Post-Game Talk: Habs win over Avs 2-1

[Tyson]

Monty was dialed in!
You know. I wish I wasn’t so lazy or I’d look up all my old posts from 2 years ago saying don’t be surprised if he’s our starter. 95% of everyone called me nuts and said he’s garbage, he’s a stop gap, he’s average, Hughes paid him a bit too much.

I will admit that I was probably wrong about Primeau though

All of a sudden the Habs have some serious depth, short and longterm in goal.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Drouin is the same as he was in Montreal.. just has two better players to leach points off of.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Yes folks want great pick and I get it but establishing a no quit winning culture is also important. I personally want this young group to build swagger. They will still get a top 10 pick.

Habs will get a high pick regardless. I get that a 5th OA pick is better than an 8th OA pick, but if it's at the detriment of the young guys already there, I'm not interested in the higher pick. What I don't want happening is neglecting the young guys who are already there. Suzuki, Caufield, Slaf, Newhook, Guhle, Xhekaj, Struble, Primeau, Dach who is injured now, I think it's important not to forget their development also. Monty is older, but he's still establishing himself so his development counts, as well.

When I watch the way they played last night. The way they played in Edmonton. They went toe to toe with some of the big dogs of the league. Seattle wasn't their best game, but they still found a way to win it and hold onto the lead. Two weeks ago they pushed Boston to OT.

I remember last year, a lot of the post-game scrums, the young players were talking about them playing a good game and learning even after a loss. This year, I love that they are not happy with a loss. The expectation level among them has gone up.

 

[xX SEYF Xx]

Habs will get a high pick regardless. I get that a 5th OA pick is better than an 8th OA pick, but if it's at the detriment of the young guys already there, I'm not interested in the higher pick. What I don't want happening is neglecting the young guys who are already there. Suzuki, Caufield, Slaf, Newhook, Guhle, Xhekaj, Struble, Primeau, Dach who is injured now, I think it's important not to forget their development also. Monty is older, but he's still establishing himself so his development counts, as well.

When I watch the way they played last night. The way they played in Edmonton. They went toe to toe with some of the big dogs of the league. Seattle wasn't their best game, but they still found a way to win it and hold onto the lead. Two weeks ago they pushed Boston to OT.

I remember last year, a lot of the post-game scrums, the young players were talking about them playing a good game and learning even after a loss. This year, I love that they are not happy with a loss. The expectation level among them has gone up.

What this team tells me is that the risk we become the Sens or the sabres out of this rebuild is near zero

 

[Hannibal]

Xhekaj was really good but ends the game with the less ice time of all dman… WTF?

 

[jellybeans]

Drouin is the same as he was in Montreal.. just has two better players to leach points off of.

Not even close he's got no stupid media that question every little thing in Colorado but yes he's playing with better players.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Xhekaj was really good but ends the game with the less ice time of all dman… WTF?

They were playing against probably the fastest team in the the league. Not Xhekaj's best type of opponent. The team arguably had its best victory of the season. Hard to find great fault here.

 

[rik schau]

Crikey what a cracker! if more games were that fun and entertaining it would be worth watching more. That Colorado team can really zip around the ice,impressive. Very solid effort from Montreal to beat these lads.

Montembeault and Primeau have been performing to a very acceptable level, very nice to see that.

Not hating Newhook at center and he with Armia make a very decent duo,just need another winger with some speed and oomph to compliment that line.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Drouin is the same as he was in Montreal.. just has two better players to leach points off of.

I thought he had a pretty good game and created multiple scoring chances. I suspect if he can play on the first power play unit on the Avalanche, he might be able to play on our power play.

 

[morhilane]

Drouin is the same as he was in Montreal.. just has two better players to leach points off of.

Drouin's production pace is similar to his first two seasons with the Habs (the only ones where he played more than 60 games). And the main differences with his later years with the Habs is basically power play production.

 

[vokiel]

Xhekaj was really good but ends the game with the less ice time of all dman… WTF?

That's one reason to try converting him into a center.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Crikey what a cracker! if more games were that fun and entertaining it would be worth watching more. That Colorado team can really zip around the ice,impressive. Very solid effort from Montreal to beat these lads.

Montembeault and Primeau have been performing to a very acceptable level, very nice to see that.

Not hating Newhook at center and he with Armia make a very decent duo,just need another winger with some speed and oomph to compliment that line.

Armia probably played his best game last night as he controlled the boards in the offensive zone and just shrugged off defenders winning puck battles, particularly behind the Avalanche's net. The rush where he chipped the puck off the boards to himself and created a clear path to the opponent's net showed a high level of skill that we have, unfortunately, rarely seen during his tenure in Montreal.

If Armia could consistently play at a level like he did last night , he would be a solid second line player that we could build around, or even better, trade for high value at the next trade deadline.

 

[rik schau]

Armia probably played his best game last night as he controlled the boards in the offensive zone and just shrugged off defenders winning puck battles, particularly behind the Avalanche's net. The rush where he chipped the puck off the boards to himself and created a clear path to the opponent's net showed a high level of skill that we have, unfortunately, rarely seen during his tenure in Montreal.

If Armia could consistently play at a level like he did last night , he would be a solid second line player that we could build around, or even better, trade for high value at the next trade deadline.

He is an enigma isn't he? We all can see what he is capable of,yet so often a lackluster effort and performance. The Armia of the last game is an Armia that would be welcome almost anywhere. Eyes must have opened more of late and it will be interesting to see what will unfold.

 

[Adam Michaels]

What this team tells me is that the risk we become the Sens or the sabres out of this rebuild is near zero

Exactly. That is what I want the Canadiens to avoid. And so far, things point to them having the kind of attitude that will turn them into winners.

MSL might not be the Xs and Os kind of coach, but the team seems to collectively play the kind of hockey MSL played, swagger, attitude, grind, warrior. And with more skill slowly being implemented into the line-up, it's a promising combination to have on your roster.

 

[sandviper]

Just saying… in 2-3 years when we’re competing hopefully, our goaltending better be like how it was last night.

You know, when it actually matters…

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Habs will get a high pick regardless. I get that a 5th OA pick is better than an 8th OA pick, but if it's at the detriment of the young guys already there, I'm not interested in the higher pick. What I don't want happening is neglecting the young guys who are already there. Suzuki, Caufield, Slaf, Newhook, Guhle, Xhekaj, Struble, Primeau, Dach who is injured now, I think it's important not to forget their development also. Monty is older, but he's still establishing himself so his development counts, as well.

When I watch the way they played last night. The way they played in Edmonton. They went toe to toe with some of the big dogs of the league. Seattle wasn't their best game, but they still found a way to win it and hold onto the lead. Two weeks ago they pushed Boston to OT.

I remember last year, a lot of the post-game scrums, the young players were talking about them playing a good game and learning even after a loss. This year, I love that they are not happy with a loss. The expectation level among them has gone up.

Well said. We are close to turning many of those one goal games that we play into wins. A mobile defence and strong goaltending gives us a chance to be competitive against even the strongest opponent. It was in my opinion the best victory of the season and a real confidence builder for the league's second youngest team.

As for the draft, I think the 2024 draft is highly underrated, both with respect to the high end talent that will be available at top of the first round and the depth available over the next 25-35 picks. As long as we don't overreach, we should be able to draft a core player whether we draft 6 OA or 10 OA. As I have previously noted, the real opportunity is what we do with the Winnipeg first rounder that we magically secured in the Monahan trade. There will be a number of forwards who will be available at the bottom of the first round (Vanacker, Luchanko, Beaudoin, Artamonov, Sennecke, Letourneau, etc.) who if we take, would immediately become among our top forward prospects.

Unless a team is overpaying, I stay the course, and use that Winnipeg pick in this underrated draft year.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Newhook's face-off numbers the last 5 games:

71.4%
54.5%
60%
57.1%
68.8%

 

[HomaridII]

Newhook's face-off numbers the last 5 games:

71.4%
54.5%
60%
57.1%
68.8%

My god that's pretty lol

Good problem to have honestly next year when Dach is there.

 

[OldCraig71]

Honorable mention to Jake Evans and the penalty kill unit that held the Avs off the scoresheet 3 times and never looked overwhelmed. I don't know what the coaching staff did to change things up on the PK but it's working. One reason this team has been involved in so many close games is the work or our centers, they have been good for most of the season.

 

[schwang26]

Would love to see both goalies pushing each other, like the Bruins currently have...

I think there’s going to be a lot more than 2 pushing each other. I’ve never seen them with this kind of depth. Dobes, Fowler, Volokin, Miller. All doing extremely well.

 

[schwang26]

He is an enigma isn't he? We all can see what he is capable of,yet so often a lackluster effort and performance. The Armia of the last game is an Armia that would be welcome almost anywhere. Eyes must have opened more of late and it will be interesting to see what will unfold.

When he’s on, he’s a power forward. It’s uncanny how he steals pucks in the offensive zone too. He’s been consistent since the call up, which is a really good stretch for him. Maybe it was a wake up call? I know we’ve been disappointed before, but this has been a really long stretch of him showing up to play.

 

[schwang26]

Honorable mention to Jake Evans and the penalty kill unit that held the Avs off the scoresheet 3 times and never looked overwhelmed. I don't know what the coaching staff did to change things up on the PK but it's working. One reason this team has been involved in so many close games is the work or our centers, they have been good for most of the season.

I’ve always liked Evans and pictured him as a future leader. Second in the league in defensive zone wins or something to that effect is impressive. He doesn’t get enough love because of the lack of offence. Not exactly playing with stars on his wings though.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Habs' PK has been real solid. That's part of Robidas' responsibilities.

Since January, Habs are 10th in the league on the PK. Since February, they're 5th. And since the start of March, they're 2nd in the league.

The PP has been more creative and more fluid. They're not as static as they were. But the results aren't there. They've been last in the league since February. If they can have a half decent PP with their PK continuing to be as strong, this team will win more games.

 

[dackelljuneaubulis02]

Newhook's face-off numbers the last 5 games:

71.4%
54.5%
60%
57.1%
68.8%

How's he been looking at C otherwise?

 

[GrandBison]

What this team tells me is that the risk we become the Sens or the sabres out of this rebuild is near zero

The 2021 playoffs run is underrated. They know it will never be easy.