All Habs, All The Time, Game 8
Posted 10:38 PM ET | Comments 1
Greetings!
Habs vs Rangers
Before I start I need to rant a little.
WTF is up with CBC/Sportsnet with only playing Leaf games on Hockey Night in Canada?!? Seriously, if I wanted to watch a mind numbing show I would turn on the Kardashians and slowly wait for my brain cells to die. It would hurt less...
Now on to the Habs.
You would have to go back 50 years to find a start this good for the Habs! 7 of 8 to start the year is something we've all grown used to other teams doing, particularly out west. Yet here we are with a four game winning streak and heading out west for a road swing of three games in four nights. Now on to the game.
Are there two teams better equipped to play each other right now? The blue shirts are so akin to the Habs it's mind boggling. They are top heavy on the defensive end, with an impact player up front in Nash. They are deep in fast skating bodies, and all-world goalies who continually steal the show. Where you'll find the major difference between them is that the blue shirts lost their 4th line bodies to free agency and didn't adequately replace them. Meanwhile the Habs have one of, if not the best faceoff man in the game and guys like Prust and Moen who are crashing and banging with abandon. Make no mistake, the Rangers did get a little weaker over the off-season and the Habs got bigger, stronger and faster. You need to be able to roll four lines. These Habs can.
I found that the game went by quicker than any so far this season. With only a few penalties called there was a flow to the game I haven't seen in a long time. The penalty kill is finding its stride with another solid effort, to go along with one of the prettiest 2 on 0 short-handed goals you'll ever see. I've honestly never seen a 2 on 0 short-handed break before... talk about a thing of beauty!
Here are the players I would like to single out tonight;
Carey Price - Holy crap! The 32/33 stops and many of them were impressive to say the least. The team bailed him out in the first few games, and he's repaid them by winning all the close ones.
Dale Weise - He played like a man possessed. This is the Weise we all fell in love with during last spring's magical run. If he plays like this, he's indispensable.
Lars Eller - I had hoped he would start the year like he played in the playoffs, but the hockey gods don't listen to little old me. Getting that first goal out of the way hopefully fills him with offensive confidence going forward.
P.A. Parenteau - Wasn't his best game. He needs to use that big frame to chase down those loose pucks along the boards. He lacked hustle. Let's chalk this one up to an off game. It happens.
Great news for the team, they're currently ranked #1 in faceoff winning percentage, and as I write this they are 2nd in the NHL in 5 on 5 goals for. Raise your hand if you thought that was even a possibility. It's a long season but this really is a great step in the right direction.
One last point, I would like to say congrats to the coach, Michel Therrien on his 600th game. I don't always understand or agree with his methods, but make no mistake, he's changed the way these Habs play. In just a few short years he took the worst team in the east to a team that can compete for the division. Everything after that is icing on the cake.
Final Score 3-1 Habs win!
As always, feel free to comment below,
Thanks for reading,
Cheers!
Jonathan
Habs vs Rangers
Before I start I need to rant a little.
WTF is up with CBC/Sportsnet with only playing Leaf games on Hockey Night in Canada?!? Seriously, if I wanted to watch a mind numbing show I would turn on the Kardashians and slowly wait for my brain cells to die. It would hurt less...
Now on to the Habs.
You would have to go back 50 years to find a start this good for the Habs! 7 of 8 to start the year is something we've all grown used to other teams doing, particularly out west. Yet here we are with a four game winning streak and heading out west for a road swing of three games in four nights. Now on to the game.
Are there two teams better equipped to play each other right now? The blue shirts are so akin to the Habs it's mind boggling. They are top heavy on the defensive end, with an impact player up front in Nash. They are deep in fast skating bodies, and all-world goalies who continually steal the show. Where you'll find the major difference between them is that the blue shirts lost their 4th line bodies to free agency and didn't adequately replace them. Meanwhile the Habs have one of, if not the best faceoff man in the game and guys like Prust and Moen who are crashing and banging with abandon. Make no mistake, the Rangers did get a little weaker over the off-season and the Habs got bigger, stronger and faster. You need to be able to roll four lines. These Habs can.
I found that the game went by quicker than any so far this season. With only a few penalties called there was a flow to the game I haven't seen in a long time. The penalty kill is finding its stride with another solid effort, to go along with one of the prettiest 2 on 0 short-handed goals you'll ever see. I've honestly never seen a 2 on 0 short-handed break before... talk about a thing of beauty!
Here are the players I would like to single out tonight;
Carey Price - Holy crap! The 32/33 stops and many of them were impressive to say the least. The team bailed him out in the first few games, and he's repaid them by winning all the close ones.
Dale Weise - He played like a man possessed. This is the Weise we all fell in love with during last spring's magical run. If he plays like this, he's indispensable.
Lars Eller - I had hoped he would start the year like he played in the playoffs, but the hockey gods don't listen to little old me. Getting that first goal out of the way hopefully fills him with offensive confidence going forward.
P.A. Parenteau - Wasn't his best game. He needs to use that big frame to chase down those loose pucks along the boards. He lacked hustle. Let's chalk this one up to an off game. It happens.
Great news for the team, they're currently ranked #1 in faceoff winning percentage, and as I write this they are 2nd in the NHL in 5 on 5 goals for. Raise your hand if you thought that was even a possibility. It's a long season but this really is a great step in the right direction.
One last point, I would like to say congrats to the coach, Michel Therrien on his 600th game. I don't always understand or agree with his methods, but make no mistake, he's changed the way these Habs play. In just a few short years he took the worst team in the east to a team that can compete for the division. Everything after that is icing on the cake.
Final Score 3-1 Habs win!
As always, feel free to comment below,
Thanks for reading,
Cheers!
Jonathan
October 26, 2014 10:42 AM ET
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