Montreal Canadiens

[evans334]

I like Primeau but he's no Carey Price.

Obviously, I was alluding more to the the vicious cycle of the Canadiens relying on good goal tending to carry them through the season.

[Goldendelicious]

As a goaltender myself, I'll tell you what we say when we hear a shot ringing off the iron; that's what they're there for.

Players hitting the posts tells you that the shooters aren't seeing the net enough and that's due to excellent goalie positioning; something Habs fans have had the benefit of seeing for years from their own goalie.

The biggest issue for Montreal is their lack of any true offensive game-breakers on their roster. Sure, the two kids have looked good and are taking the steps needed, but the rest of the team isn't good enough to bury it. It's interesting to watch. The team seems to be able to generate opportunities but can't finish. Yes, a lot of credit goes to Hart but a lot of blame can go to a lack of ability to finish on the Habs players.

Price has done his part. He must be frustrated to no extent losing three games and only given up five goals.

100% agree. The lack of game breakers is evident and has been there for quite some time. Their 5v5 play in the season was really good, but like you said, the guys getting paid to put the puck in the net (Tatar, Gallagher, Drouin, Domi). Relying on two 20-year old centres to score all your goals while having to play back-to-back rounds against some of the top centres in the league is a bit much at this stage in their development.

Hart I think is getting too much credit in this series. He's made some saves when he has had to and got some post luck but the scoring chances from MTL haven't been great quality. He's played well, don't get me wrong, but the two shutouts are more an indication of MTL's lack of scoring ability than Hart's play. Philly is lucky to be playing a team that can't score a goal right now.

[ericdaoust]

Habs are simply not good with the puck. As a team they struggle generating plays and finishing plays. The power play shows this weakness very clearly. So you end up with a team constantly whipping the puck around the boards and then shooting from far hoping for a pinball goal. That's the limit of their creativity. One of the only things they do fairly well offensively is on the rush after a turnover.

[tweetdrivr]

It’s all encapsulated in that lovely play by Evans last game - he fed Belzille beautifully to put him alone in front and he shot the puck a mile wide. Didn’t even hit the net. That’s the Habs offense right there in one play.

[Goldendelicious]

Well damn that was a much better game to watch. Not just because the Habs won. but nice to see some intensity....AND GOALS!!!!

[Eskimo Brother]

Good game all around, but it seemed inevitable that they weren't getting past Philly. Flyers are rolling (or flying?)

Worst case scenario realized with the first round exit and the draft pick pushed back.

[ericdaoust]

Every Habs game in August was a bonus. This is not a playoff team.

[Goldendelicious]

Agreed that all these games were a bonus. What we saw in Suzuki and KK was the big take away. Kids got a big confidence boost with how they played.

I'm not sure I would be celebrating too much as a Flyers fan. Yes they won in 6 games but they barely got by a non-playoff team in the series. They did not look very impressive for the "top" team in the East.

[The Comish]

Yep, agree that the brief playoff run was a great learning experience for the Habs young up and comers. Hope to see Romanov in the mix next season and another level from Suzuki and KK.

[evans334]

Off-season rumour mill is up and running:

Gaudreau for Domi, Poheling and a 1st.

All sparked because Domi and Poheling removed any mention of the Canadiens from their social media accounts.

[Eskimo Brother]

Off-season rumour mill is up and running:

Gaudreau for Domi, Poheling and a 1st.

All sparked because Domi and Poheling removed any mention of the Canadiens from their social media accounts.

That's never a good sign.

[PenguinHunter]

Off-season rumour mill is up and running:

Gaudreau for Domi, Poheling and a 1st.

All sparked because Domi and Poheling removed any mention of the Canadiens from their social media accounts.

Is this something they do every summer?

[Eskimo Brother]

Is this something they do every summer?

I think if they did it every summer we would have heard about it.

[ericdaoust]

It's just people with too much time on their hands making a story out of nothing. If they do get traded it's not because of their social media changes.

[PenguinHunter]

It's just people with too much time on their hands making a story out of nothing. If they do get traded it's not because of their social media changes.

Yup. Exactly. and maybe they do this every season and this is the first season it has been caught.

They are hockey players during hockey season and now they are fishing, hitting the links and such... I know lots of people that change their social media status on a regular basis.