What a long, strange trip it's been. Must feel like a funky eternity for Lars Eller.
The beleaguered Dane has two goals in his last 36 games. He's bounced from center to wing, where he's been forced to accept a role he hasn't found comfort in, and yet, he's managed to keep himself in the lineup despite a rotation of depth forwards available to Michel Therrien.
The Canadiens gutted their way out of a 2-0 hole that should've been 5-0 after a brutal first period that had them out-shot 13-2. They scored three unanswered goals to put the desperate Los Angeles Kings on the ropes. Eller had played a pretty strong game up to that point, and then the wheels came off the bus with his late high-sticking gesture on Drew Doughty.
It was accidental. Eller had completed a fabulous defensive play to keep the pressure off the Canadiens in the waning moments, and then a touch of misfortune sent him reeling.
With just 45 seconds on the clock, Marian Gaborik pushed a puck by a helpless Dustin Tokarski and Eller buried his head in preparation for that shameful skate back to the bench.
There was no time for sulking. Therrien replied by putting Eller back out there for two overtime shifts with Brendan Gallagher, but the pair couldn't muster a chance on goal.
The coach--sensing he could help provide redemption for Eller--threw him into the shootout with the game on the line.
Eller juked from forehand to backhand, slickly pulling it back to beat Jonathan Quick clean. The painful sound of the puck hitting the crossbar is probably still ringing in his ears. He is not found; he might be more lost than ever.
Granted, Tokarski was scored on by Gaborik, Carter and Kopitar on the attempts he faced. But Eller's chance to reply, inevitably beat by himself instead of the goalie, makes his miserable luck an inescapable reality.
As for his Canadiens, they became the fourth of four teams this season to fall to the Kings on the second night of a back-to-back that started in Anaheim. It looked like it was going to be a joke of a game after that first period. Then, out of nowhere, Tom Gilbert took an open lane to the net and scored a beautiful goal. A couple of minutes later, it was tied at two by Brendan Gallagher.
The Canadiens seized momentum and ran with it, and David Desharnais--who was made to look foolish in defensive coverage against Jeff Carter earlier in the game--made an exceptional pass to his favorite receiver, Max Pacioretty, who buried the opportunity that should've sunk the Kings in this one.
Moving on to Arizona, The Canadiens have dropped three straight games for the fourth time this season. All season long, they've managed to keep losing streaks from bleeding to four games. It'll be a challenge to avoid that fate against a Coyotes team that recently beat up on them at the Bell Centre.
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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