CP Rides High In 'Cane Country

Carey Price makes 42 saves in leading the Canadiens to a 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes
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So what was it that I was saying?

Last post, that game against the New York Islanders!?

Oh yeah, about Carey. Carey Price. You know!? The young star goalie of the Montreal Canadiens. Right.

Carey Price made 42 saves on the night helping the Habs beat the Canes 4-2. AP

And what was it that I was asking him for?

To steal a game? Actually, to stand on his head and win the Habs a game.

Well I don't know if CP reads this blog but if he does, the message was received loud and clear as last night the Canadiens might have played one of their worst games of the season in Raleigh yet still managed to get out of there with the two points.

Price made 21 saves in the second period alone which was a completely one-way affair, the Canes coming at the Canadiens like a dog on a bone.

Actually the Habs started this game strong, taking a 2-0 lead on goals by Prust and Gorges -- who seemed to be channeling Andrei Markov on this night.

In Prust we trust? Brandon Prust got three points in the Habs 4-2 win against the Hurricanes. AP









Then the Hurricane onslaught began in the second; and if it wasn't for Price the Habs could've been down by a few going into the third.

But alas, Price kept his team in the game and though he'd probably like that second one back, it's tough for a goalie when a forward has the time to wind up and blast one from the faceoff dot. The puck can go anywhere. Yet he was strong in potentially the turning point of the game on no other than Eric Staal, making the save on a penalty shot with a little more than five minutes left in the middle frame.

The Canadiens then regrouped and came out strong once again in the third, getting goals by Lars Eller and P.K. Subban on the power play.

Prust continues to make Bergevin look like a genius, tallying a goal and two assists on the night. The guy brings the sandpaper but can also play. Eller and Gorges also had strong games, as well as Galchenyuk.

Michael Ryder? Not so much. He was benched for the third.

There were too many passengers on this night. Did Desharnais and Pacioretty even play?

And poor Yanick Weber. In his first game of the season he looked a bit rusty, getting caught flat footed on the second Carolina goal, then left the game early with a lower body injury.

Habs now head down to the sunshine state where we can only hope they get the same results like the last time. That is, fly out of there with some sun and four big points.

Character Wins Hockey Games

Habs take 3 of 4 points on weekend to reclaim top spot in Eastern Conference

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If there's one thing we know about freshman GM Marc Bergevin is that he likes hockey players with character.

So it was no surprise that his first signing was gritty forward Brendan Prust as a free agent from the New York Rangers. The Blueshirts still seem to be having issues replacing him.

It's players like Prust who provide those intangibles that can often swing momentum from one side to the other.

Brandon Prust taking one for the team from Milan Lucic in Boston. Lucic should really know better and pick on someone more his size, but it says a lot about both of their characters. Habs won 4-3. AP

Last night in Boston, it happened when Prust dropped the gloves to take on beast Milan Lucic and literally got punched out took one for the team.

The Habs were trailing 3-2 at that point and with the Bruins a strong third period team, it didn't look good.

But his teammates took notice, and responded in the best way possible by going out and winning that third period.

They also took notice when Alexei Emelin, steel plate in cheek, took on monster Zdeno Chara -- who received a fighting major and 10 minute misconduct going into the third. Bit of a mistake by the big Z but it paid off for the Habs.

So this year's edition of the Montreal Canadiens doesn't seem to wilt like they have in the past when faced with adversity.

Character.

It can go a long way on a hockey team.

Good teams seem to win games and collect points even when they don't have their best stuff. This weekend was a perfect example of that for the Canadiens. After Saturday night's surreal 7-6 OT loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins in Montreal, which saw a see-saw battle of giveaways, odd man rushes and somewhat sketchy goaltending, the Canadiens marched in to Boston's barn to begin a five game roadtrip. And they didn't exactly play a perfect game, but they did what they had to do to win, coming back in the third with two unanswered goals for the 4-3 victory.

Coach Therrien went with his gut, sent his team a message, sent his star goaltender a message -- whatever you decide -- by starting backup Peter Budaj in Boston. Twitter was ablaze, per the norm, questioning his judgment. Why start a backup who hasn't played in Boston since 2007 when the top spot in the conference is up for grabs? Doesn't make any sense...

But it does. Therrien is showing consistency in his message and that no player is immune from the team concept this season. You play well, you play. You don't perform to expectations, you sit. And it applies to Carey Price, just like it does to Lars Eller or Ryan White. Doesn't matter what nametag is on the back; what matters is that "CH" on the front.

I'm sure Price didn't like the call, but could respect it. He knows he didn't have a good game against the Pens. He knows he was shaky. He knows he has to be better -- as his team has to be better in front of him. And Price will be better. But in the meantime by starting Budaj, Therrien sent a message to the entire team and not just a single player.

And it worked. Budaj was solid and made a terrific save in the dying moments of the game to seal the deal.

So the Canadiens returned the favour to the Bruins in beating them on their home ice and coming back in the third to win. The Habs have to be happy with 3 of a possible 4 points when they didn't have their best stuff.

Things tend to even out; after all, the Habs had their best stuff in Ottawa last week and only got one point out of it.

Now it's on to Long Island to face the Islanders. Let's hope the Habs return the favour to the Isles from last week...

Bishop Burns Habs

Ben Bishop stops 44 shots to steal win for Sens against Habs in shootout

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Craig Anderson? Who's that guy? Oh yeah, starting goalie for the Ottawa Senators. You know, best goalie so far in the league this season; went down with an ankle sprain last week. Yeah yeah.


Hey, he played a heck of a game, that Ben Bishop goalie person. AP

Ben Bishop? Who is that guy? Isn't he the Canadian candidate for the papacy?

Not even close.

Unfortunately for the Habs, they probably wished they faced Craig Anderson in Ottawa Monday night, and that the 6"7 Ben Bishop was the papal candidate, because he was the difference maker in stealing the two points for the Senators, stopping 44 shots in regulation and OT, then 3 of 4 shooters to win the shootout.

He was very good on this night, and also very lucky. Hey when you're good, you get the luck. The Habs hit five posts in total and Bishop made more than one save with the butt of his goal stick.

As a goalie myself, I love those saves. Not just when they go against the Habs. Sometimes that's just the way it goes.

But the eternal truth is, if the Habs play like this consistently, they're going to win a hell of a lot more games than they are going to lose. The team dictated the play and all four lines really had good chances.

Carey Price looked a bit uneasy from the beginning and unfortunately he whiffed on the Sens' only goal in regulation -- a low slapshot that normally the goalie would have sucked up in his sleep.

After big time saves on Brandon Prust and Tomas Plekanec, Ben Bishop finally let one by when Andrei Markov blasted one from the point on the power play with four seconds remaining in the second period. It was the Habs' 30th shot at that point. Ultimately they won on the shot clock 45-24 but the Sens won the shootout on a goal by Peter Regin.

In the end, it was a pretty entertaining game filled with sharp passing from the Canadiens and good plays. But the Sens' backstop was the better player on this night. And so was the butt of his stick. Nobody on the Habs tried to put it top shelf on the big goalie in the shootout -- they might want to practice that because a guy like that covers a lot of net along the ice.

Nevertheless the Habs still technically hold the top spot in the East with the point but the Bruins still have games in hand. Wednesday night they roll into LeafLand to face the Leafs and hopefully looking for revenge from that 6-0 drubbing of a few weeks ago.

Follow-moi sur le twitter: #habsfanleafland

Backup Budaj Earns Shutout for Fourth Straight Win

Canadiens outlast Hurricanes scoring three in third to win 3-0 in Montreal
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Captain Kirk was in Montreal Monday night.

Captain Kirk Muller that is -- Head Coach of the Carolina Hurricanes.

Peter Budaj earns his first shutout as a Canadien and picked up his second win in a row as the Habs beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-0 in Montreal. AP

I like him. I always have. But I don't care much for his team. And goaltender Cam Ward, I'd take him on my team any day. But he always seems to burn the Habs.

Fortunately, not on this night.

On this night, it was Peter Budaj who had the last laugh, netting the shutout as the Habs outlasted the Hurricanes 3-0 for their fourth straight win.

Enjoy it tonight but tomorrow is another day -- they play the Rangers tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden.

With Brendan Gallagher recovering from the concussion he suffered against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night, Ryan White got his chance to re-enter the lineup and prove himself to his coach and team that he is and can be the player they want: someone who brings energy, emotion and momentum to his team from the fourth line. And on this night, he didn't disappoint.

And though he didn't score, rookie sensation Alex Galchenyuk once again proved the difference-maker, stickhandling into Carolina's zone, drawing the defense towards him and somehow managing to get the puck to Brandon Prust who potted his first goal as a Canadien. And it was the game winner on this night, earning the rough and tumble Prust the second star.

But tonight was Budaj's night. Not that he had to stand on his head or anything. But he was there when the Canadiens needed him and that's all a team can ask from their goaltender. He earned the first star and I'm happy for the guy. A lot of fans don't have a lot of confidence in him but as a goalie I know, it's a tough gig coming in when you haven't been playing. He did what he had to do helping his team pick up four big points during Price's bout with the flu. And this will go a long way with his teammates later in the season when he has to take the crease again.

But now what does Therrien do? Go with the hot hand? Err, probably not. If Price is cleared, he'll play on Broadway Tuesday night.

This wasn't a classic hockey game and was reminiscent of the game in Florida last week until Prust scored early in the third. Then Tomas Plekanec took a hard shot which hit high off of Cam Ward's shoulder and bounced in, and the Canadiens were on their way. We could barely get our tweets off about that one when Max Pacioretty finally broke his goose egg by putting a ground ball on net that somehow hopped over Cam Ward's glove hand.

Ward must not have played infield in baseball. Ugly, but I can imagine he was still stinging from Plekanec's shot which caught him up high. Game over.

At least the Habs are improving where they have to. On this night they bested the Hurricanes in the faceoff circle, winning 54% of the draws.

They're not doing it the fancy way either. Nothing wrong with that. Coach Therrien has the squad playing a strong, patient two-way TEAM game where everyone is doing what they need to do to succeed. And they're racking up the wins. Four in a row now. Let's see what they can do against the Rangers Tuesday night.

RUT OR RUST?

GAME NUMERO 1: LEAFS SPOIL HABS HOME OPENER

It's a funny thing:

The Canadiens kicking the season off against the Leafs usually results in a loss -- last year they went down 2-0.

The Canadiens ending the season against the Leafs usually results in a win -- last year they won 4-1.

And so far this year is no different even with a condensed schedule; the Habs lost the home opener and will finish the season here in Toronto, probably with a win. Hopefully it means something.

It is universally accepted that the Habs' pregame ceremonies are the best in the business and last night was true to form.

Unfortunately for the Habs the results on the ice weren't that different either, putting in a lacklustre performance and falling to the Leafs 2-1. At least this time around they scored, though it took just over 54 minutes to get one.

Luckily for me, I had a previous engagement and didn't end up wasting my time watching the game. But I did check in from time to time over Twitter, and when I read Arpon Basu's tweet that the Canadiens' best line was the White - Armstrong - Prust line, you know it's going to be a long night.

And so the season begins with a dud. As my friend said: "It's an embarrassment to lose at home to the Leafs to begin the season." Hard to argue with that. The team's troubles at home continue and hopefully this isn't a carry-over from last year. There were some highlights though:

1) After being out of position on the first Toronto goal, Carey Price played a strong game and gave his team a chance to win;
2) Brian Gionta ended his scoring drought and so avoided the "Gomez treatment" of websites counting down the anniversary of his last goal (December 2011);
3) Brandon Prust dropped the gloves, showed grit and won his fight;
4) Alex Galchenyuk didn't impact the scoring sheet, but he didn't look out of place either.

Unfortunately though, the Habs put themselves behind the eight ball right from the get go by taking senseless penalties, with the game winning goal coming on a bit of an odd one: Plekanec got two minutes after giving goalie Ben Scrivens a snow job. While I don't agree with the call, Plekanec should know better than to put himself in that situation.

And the Canadiens' powerplay looked powerless even if their only goal was scored with the man advantage. This team continues to have trouble scoring goals.

And then of course the chants rang out for P.K. Subban. But let's be clear about something: last year's powerplay was pathetic, and P.K. was there the entire time. He is just one part of a larger cog, and is not the saviour of this team. Haven't we learned that it's a major mistake to base a team strategy around one puck-carrying dman!? Btw Andrei Markov got clocked from behind but is okay. He ended up playing 24 minutes.

Losses early in the season will play to Subban's advantage for his contract negotiations.

Whatever happens, happens. But let's hope it happens soon.

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VANCOUVER: It was a rough night for many home teams around the league. But what about the Canucks? Couldn't have gone any worse for their goaltending situation. Schneider gave up five goals only to be replaced by Luongo, who's now starting their next game. Nice. Personally I think that team missed their chance and are trending downwards anyways, no matter who's in nets.

FLORIDA: Jonathan Huberdeau lived up to the hype and had an immediate impact helping the Panthers win last night. But lookee here, l'Artiste Alex Kovalev turned back the clock scoring once and assisting on two others. He even tried to get out of the way took a hit to make a play on Huberdeau's goal. He's now tied for the league lead in points!!! And Florida is in Montreal to play the Habs on Tuesday. Canna wait!

DALLAS: Jaromir Jagr also had a big night with two goals and an assist. What's with these old guys eh? Maybe it makes sense that these guys can benefit the most with the majority of players still in preseason mode. Let's be honest. Yesterday's games will not be labelled and shelved as classic NHL hockey, as predicted. The game will eventually catch up to them for sure. But for now, it's fun to watch guys like Jagr and Kovalev contribute.

Maybe Dominic Hasek really should make a come back?

@HabsFanLeafLand