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Still Hasn't Found What he's Looking for |
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The Habs have got 11 games left to play. 11 games to save their season and their playoffs hopes. When the season started, no-one expected the Canadiens to make the playoffs but as the months flew by and the wins kept on coming, people started to believe again and hope they'd see some playoffs action at the Bell Centre this Spring. But then came an awful month of February which turned into a frustrating and at times humiliating month of March and the Habs now find themselves on the outside looking in. Meanwhile, the offense has dried up and Claude Julien is looking for solutions...sometimes in surprising places.
Today at the morning skate, the lines were as follows:
Tatar - Danault - Gallagher
Lehkonen - Domi - Shaw
Drouin - Kotkaniemi - Armia
Byron - Thompson - Weal
spares: Weise, Hudon, Peca, Deslauriers
Tatar, Danault and Gallagher have been pretty much a fixture this season and probably the most consistant lines. On that second line though, we've got the Lehkonen who's struggled to produce offensively all year long paired with Domi and Shaw who have clicked at times. Right now though, like the rest of the team, they're not putting much on the board or in the net. Could Lehkonen really be the answer? I think that's highly doubtful. Then, on the third line, we've got Drouin who's been really quiet lately alongside Kotkaniemi and Armia...They've been together for a few games and there really isn't much happening. Yes Drouin is a liability defensively but right now he is on your team, you cannot afford to put him on the third line and hope for the best, you need to stick with him in an offensive role. As for the 4th line, I have no idea why on earth Byron should be on the 4th line and as for Thompson and Weal, their arrival has had little impact. As time is running out, this is the line-up I would try:
Drouin-Domi-Gallagher
Tatar - Kotkaniemi - Shaw
Byron - Danault - Armia
Deslauriers - Weal - Weise
Can't score? Why not put your best players together? To thin an attack you say? What have they got to lose? It's not working right now, perhaps Gally and Domi could light a fire under Drouin? I don't think we've seen KK with Tatar yet and Shaw can score as well. Kotkaniemi has spent most of his season trying to make Lehkonen and Armia score which is much easier said than done. Give him those two wingers and see what happens. In that configuration, Danault centres the 3rd line which would be the best role for him really. Teaming him up with Byron and Armia will give him speed on one side and ability to hold the puck on the other. Surely that wouldn't be a bad idea. As for the 4th line well, seeing the Isles' 4th line yesterday and all the hits they dish out made me think of Deslauriers. The man is a hard worker and deserves to be back in the line-up.
Tomorrow, the Habs will welcome Chicago in town and you can bet that Shaw will want to make an impact. He called out his teammates last night after the loss and did it again on Friday, he's got to be a leader and he'll surely have put some money on the board to beat his former team.
It will be a special night at the Bell Centre tomorrow, it's a "Soirée Québécoise" themed evening. What does that entail? I'm not actually sure but I did like the Habs version of the Watatatow credits, took me all the way back to a much simpler time:
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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