, but he was also paired with Desharnais and a rotation of wingers, which didn’t help have his abilities shine through. He also had 43 hits through 28 games of the streak, which is 1.53 hits per game, higher than last season’s hits per game of 1.29.
Although incredibly disheartening, and had most hoping for the day that Jesse Pujuijarvi would don a Canadiens sweater, the stretch of darkness had its slight spots of brightness, however minor or individual, they were there.
