The Montreal Canadiens should have come out firing on all cylinders tonight. After all, GM Kent Hughes put his faith in the group when he decided not to unload his pending UFA, but his players (most of them) only showed up in the later part of the second frame. Thankfully for Martin St-Louis, Jakub Dobes was on his game.

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A Steadying Presence At The Back

No, I’m not talking about a veteran blueliner; I’m talking about a rookie goaltender, and not the Calder Trophy likely nominee (although he was brilliant as well), the one who joined the Canadiens just after Christmas.

In the first frame, the Habs were outplayed, outworked, and outclassed, but the young netminder kept the score at 0-0 even though he faced numerous threatening shots. Watching him play tonight, it’s easy to understand why St-Louis told the media he intends to balance the workload between Dobes and Montembeault until the end of the season even if the Habs are in the playoff race.

A Master Of Deception

It was refreshing to see a member of the Hockey Night in Canada panel sing the praises of a Canadiens player on Saturday night. Jennifer Botterhill was spot-on when she spoke about the many ways Lane Hutson can deceive an opponent.

When it’s not the footwork, it’s the head movements; when it’s neither, it’s the eyes. Hutson can deceive an opponent no matter where he is on the ice. Whether it’s to create a scoring chance or evade some solid forechecking, the blueliner has a complete toolbox and uses every single one.

While his point streak came to a grinding halt, Hutson was the Canadiens’ best player. Full marks to Dustin Wolf as well; he was sharp and fully deserved that 1-0 shutout win. Don’t think I’ve ever seen a Wolf being as quick as a cat, and I know a few Habs players will have nightmares tonight about the Flames’ howling wolf. Move over, Columbus’ cannon; the league has a new annoyance.

Hutson spent 24:40 on the ice Saturday night and 10:21 in the final frame alone. Where are those who believed the rookie would hit a wall before long?

Just One Lineup Change…

Patrik Laine didn’t play tonight. He was a game-time decision with flu-like symptoms and decided not to play. As a result, Michael Pezzetta dressed for the 15th time this season. Of course, St-Louis wasn’t about to parachute him onto the second line. He inserted him alongside Brendan Gallagher and Christian Dvorak, but it also meant that Josh Anderson was promoted to the second line.

Pezzetta only spent 4:57 on the ice, meaning that Owen Beck finally got some more ice time, skating for 11:56 as a winger, with Newhook centering him and Anderson. Beck blocked one shot, landed three hits, and had a takeaway. While Laine would probably be more efficient with a better and more experienced center, Beck’s efficiency went up without Laine.

The Canadiens will now head to Vancouver where they will take on the Canucks on Tuesday night in the first part of a back-to-back. On Wednesday, they’ll be in Seattle for a tilt with the Kraken before heading home for a date with the Florida Panthers and Brad Marchand (who would have thought?) on Saturday.

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