The Canadiens have not won their first two games of the regular season since 2015-16. Were they breaking that streak tonight?
Not with that performance. A season that started so promising last night, but one good period every five isn’t going to bring the Habs success.
After 50 minutes, Boston’s scoring chances were 23 to 9, which summed up how the night was going for Montreal. The Canadiens made a push in the third period, but the better team won tonight.
It was a rough start for Cayden Primeau, taking that tripping penalty in the first minute. One got the feeling that Montreal’s shutout streak was quickly coming to an end, and it did. Lindholm’s wrist shot from the blueline found the back of the net but Justin Brazeau interfered with Primeau, and it got called back.
Boston’s chances wouldn’t wane, however, and Primeau’s game didn’t get any better either. It’s early, so the club will remain patient for now, but he needs to be better, or Montembeault may play 65 games. He’s not reading the play particularly well and, as a result, is not cutting off angles effectively.
Everyone’s major concern going into the season was the sixth forward spot, but I was also worried about the backup goalie position. They have to have a good tandem with a defence group that young. That concern hasn’t abated after Primeau’s performance in preseason and tonight’s game.
What is Slaf’s duty on the power play? He doesn’t seem to have a role He’s not being used as a trigger guy. Sometimes, he’s parked in front of the net, but mostly, he’s wandering around, not getting open, and rarely touching the puck. Aside from his impressive feed to Caufield for the game-winner last night, he’s had a quiet start to the season. I’d like to see him possessing the puck more and creating chances. He had one nice rush at the end of the second period that drew a penalty, but I would have liked to have seen that when the game was close.
He had 66 puck touches and possessed the puck for 18 seconds versus the Leafs. Those numbers may have been even lower tonight. He’s throwing some hits on the forecheck, and he hasn’t hurt the team, but expectations are high—it would be nice to see more touches and offensive involvement.
Marty must have sensed the same thing as, by the third period, he had put Slaf out with Kirby Dach. I liked the move. Marty has often been reluctant to mix up the lines in the past, but why not when they are sleeping?
It seemed to spark the team. Josh Anderson moved to the top line and scored a goal. This time around, there will be no 24-game scoreless streak to start the season.
We also saw the defensive pairings mixed up as Lane Hutson lined up beside Kaiden Guhle, Mike Matheson with Justin Barron, and David Savard with Arber Xhekaj.
The Canadiens got back in the game with goals by Anderson and Brendan Gallagher midway through the period, but the Bruins came back down and scored 17 seconds later to seal their fate. What Primeau was doing inside his net, we may never know. He HAS to be better. No big stops tonight. He was too far in his net, not tracking the puck or freezing it after stops, and not catching it with his glove. He looked like an AHLer tonight, and a few more performances like that, and that’s what he will be again before the season’s end.
Joel Armia had shown up to start this season, and that’s good news for the Habs His pass to Gallagher for a tip-in to open the scoring may have been his finest one with the club, between the defenceman stick and leg and right on Gally’s tape.
It’s also encouraging to see Gallagher pick up two goals early on, as he hasn’t had the best starts in recent seasons. He scored two goals in his first nine games last year and had five goals after 28 contests. Gallagher almost had the hat trick, as Swayman’s best save came from a Gallagher backhand in the slot. He has been written off for a few years now. Here’s hoping he proves all of the critics wrong and can bounce back with 20-plus goals like the old days. Going back to last season, he has seven goals in his last seven games.
Alex Newhook is such a key component of Montreal’s top six because of his speed. It’s an element none of the others bring to the same magnitude, and when he uses it smartly, he creates a lot of offence. His feed to Dach in the first period was a prime example of that. He is still battling consistency, however, and his play away from the puck will need to keep evolving. There is a lot of promise there, and we must remember that he’s young and the best is yet to come.
Oliver Kapanen’s NHL debut was up and down. He had a few moments in his own zone when he seemed a bit lost, and that may have something to do with his trying to adjust to the wing after playing center for most of his career. Alex Barre-Boulet was less effective tonight, and you may see one or both of them being replaced by Pezzetta. Emil Heineman for the Ottawa game on Saturday.
Hopefully, we see more of a Guhle-Hutson pairing in the future, as they are the anointed ones. They
are supposed to be the top defencemen down the line, along with David Reinbacher, so why not put them together when the club needs some offence? Both of them had two assists tonight, and the future is bright for both. Look for Guhle to make a sizeable leap in his offensive totals this season.
Mike Matheson needs his ice time pared down closer to 20 minutes than logging 26 per night. He had some struggles at times, but anyone would when you’re worked that much – you make more poor decisions when you’re tired.
I would like to see more compete. They need a sparkplug in the lineup…and that’s Michael Pezzetta. They also need Struble back as he was steadiest defenceman all preseason. They need blueliners who make few mistakes and have solid outlet passes, and nobody was better at it in September than Struble. Hopefully, he is ready to go soon.
