Call of the Wilde: Overtime Madness

• Max Domi played yet another strong game for the Habs. He opened the scoring early in the first period, but what he really excels at is zone entries. He weaves well and creates space for himself then finds a spot to relax the play and build some offence. Domi has been a revelation. This simply is not the player that we all saw in Phoenix. Domi is also developing chemistry with Jonathan Drouin, who had a tough season last year. This means the trade not only brings Domi, who is playing centre without seeming challenged defensively, but is waking up Drouin. That’s a win-win.

• Lehkonen is a player who constantly deserves praise for the myriad small things that he does right. He respects where he is on the ice all the time. He respects where his opponent can hurt him most. He respects his angles. He never cheats a foot of the ice. He gets criticized when it doesn’t go right for him offensively, and he is a bit streaky, but he is such a complete 200-foot player that you wonder how is it possible he didn’t become a centre with a complete awareness like that.

Wilde Goats

• One doesn’t want to make too much of a single mistake, but the first Ottawa goal was last season’s Karl Alzner. He has it on his stick and casually lost it behind the net. Then, to compound his mistake, he didn’t hustle very well to get back into the play. Eventually, the goal was pretty much all on Alzner. He played strong in his debut after a strong camp, but time is your enemy when you aren’t quite the same player as when you were a younger, faster man; your mind gets fatigued because your legs have gotten fatigued. The radar is back up and back on for Alzner. You can’t cost your team that much at the NHL level. The game was 2-0 and quite in command but then suddenly things changed. Alzner over a healthy Victor Mete was one roster mistake, and the other mistake ruined the rolling of the four lines.
• Nicolas Deslauriers got his first chance to play after injury and was weak. It also brought out more weakness in his linemates, Matthew Peca and Andrew Shaw. Nikita Scherbak is still not playing, and Charles Hudon was also not playing, despite scoring and looking effective. These are not talent-first decisions. Deslauriers has been a journeyman his entire career who got on a hot streak last season, but make no mistake: he’s a journeyman. You know who else had a hot spell for the Habs and parlayed it? Dale Weise; he was a journeyman player. Michel Therrien kept throwing him out there over and over again, and he turned that into a major deal with the Philadelphia Flyers. After that, he was not essentially heard from again in any significant way. Deslauriers is limited. People get excited over a limited player getting hot for a spell like he’s suddenly become a significantly player in his mid-twenties. It rarely happens. The “speed kills” Habs should be exclusively putting their best talent out there to win. That’s their motto this year: that they can skate faster and push the play. How, in any way, should we expect Deslauriers to push the play? He can’t. Point final.
• The Habs need to practice three-on-three and see who knows how to play it. The overtime was abysmal. Excitement is, fun but there are spacing rules and man back rules. You can’t just run three guys at the other net. You have to make sure that you don’t over-commit; the Senators were far superior in that aspect of the contest. It was kind of embarrassing how bad it was. Also suspect was the choice of participants. Byron must be playing in the overtime — he must. He’s the fastest skater, which is exactly what three-on-three is about. How can you not see Byron? If you get caught up, you need to have speed to get back. That’s Byron. Again, with Armia getting a nod? Someone explain, please. This player should not be on the power play, nor the penalty killing, nor three-on-three. Get in the video room, Habs, and watch the Oilers play three-on-three, and you will get how it is supposed to be done. It’s not that Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are talented alone, it’s that they wait for their opportunity and then pounce. McDavid thinks defence first in overtime, then he takes his chance when he gets it. McDavid and Draisaitl don’t put themselves in dangerous positions by trying too hard. The Habs were behind the play for the entire overtime. The Senators had three breakaways and two three-on-one opportunities. You have to respect the defensive zone, too. It is the counter-attack that is more dangerous in three-on-three, not the attack. Honestly, it is hard to believe how bad that was overall. It was like nine-year-olds were out there.