Montreal Canadiens

[ericdaoust]

Just giving you guys a heads up, as per habsinsideout.com Price gets the start tomorrow.

[ericdaoust]

Game Notes:

-I was there in person at the ACC so I had a really different vantage point. I was wearing my PK Subban jersey loud and proud. I was up in the Gondola buffet box. The view kinda sucked because I had to lean forward to be able to see the full ice and benches. Plus the buffet was horrible because it was missing several items from the advertised menu. The best thing was cooked-up freezer chicken fingers.

-There were a few fun moments during the warm-ups. At one point Mike Komisarek was stretching near center ice and Carey Price was stretching along the far boards. When Price saw Komi he quickly relocated to center ice and began trash talking. This lasted a few minutes until the teams started their drills. Towards the end of the pre-game a random PK chant started in the lower bowl.

-The building was about 60% Habs and 40% Leafs in terms of crowd reaction. I was very surprised. I was also disappointed at the amount of empty seats. I know those belong to businesses but it still looks pathetic.

-Ryan White came out strong and really set the tone early with some strong physical play (including a fight) and the opening goal. That's how a role player should play. Do your job and do it well.

-I really like what Brian Gionta did during this game. Both his goals were scored because he positioned himself in the slot on the power play. He also had several other chances.

-The Habs were outstanding while killing penalties. They created more chances than the Leafs in this situation all night long. There were at least a half dozen breakaways or serious odd-man rushes while a man short. This was topped off with a goal by Tomas Plekanec on a breakaway.

-I must say, kudos to Carey Price on an outstanding season. He was rock solid last night and shut the door after the weak goal that he gave up. You can see the high level of focus even when the puck is outside the zone. He also nearly set up a goal after he passed the puck out of the zone to a teammate for a 2-on-1.

-Late in the game I turned over to a Leafs fan sitting next to me and asked why everyone dressed in blue was walking towards the exit and why all the people in red were staying. Why did he tell me to F off?

-After the game a drunk old guy from my bus group got in my face about the Subban jersey. He kept telling me someone is going to kill him because he's trash. My reply was that if Subban was on the Leafs they would be playing games next week. After a bit more back and forth his attention went to something else. That was pretty fun.

[ericdaoust]

Game Notes:

-Habs take a 1-0 series lead.

-Carey Price was just awesome. Totally in control at all times and made most of his saves look easy. It's a repeat of last year's playoff strategy and IMO Price is even more well equipped than Halak to handle these shots. Add in excellent passing and that's as close to a perfect game as you'll get.

-Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta were the difference makers offensively as they were the only two players to pick up points today. The duo struggles defensively but Gionta was able to score both goals following great passes from Gomez.

-PK Subban and Hal Gill were excellent on defense. Both played well physically and did a good job covering the middle of the ice. Subban was also very good at clearing the puck out of the zone.

-I liked the intensity from Andrei Kostitsyn, laying a couple nice hits on Chara. In a series you have to lay some hits on the other team's best players.

-Ryan White is playing his role admirably and finished with seven hits.

-Brent Sopel had a great game with four blocked shots.

-Benoit Pouliot is showing why he will never reach his potential. He has zero awareness on the ice and has trouble doing basic things like receiving passes and assuring he's at the red line before clearing the puck.

[ddp]

Pouliot....thank heavens he doesn't make 7 million.
Great game from gomez. Price is awesome. Would be nice if Cammalleri would show up to play hockey sometime this year too.

[ericdaoust]

Would be nice if Cammalleri would show up to play hockey sometime this year too.

Yeah he's not a go-getter at all. He sits in the slot and waits. Unfortunately the Habs don't have the elite playmakers or grinders to help him out because he does not help out the others. When he does get set up though... he has a great wrist shot!

[ddp]

Yeah he's not a go-getter at all. He sits in the slot and waits. Unfortunately the Habs don't have the elite playmakers or grinders to help him out because he does not help out the others. When he does get set up though... he has a great wrist shot!

I like to believe this playoff GOMEZ will be an elite playmaker!

SNAP!

[MoreCanadianTeams]

I like to believe this playoff GOMEZ will be an elite playmaker!

SNAP!

The interviews with Gomez showed a pretty humble guy who seemed to feel very fortunate to be getting a chance to redeem himself after another brutal season. My respect for him as a person went up by a large margin as I recall his early interviews with the Habs when he seemed quite bristly.

On a another note, I was sooooo impressed with Plekanec last night and agree with you guys that Cammy has got to get his nose dirty if he's going to be a factor.

[ericdaoust]

Game Notes:

-Habs take 2-0 series lead

-The shots were 36-25 Bruins, but it's clear the Habs are controlling the series. The shots are coming from outside the slot and they are doing an excellent job using their speed to cause trouble for the opposition.

-Carey Price had another gem of a game. His puck handling was especially good and he did not let many rebounds out. The rebound control is key when there is a high volume of shots heading to the net. His save in the first on Milan Lucic with the glove did a lot more for setting the tone than most people think.

-Great game for James Wisniewski! I liked how he fared against Shane Hnidy in a fight. Wiz landed several good shots. He went to the locker room and some thought he might be hurt be he started the third period on the ice.

-I like what Travis Moen and Ryan White are bringing. They are the most physical players on the team and they are bringing it in spades. Both are playing with an edge without going overboard and taking dumb penalties.

-The pair of PK Subban and Hal Gill are playing outstanding. Both are taking a beating but they are getting the job done. Gill blocked five shots and Subban blocked three.

-Game one goat Mike Cammalleri scored a goal and added an assist in the first period. And he did answer his critics by getting his nose dirty. He only had one hit to his name but he did chip in with some solid effort along the boards.

-Yannick Weber replaced an injured Andrei Kostitsyn and scored a goal. He played very well as a forward and I can't see him being pulled out if Kostitsyn is ready to go next game. The only candidate for press box duty is Benoit Pouliot.

[ericdaoust]

A couple additional notes that I was able to get from league sources since I am a very respected Habs beat writer:

-The NHL is really worried about low scoring totals. They have secretly passed a rule where Carey Price can only play one period in game 3.

-Zdeno Chara missed the game with dehydration, but that is not the true story. Max Pacioretty saw him in the hallway and pushed him face first into a post. Pacioretty called Gary Bettman and the two agreed it was just a hockey play gone wrong.

-Dr. Recchi was quoted as saying that Chara is embellishing the play to get Pacioretty suspended.

[donions]

hahaha thats pretty good.

Man this team has impressed me so much, I figured coming into the series they'd either get blown out, OR they'd simply out-skate and out-hustle the arrogant Bruins team and that's been the case so far, and it's been a lot of fun to watch.

Game 3 cant come fast enough, and with the way the team and Price are playing, this team can go a long way. I know im getting ahead of myself but if only the Sabres could get rid of those Flyers, the Habs biggest threat would be eliminated and big things could be coming.(this doesnt count as a jinx because I'm an Oilers fan 1st, Price fan 2nd.)

[ericdaoust]

Game Notes:

-Bruins cut the series deficit to 2-1.

-Hell is not freezing over. The Bruins have a pulse after all. They played a far-from-great game but were the better team on the ice for enough minutes to pull out the win.

-The Habs came out totally flat and were making the same mistakes that the Bruins made in Boston. Reaching with the stick, not skating hard, turning the puck over and having general trouble getting the puck out of the zone. They also had issues with getting all three forwards in the zone on the rush at the same time. Typically the puck-carrier was in alone and quickly smothered by Bruins defenders.

-Is it just me or does Milan Lucic have terrible balance on his skates? I know he is big and he is tough, but he tends to fall easily when taking hits. Is he just uncoordinated?

-Carey Price had by far his worst game of the series. The second and third goals were off of his mistakes. The second was banked off his back after he slid out of position and the third was a giveaway while trying to clear the puck.

-Andrei Kostitsyn and Benoit Pouliot were at it again with dumb penalties deep in the Bruins' end of the ice. That kind of stupidity takes opportunities away from the Habs as they try to get back in the game.

-The team had an incredible third period and I am glad they did not just lay down. I expect them to be more settled next game to avoid the early 3-0 hole.

-PK Subban had a rough beginning to the game but came to life in the third. He had several rushes that nearly created the tying goal. He had an assist on the second goal.

-The Plekanec/Cammalleri/Kostitsyn trio generated both goals. Zdeno Chara and Tim Thomas looked foolish on both goals although they played very well otherwise.

-Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta were leading the charge at the end as the team was trying to get back into it.

[ericdaoust]

Game Notes:

-Bruins tie the series 2-2

-The Habs had an outstanding first half of the game. They were all over the place outskating everyone and jumped to a 3-1 lead. From there the train fell off the tracks. They stopped doing what got them the lead and started sitting back and reacting instead of being proactive and taking the games to the Bruins.

-The Bruins are slow and sloppy on D. Even Chara and Kaberle, their supposed good puck-handlers, were having trouble all night. The key to pulling out the series is getting back to the speed game and keeping it up for 60 minutes.

-When the Habs sit back in the trap it is imperative that the defense clears rebounds and everyone wins one-on-one battles. This was the case the first two games but tonight they failed to accomplish this and it resulted in a Bruins' comeback.

-Carey Price was about average, not a great game but he played hard trying to keep the team in the game. The final two goals were major defensive blunders.

-I know PK Subban scored a goal, but he had a lousy game. GET THE PUCK DEEP! Too many turnovers killing momentum when the team had the game in their hands. I did not stick around to watch the replay of the OT goal but apparently Subban picked a horrible time to go for a line change and the forwards did not back check which led to a Bruins' odd-man rush where Price was all twisted around before Ryder scored the winner.

-I like what David Desharnais brought tonight. This was his best game of the playoffs. He is very strong along the boards despite his size and does a good job making the right play with the puck every time.

-Hal Gill might be wearing down. He looked slower than usual tonight and was deked a few times which led to quality chances in the slot by the opposition.

-Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta were both minus-3.

-Jeff Halpern returned to the lineup and replaced Benoit Pouliot. This was a net gain. Halpern was 4/6 on face-offs and works harder than Pouliot along the boards. He plays more intelligent and does not make plays that put his team in difficult situations.

-Mike Cammalleri had a goal, two assists, four shots and a pair of blocked shots. Impressive night!

[ericdaoust]

My bad - posted this as a thread. Can a mod merge this into my Canadiens' thread. Thanks.

[ericdaoust]

Game Notes:

-Bruins lead the series 3-2.

-This is a tough loss as this game should have been won on a number of occasions. The Bruins were bailed out by desperation attempts at the goal line a few times but that's often the difference in playoff hockey. With the beaten up blueline and the amount of ice time going to the healthy guys I thought tonight might be the all-in bid. We'll see what happens next time.

-Great game by PK Subban. He had a bit of a rough beginning but was the best Hab skater tonight by a long shot. He logged 40:38 in all. This guy can get it done at both ends.

-Very courageous effort by James Wisniewski. He left the game twice with what appears to be a back or rib injury but returned during overtime to play fairly regularly. He still logged 20:31 in all. For all that is made about his injury proneness, the man is tough.

-Tonight was not a great night for Brent Sopel and Jaroslav Spacek. They had a lot of trouble deep in their own end and committed a few turnovers that caused problems. Sopel took a penalty during the first overtime period after fumbling the puck.

-Both scoring lines were total defensive liabilities tonight. The Plekanek line was on for both goals and Plek was even the clear culprit leaving Marchand alone for the first goal of the game. Meanwhile the Gomez line was caught deep for extended time quite often.

-Brian Gionta did put in a good effort offensively and had seven shots in total. He was robbed several times by Tim Thomas.

-David Desharnais had an excellent outing and even provided a spark to the Gomez line late in the game when he was moved up to that line. Gomez and Gionta really benefit from having a digger with a scoring touch (Pacioretty) and Desharnais has some of those qualities in terms of work along the boards.

-Funny moment during the game as Max Pacioretty tweeted that the overtime was longer than Brad Marchand's nose. Sadly he is correct in his assessment. Pacioretty later deleted the tweet.

-Carey Price had an excellent game tonight. He was back to playing like he did in the first two games. He was positionally sound all night and made most saves look easy. On an overtime deke by Krejci he followed him the whole way and made the save look routine. Let's hope he can carry the strong play back to the Bell Centre.

[Bomm Bastic]

Tough loss, ED. I was pulling for Montreal, believe it or not. Just can't stand Chara really..