Guhle and Hutson were phenomenal for us tonight. Hard not to be excited by this pair of younger defenders.
Xhekaj back there makes all the difference in the world too, you could tell Mr Tkachuk wasn’t running wild like he does when the sheriff isn’t patrolling the crease area. The other thing was that MSL played Xhekaj a lot more in the third period, which I thought was a smart move. He keeps improving every game.
Barron had another forgettable game. As I’ve said a few times, I think he’s the obvious odd man out at this point in time. I’d be surprised if he finishes the year here.
Fat fùck Savard played another steady Eddie type game.
Matheson is concerning so far, think he’s trying to do too much. Needs to simplify everything and not try to reinvent the wheel.
Up front Goal Caufield, should have had the hat trick but missed the Pacioretty special. Nice to see him off to such a torrid start.
Big Dick Nick continues to be the Habs version of Bergeron lite. A guy who usually starts slow, he seems to be coming to life quicker.
Slaf with a couple of assists but missed some time. Obviously injured, hopefully he’s able to play through without missing any significant time. Needs to shoot more, but again is likely injured, so ability could be affected.
Dach is looking less tentative but is obviously still pretty rusty. I think you’ll see a massive improvement in his play in about a month, once he settles into game shape and regains some of what he lost.
Newhook looked much better tonight. He needed to though. Still not sold on him yet, but more games like this will help. Has some chemistry with Dach.
Anderson wasn’t bad tonight, played physical, took one penalty I didn’t like and one I didn’t mind. He’s much more effective when he’s pissed off and playing physical so maybe we need someone to cross check him more often.
Gallagher, Kapanen and Evans were very good.
Montembeault was terrific again.
Overall a fun night to watch hockey!!
Oh yeah, and suck it Sens fans.