The Montreal Canadiens were happy to hit the ice on Monday night after ending a long losing skid in a come-from-behind win over the St. Louis Blues. However, they weren’t happy by the end of the night as they appear to have started another losing streak with a disappointing performance against the Seattle Kraken, leading to a 4-0 loss.
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The Canadiens had only one highlight in a dreadful first period, and it was one that fans had waited a dozen games for. Juraj Slafkovsky had his best scoring chance in a month as he slipped through the Seattle defence to earn a breakaway.
Slafkovsky hadn’t tamed the puck yet as he charged into the low slot, so his shot wasn’t the best as it went right into Martin Jones’s pad. However, it was good to see Slafkovsky earn the chance, and it could be a springboard to a little bit of confidence.
This was the best game of Slafkovsky’s in a month. He had better jump. He was tracking the puck better. He seemed to want it; to be engaged, seeking out the play instead of hoping it would come to him.
Slafkovsky also helped in his role as a winger on breakouts by handling wrap-arounds well and out-letting the puck to the centre to continue the rush up ice.
It should also be noted that Slafkovsky hasn’t been rocked for a while on an open ice hit with his head down. That was a huge concern one month ago when he got blindsided for a big hit for the fourth time in the season. He can’t improve if he can’t stay healthy.
The bottom line is Slafkovsky has no goals, seven shots, and a 31 per cent shot share in the last 12 games. This is the grind of the NHL playing every second night. It’s especially a grind for a player who has come from Finland where his regular season last year was 31 games, though he did add playoffs and international events.
It’s been an extremely tough go recently for the Slovak rookie, but if a little sparkle in his game surfaces every now and then like it did Monday night, then there is hope that he is progressing; that he isn’t stagnating.
This one felt like progress.
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The scuttlebutt around the league is that Joel Edmundson is worth a first-round draft choice. There’s a rumour every week that the Edmonton Oilers are interested in him. If that is to happen, perhaps it should happen soon.
Edmundson is not having his best season in the NHL here. Early first period, it was David Savard and Edmundson together as the head coach tries experienced players together to see if they could be a shutdown pair.
Savard was beaten near the blue line and Edmundson was beaten on a cross-ice pass in front of the net in a bang-bang-bang play that made every Canadien on the ice look like they were in a lower league.
Dunn to Gourde to Tolvanen for his 5th and Seattle was on its way. It was shocking how easy it looked and how much this second-year team was dominating the Canadiens. The shots on goal at the halfway point of the first period were 13-1 for the Kraken.
The Canadiens weren’t even at the rink yet. By the end of the first period, the shots were 19-6 Seattle. The score was 3-0. Edmundson and Savard played half of the first period. The game was basically over.
In their defence, the roster is getting thin these days with a lot of injuries. The team misses Kaiden Guhle, who is out for two months with a knee injury, a lot. They also miss Mike Matheson, who has begun skating again.
This is how rebuilds go. They don’t have a lot of wins in them. The important thing is that the players keep learning and have an environment that encourages their development. Martin St. Louis is the right head coach for that.
The blue line has had as many as five rookies on it, so that’s obviously a recipe for difficulty. These young rearguards will be better next season and the club overall will be better next season with the arrival of exciting young prospects.
And though it does not seem like it, this season is already quite a lot better than last season. The Canadiens are on pace for a 70-point season; in 2021-22, Montreal finished with just 55 points. That is a giant leap. Next year, they will be better still.
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The Canadiens made an emergency call up late Monday afternoon. It was another moment where the club can be thankful that the American Hockey League team is in Laval. They wouldn’t have had a backup goalie if the affiliate were still in Newfoundland.
Jake Allen suffered an injury at practice on Sunday, but it was not known that he couldn’t be the backup for the contest until the last moment. Cayden Primeau made it to the rink on time, as a backup for Samuel Montembeault.
Allen is listed as day-to-day, so the upper body injury is not viewed as serious. It’s a good opportunity for Montembeault to perhaps put a run of games together to show the organization that he has the skills to be a permanent backup in the coming seasons.
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