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Kevin Allen: Pittsburgh Penguins good start may mean more than you think |
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The Montreal Canadiens, a Stanley Cup Finalist three months ago, is 0-4. This is Montreal’s worst start in 25 years.
Nick Suzuki wasn’t born yet the last time the Habs were this bad at the start of a season. Habs general manager Marc Bergevin was playing defense for the Detroit Red Wings. The Habs started 0-5 in 1995-96. That was the year of the rat. And we aren’t talking about Ken Linseman.
Scott Mellanby slayed a rat with a hockey stick in the Florida Panthers’ locker room and fans saluted the kill by raining plastic rats onto the ice every time the Panthers scored a playoff goal.
The Panthers went all the way to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Canadiens don’t need a gimmick. They need goals. The Canadiens have been outscored 15-3.
Suzuki, Tyler Toffoli, Cole Caufield, Brendan Gallagher and Jeff Petry don’t have a single point.
Bergevin has said he doesn't plan to shake-up the roster. He wants to let the Canadiens try to play their way out of this poor start.
What it means: This was predictable. Shea Weber’s career is probably over and he was the team’s engine.
The Canadiens lost Phillip Danault to the Los Angeles Kings. Goalie Carey Price is out indefinitely. The Canadiens were a momentum team last post-season and that momentum is gone.
The Buffalo Sabres are 3-0. They have given up four goals in three games.
What it means: Coach Don Granato is doing an effective job of drawing the most out of his players. He’s a first-rate coach. Goalie Craig Anderson is 2-0 with a 1.50 goals-against average and a .954 save percentage. This means the Sabres aren’t quite as bad as we thought. They are going to win more than 10 games. What it doesn’t mean is they are going to be anything close to a playoff team.
The Pittsburgh Penguins are 2-0-2 without Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
What it means: We might have been wrong about the Penguins. It felt like this was the season when their playoff qualification streak ended. Maybe not. The Pens are playing impressively, scoring four goals per game without their stars. Most importantly, goalie Tristan Jarry has stepped up his game. He’s not the leaky goalie we saw in the postseason. He’s playing with a swagger again with his 1.62 goals-against average and .935 save percentage.
Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have combined for 16 points in three games.
What it means: They are going to combine for 1.2 billion points, give or take a goal or two. OK, maybe it doesn’t mean that. But it probably doesn’t mean all that much because the Oilers’ season is still going to come down to their ability to keep the puck out of their net. They needed six goals to beat the Anaheim Ducks. Think about that. Mike Smith injured himself. How do we feel about Mikko Koskinen? All that said, the Oilers are among the Western teams that have a chance to reach the Final.
Florida Panthers are 3-0 and have outscored opponents 14-6.
What it means: Just using the eye test, the Panthers have been the most impressive team in the Eastern Conference. They have most of the components necessary to make a run at the Stanley Cup. And general manager Bill Zito has the craftiness and moxie to trade for what he doesn’t have. This will be an entertaining season for the Panthers.
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