After dismal back-to-back losses on Super Bowl weekend, the Montreal Canadiens had an easier foe visit the Bell Centre on Tuesday night.
The Anaheim Ducks visited and it was an easy night for Montreal, winning 5-0.
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The Canadiens’ power play has been strong since the trading of Sean Monahan. Monahan often had the bumper position in front of the net, and without him the thought was the power play was going to suffer. However, Alex Newhook returned from injury just in time to take Monahan’s spot.
Newhook has been strong in the bumper spot. Early in the contest, the Canadiens got five shots on net as the first unit of Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, Juraj Slafkovsky, Mike Matheson, and Newhook spent the entire two minutes inside the Ducks zone.
The goals haven’t come yet in bunches, but the first part of success is all of the zone time, and the first unit looks excellent. Slafkovsky is much more comfortable on the right half wall. He often skates hard to the net to create havoc when a shot is about to be taken. He’s understanding his role well.
A good power play has every option, or the penalty killers will key on the limited options that the power play has. The Canadiens are on their way to every option: Caufield’s shot on the left. Suzuki flies through the middle well before sliding right to shoot or pass. Slafkovsky is ready for a one-timer on a Matheson pass.
The only option that is not yet there is a heavy shot from the point, though it can certainly be argued that that skill has become less valuable through the evolution of the game and the talent of goalies. The Canadiens top-five have a lot of movement in the offensive zone, so they’re tough to defend.
The Suzuki power play goal did connect, and the movement was sensational. Caufield to Newhook in the bumper, to Slafkovsky on the right, to Suzuki on the left. It all happened so fast a goal was inevitable.
In the third, another power play goal. Caufield with the feed to Suzuki with the feed to Slafkovsky who was ready to fire right away. Again, the puck was moving so fast that Anaheim had no chance.
It’s been a long time since a Montreal power play looked consistently this good. These aren’t the days of Saku Koivu, Alex Kovalev, Michael Ryder, Sheldon Sourly and Andrei Markov yet, but it feels like they’re on their way. The arrival of Lane Hutson could be the element to come that puts this unit over the top.
With the playoffs out of reach, the rest of the season is about filling slots for the future. At forward, it is becoming clear that Joshua Roy has a future with the team. First period, Roy released a shot so quickly, it wasn’t even seen by the goaltender Lukas Dostal before it hit the post.
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Roy could be a second-line winger on a weak Canadiens club, or, more preferably, a solid third-liner when the team gets stronger. Wherever he slots, Roy will be in the NHL. He is a smart player who creates chances out of nothing. He reads the game beautifully.
Occasionally, there is some suffering on the defensive side of the puck, so Roy would be well served playing with a strong defensive and intelligent centre like Owen Beck when he arrives from the Saginaw Spirit next season.
The Canadiens dominated territorially, but had difficulties finishing or it would have been a rout. Montreal finally broke through in the second with a Jake Evans marker. It was only his third goal of the season, and first in 25 games.
The second goal was absolute hockey perfection from Juraj Slafkovsky. He received an intelligent pass to the neutral zone from Jayden Struble. At centre, Slafkovsky needed to edge out his defender to be able to execute a pass. He protected the puck with his reach, then kept striding to get clearance. Slafkovsky then slid the pass across to Nick Suzuki who had an easy tap-in.
For Slafkovsky, it was a point in six straight games, but, more than that, it showed just how smart he is becoming so quickly. It was a goal that only a truly talented player can achieve. Slafkovsky needed size, speed, smarts and hands. He did everything right.
For Suzuki, the goal extended his point streak to eight games. Suzuki is now on pace for 79 points this season with 51 points in 53 games. Slafkovsky has 20 points in his last 24 and Caufield has 22 in the same number of games. The first line has point-per-game potential.
Montreal was up 30-9 in shots after two periods. It was a dominating performance that got its exclamation mark with two minutes remaining. Brandon Gignac scored his first NHL goal. It was a perfect shot upstairs. It took until he was 26 years of age, and the wait was worth it. Gignac was elated.
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After two periods, Caufield had eight shots, and the Ducks had nine. Cayden Primeau had a ridiculously easy night facing 13 shots for his first NHL shutout. Not a single shot Primeau faced was a difficult one.
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Despite being a first-round draft choice for the Canadiens, the outstanding rookie season as a pro for Logan Mailloux hasn’t received a lot of attention. Mailloux is one of the top scoring defencemen in the league. He has shown that he has outstanding skills offensively at the American Hockey League level.
Mailloux has a booming slap shot, and a strong ability to take the puck up ice. That’s why he has 13 goals and 19 assists for the fourth highest point total among defenders in the league. Excellent numbers for a rookie in a league dominated on the blue line by veterans.
However, where Mailloux has really turned it around is defensively. He got off to a terrible start in his own zone quickly, dropping to a minus 12. It has been a total turnaround for Mailloux since early December.
In his last 17 games, Mailloux has amassed a plus 12. He has been reliable on the defensive side of the puck while not giving up any offence. He has been a minus player only one game in his last 17. Mailloux’s defensive improvement has been the number one reason that the club has salvaged its season and is a fight for a playoff spot.
The organization is confident that Mailloux will be an excellent pro, but, so far, he has not received a call-up to the NHL club. There are so many capable defenders on the blue line that Mailloux has been shuttered so far in Laval.
A chance in Montreal should come before the end of the season as a reward for an excellent season. In the long run, a spot will be made for Mailloux. It will be fascinating to see how GM Kent Hughes handles about 12 NHL-calibre defenders trying to fit into six in the next year or two.
Trades are coming with the likely departures to be those who don’t have the highest of ceilings. Expect Mailloux to remain in the organization.
Brian Wilde, a Montreal-based sports writer, brings you Call of the Wilde on globalnews.ca after each Canadiens game.
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