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If you’re a glass half full kind a guy, you’ll say the Canadiens had a 100% shooting rate in the first period last night and led the Flyers 2-1 when they went back to the locker-room, but if you’re the glass half empty type, you’ll say the Canadiens’ somehow led 2-1 after 20 minutes even though they had only taken two shots on goal. Sean Monahan got the Canadiens on the board deflecting a Justin Barron shot behind Flyers’ goaltender Samuel Ersson and David Savard provided the second goal with a strange pinball shot that got past the goaltender. Just like that and through no fault of the Flyers’ netminder, the Habs had an underserved 2-0.
Meanwhile, Canadiens’ goaltender Cayden Primeau faced 10 shots in the first, stopping them all but one. The Flyers tied up the game in the second but were unable to beat Primeau for a third time in regulation or in overtime, but they didn’t miss in the shootout and finally got the two points. Primeau ended his night with a .949 save percentage stopping 37 of the 39 shots he received. Granted, his posts were also busy, stopping 6 shots, but when the shooter hits the post, the goalie isn’t giving them much net to shoot at. Primeau was also stellar in overtime, multiplying the spectacular saves.
It’s fair to say that Primeau is capable of performing well in the NHL, but the question is, can he do it consistently? It’s a question which will be hard to answer until he gets a fair share of the workload and that’s why the threesome in net is detrimental to his development right now. Kent Hughes has confirmed that it’s not his objective to keep the trio on roster until the end of the season, but that it could happen. Plenty of teams have suffered goaltender injuries this season, and yet, the goalie trade market hasn’t seen any action. If Primeau was waived though, there’s now no question that he would be picked-up.
It was another tough outing for Justin Barron yesterday, even though he got an assist on the first goal. Predictable and soft passes are not welcomed in the NHL and will often result in giveaways. Barron was credited with two last night but that seems like a low number to me. Mike Matheson, who can be so useful to this team at times, was also guilty of a couple of giveaways and it definitely wasn’t one of his best games although he did block five shots. Speaking of blocked shots, Kaiden Guhle had ten last night, giving a much-needed hand to his goaltender.
Up front, it was a tough game for the first line who didn’t play as well as we’ve been used to of late. It’s worth noting that Juraj Slafkovsky did manage to dish out four hits on the night, this is one of the parts of his game that has improved so much this season. The Slovak has a big frame, and he has learned to use it. Physicality on the first line has been lacking for so long that it’s a breath of fresh hair to see.
In the overtime period, the Canadiens looked like they did under Dominique Ducharme, withstanding the shots and not attacking. Jake Evans was sent out to win the initial face-off, but he failed in his mission and was unable to get off the ice for such a long time that Montreal was simply in survival mode. Thankfully, the Canadiens won’t have to wait long to make amends as the Sharks will be in town tonight in the second part of the back-to-back. Considering that Samuel Montembeault stayed in Montreal with the goalie coach, he’ll probably be back in net tonight.
In other news, it was announced yesterday that Logan Mailloux would represent the Rocket at the AHL all-star game. After a rough start, the young defenseman has found his game, producing more and committing less turnovers. Arber Xhekaj’s presence has been beneficial to Mailloux and they’ve formed a great pairing in Laval. While Xhekaj is probably looking forward to being called-up, it’s hard to argue that the stay in the AHL hasn’t been beneficial for him as well. He plays a lot of minutes and gets power play time, which he wouldn’t get with the Habs.
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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