By JD Lagrange – HabsTracks is a review, retracing the current hot topics. This week, we’re looking at the Canadiens’ surprising start, the return of key injured players, the rookies’ contribution, the goaltending situation and the discovery of a true first line, amongst other things. Please feel free to comment and share with your friends.
With a 7-6-1 record, the Montreal Canadiens are up to a much better start than anticipated by most and they’ve done it without arguably their number one defenseman, Mike Matheson. To make that even more impressive, they are doing that with not one, not two, not three, but four rookie defensemen, and in a very tough Atlantic Division.
Speaking of Matheson, he is well ahead of schedule and he has started skating with the team, although in a non-contact jersey. The former Penguins and Panthers’ defenseman had suffered an abdominal muscle strain just over four weeks ago and was said to be out approximately eight weeks. If all goes well, he could be back much sooner, or so it seems.
During Matherson’s absence, David Savard has filled the role of top-pair defenseman alongside rookie Kaiden Guhle. Under the circumstances, he is doing an amazing job while teaching the ropes to his young linemate and that, against the opposition’s toughest lines. Prior to the game against Pittsburgh, Savard is second in the NHL in blocked shots while playing 22:34 per game. He’s not a first pair defenseman, everyone including himself knows it. But he is helping the Canadiens immensely so far.
Speaking of the Canadiens’ rookie defensemen, here’s a summary of what they’ve done so far, league-wide:
| GUHLE | HARRIS | KOVACEVIC | XHEKAJ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOI/GP | 20:47 (2) | 20:21 (3) | 17:43 (9) | 15:37 (13) |
| BkS | 27 (2) | 29 (1) | 14 (7) | 13 (10) |
| HITS | 25 (3) | 11 (8) | 17 (5) | 49 (1) |
| TkA | 10 (1) | 6 (9) | 9 (2) | 3 (22) |
Another big factor in the Canadiens’ early success has been goaltending. Jake Allen has played like he did prior to his injury in the second half of the season. He’s been solid. The surprise has been the play of Samuel Montembeault however. It’s early (too early) to jump to conclusions, but Monty has been playing well beyond expectations. Here are the two netminders’ stats so far:
| GP | W | L | OTL | SA | Svs | GA | Sv% | GAA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALLEN | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 302 | 274 | 28 | .907 | 3.11 |
| MONTEMBEAULT | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 171 | 159 | 12 | .930 | 2.38 |
Speaking of Allen, there are still fans out there who think that he should (or will) be traded this season and that, in spite of the fact that Kent Hughes and Allen himself both said that they want to continue their association and signing a two-year deal. If having not one, but the two parties isn’t going to convince these people, I guess nothing will, right? Here are the facts: in spite of Montembeault’s nice start, he’s far from proven. Cayden Primeau isn’t ready and needs to stay in the AHL this season. The Canadiens don’t have a goaltender anywhere close to being NHL-ready in the system.
It would take a huge overpayment to pry Allen out of Montreal and a first is not it. It would take a first and a blue chip goalie prospect. His contribution goes so far beyond his positive impact in the locker room. It speaks of on-ice too. Fans say: “they can pick one up”. There are teams that have desperately been looking for goaltenders without success. Two Canadian teams (Leafs and Sens) are only two of them. Allen is going nowhere folks.
Changing gear, Josh Anderson is coming back from his two-games suspension for hitting Alex Pietrangelo from behind. On Friday, from reading and listening to the Montreal Media, it seems like they were running out of material to talk about as they were picking on the big Canadiens’ power forward.
Speaking of Anderson, there’s a misconception out there that he is often injured. True that he had a serious injury prior to getting traded to the Habs but in a Canadiens’ uniform, he has played 133 regular season’s games (prior to the game against Pittsburgh). Only Nick Suzuki has played more.
Juraj Slafkovsky has been taking advices from Anderson on how to use his big frame to his advantage. Unfortunately, the young forward has done like his mentor and took things too far when he hit Matt Luff of the Detroit Red Wings from behind. And like Anderson, he was suspended two games which he will serve the last game against Pittsburgh.
Aside from the dynamic duo of Suzuki and Cole Caufield, another forward is doing extremely well. Kirby Dach came with question marks and just as some members of the (French) media started turning on him, Martin St-Louis gave him an opportunity to play right wing on the top line. In his last six games, Dach has three goals, six assists for nine points and has a differential of plus -5. Only Suzuki on the team has more points during that time span with 10. Their linemate Caufield isn’t far behind with eight. This success might force the Canadiens to look at options at center.
The Canadiens have a relatively easy week ahead of them. They will be hosting the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, before heading to Columbus to face the Blue Jackets on Thursday. The will then be returning home and face the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, at the Bell Centre. Those are three very winnable games but has history has often taught us and as Claude “Piton” Ruel has said before: “Y’en n’aura pas d’faciles!”
| DATE | VISITOR | HOME | TIME |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tue Nov.15 |  |  | 7:00 PM ET |
| Thu Nov.17 | |  | 7:00 PM ET |
| Sat Nov.19 |  | | 7:00 PM ET |
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More reading…
- To You From Failing Hands… by JD Lagrange
- NHL Insiders Vs Rumourrhoids by JD Lagrange
- The 2022 Draft – Long Shot Report by JAG
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