The Habs have now lost 4 straight games for the first time this season (0-2-2) and while the offense has been better than many expected, it's clear that the defense at the moment is costing the team valuable points.

Advanced stats show virtually all defenders except Alzner and Juulsen are playing above 50% in Corsi and Fenwick For but the eye test tells a different story. The defense is struggling after a solid start to the season.

The fact that Juulsen is performing poorly in his advanced stats shows the flaw in relying solely on advanced metrics for information as he has played fairly well. He definitely has cost the team goals lately before the puck to the face and landing on IR, but he performed well enough to be relied upon.

Bringing up Kulak for the injured Juulsen was a move that had to happen and his advanced stats are good for his two games so far. But it's too small a sample size and he's been starting a little over 60% of his shifts in the Offensive Zone, we will need at least another couple weeks of games before we can really tell if we have a gamer here.

But the platoon style defense that the Habs have employed is starting to crack mightily. Big wins early have been negated by recent losses and the Habs have fallen from a lofty perch at 8th overall in the NHL not too long ago to 13th overall. While this may not sound too bad, their Eastern Conference Wild Card standing is 8th with a 1 point lead on 9th (NYR) and 2 points on 10th (CAR).

With a record of 3-4-3 over their last 10 games they have left precious points on the table.

The team is incapable of winning in OT so far this season (0 wins, 5 OT losses).

Cracks on D are starting to spread and affect the team. If the forward can't put up a solid night or should Carey Price not be able to stop all the high quality chances this struggling D keeps allowing then the Habs are playing comeback hockey. While the teams resiliency so far this season has been admirable and actually makes you want to watch the entire game no matter the score.

The Canadiens offense has been better than expected despite pundits off base predictions and sit at 15th overall in the league for Goals For, 12th overall for Shots On Goal, and 15th overall in Shooting Percentage. The Habs are actually getting some finish on plays this year and has transformed the team. As good as this has been for us fans this year, there is a huge wart on the Offense and that's the Power Play. Sitting at 28th in PP % with 14.9, the Canadiens can be victimized by dirty/chippy play with the other team knowing the chances of repercussions on the scoreboard could be nil. Not good in the regular season, BUT if they make it to playoffs where the Ref's whistles magically stop working it might work out for the Habs in a weird way.

Yes, I said playoffs...

So while the offense has kept this squad in playoff contention, the defensive stats tell a much different story. Sitting at 3.38 Goals Allowed Per Game the Habs rank 26th in the NHL. They allow 32 shots a game and that is 17th in the NHL. The Penalty Kill ranks 18th in the league so any issues with discipline or terrible officiating (which I'm fairly certain the NHL wants, WWE style) is more than likely to put the Habs down a goal.

The eye test along with stats tell us that the Canadiens sure could use a Shea Weber right now. I'm almost certain that the Canadiens haven't made a move to bring in a defender because they want to see how the back end falls into place after Weber's return (slated to be the next game against Carolina, roughly almost a month ahead of schedule). Should Weber's return provide a spark on defense and let players move into proper roles then Bergevin will remain as patient as he can if the team is putting points up in the standings.

As much as this blog was written to shine a light on some suspect defense it must also be mentioned that this 4 game losing streak has the Habs advanced stats averaging 53.3 CF%, 52.6 FF%, and 94.8 PDO. The Habs actually are outplaying opponents, but their "Puck Luck" could be holding them back a bit. This could make my argument a bit moot, but I think most of us can agree that the eye test tells more than the advanced stats at the moment.

All this said, I think that should the Habs be in the playoff picture within 2 weeks of the Trade Deadline, then they will be spending one of their 2019 2nd round picks on a LD to make a post season push. With 10 picks in the next draft they might even deal a couple picks to make a deal materialize, especially if they are willing to use some of the current $9 million in cap space to take a bad contract back too.

What's great about this team so far is the no quit attitude. This new leadership group, and the addition of character players like Domi and Tatar, have really turned this team around. The Captain quit on the team last season and it showed. I don't think that will ever happen again with Shea Weber named Captain and Gallagher serving as an alternate. This team looks like a team led by Weber and Gallagher with a no quit, no surrender feel. Tatar has brought the smarts he learned in Detroit and trust in a top role has proven well placed. His creativity has helped his line mates immensely as well. Domi looks like the player most thought he was supposed to be when he was drafted and while I'm sure he misses the Arizona weather, the Montreal hockey market is one in which he is thriving.

The offense really isn't much of a worry anymore and with Domi playing #1C well and Kotkaniemi learning well at #3 C the Habs biggest problem is now a thing of the past. Especially when you consider C's Poehling and Suzuki are coming in soon with their elite Collegiate and Junior careers coming to a close this season.

The problem lies solely in the defense and while Brook and Romanov have looked very good in their non professional careers, they are likely a ways off. The Habs will be fighting hard until Weber and Juulsen return and even then they could use a stellar top 4 addition to the D core this deadline.

The Canadiens just have to believe their never say die attitude this year keeps them alive until the D core is healthy and then Bergevin will do his best to bring in support for the second season in April.

Go Habs Go

Join the Discussion: » 172 Comments » Post New Comment

» Acquiring Laine Would Exceptional... But At What Cost?

» Is 29 Year Old Jake Gardiner The Only Option For MTL?

» Big Game Hunting

» Habs Give A Glimpse Of Great Things To Come In Bittersweet Finish

» Habs Ink World Jr Stars Poehling and Primeau to ELC Deals + PLAYOFFS?!?