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Hockey Hainsight
The Habs were in Chicago yesterday for the third game of their seven-game road trip and they pulled off a great 5-2 win. The Hawks were up 2-0 early in the second frame when the Canadiens woke up to score five unanswered goals.
It was the fourth line which got Montreal on the board when Stephens deflected Mike Matheson’s shot to score his first goal in a Canadiens’ jersey and from then on, the Sainte-Flanelle took charge of the game. Around 10 minutes later, Josh Anderson scored his fourth goal in as many games to tie things up at 2-2 before Juraj Slafkovsky gave Montreal a 3-2 lead it would never surrender with his fourth goal of the season.
For once, the Habs looked comfortable playing with the lead in the final frame and they added a pair of goals through Nick Suzuki and David Savard in an empty net to sign a 5-2 win over Connor Bedard and co.
A few players stood out for me in the game, Juraj Slafkovsky keeps on showing us improved part of his game, lately he’s been very solid when it comes to battling by the boards, but last night he also showed he can use his big frame to win battles in front of the net. That’s how he scored his fourth of the season, tying his total from last season. The young Slovak also recorded and assist on Suzuki’s goal which gave him 12 points on the season, two more than he had in the 39 games his rookie season lasted. Since he’s been promoted to the first line, he plays with a lot of confidence and looks like he belongs there and is aware of that fact.
It took a good long while for Josh Anderson to find the back of the net this season and he could only do it in an empty net at first, but after receiving a great ovation from the Canadiens’ fans, the power forward has looked relieved, and he’s been flying on the ice. He’s found his scoring touch back and the line he forms with Sean Monahan and Jake Evans has played very well, forcing other teams to take notice of the second line and easing some of the pressure faced by the top line night after night.
As for defenseman Jayden Struble he didn’t get on the scoresheet, but he showed he was a real team player, making a goal line save while Cayden Primeau was down on the ice after making the first save and standing up to the Hawks after Reese Johnson crossed-checked captain Nick Suzuki in the helmet. Better yet, he did it in the right way, laying a clean hit on Johnson and on Mackenzie Entwistle who took exception and invited him to fight. Struble answered the bell, but it still gave the Canadiens a power play since Entwistle was assessed a two-minute roughing penalty on top of his fighting one.
Not everyone had a great night though and Justin Barron struggled mightily and committed a couple of turnovers on top of being partly at fault for one of the Hawks goals. Clearly, the defenseman needs the Christmas break and hopefully it does him some good. Is it a coincidence that this counter-performance comes after he was the victim of a couple of boarding hits in previous games? Maybe it is…
There was a minor scare in the game when Cole Caufield momentarily left for the locker-room, but Martin St-Louis said post-game that the forward had a skate issue. The Canadiens can now enjoy a lengthy Christmas break as their next game will only be on December 28 in Carolina. I truly hope you all have a great Christmas and enjoy the celebrations with family and friends!
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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