There’s a good camaraderie in the Montreal Canadiens camp, and it really shows this year. After Thursday night’s win against the Detroit Red Wings, the mood was excellent in the room, and it showed in the players’ comments.
Juraj Slafkovsky stole the show when he was asked about Jakub Dobes’ unorthodox style in the net. “Yeah, he’s young and with a crazy style, I always laugh at him when I see him standing in the net, so that’s my thought”. After being asked if that was all, he quickly added, "Yeah, he’s good; it works somehow."
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It’s hard to argue with the big forward on that one. We’ve been used to seeing the technically sound and in-control Carey Price in the net in Montreal, a man who didn’t have to make spectacular saves too often because of his excellent positioning. Dobes’ style is a stark contrast with his, but the important thing is that it works.
Slafkovsky wasn’t the only one to make the journalist laugh after the win, though. Brendan Gallagher was in the mood for jokes as well, speaking about Zack Bolduc, he said:
I looked up his stats on HockeyDB and saw that he was a 50-goal scorer. Thought to myself that it would probably be a good idea to give him the puck.- Gallagher on newcomer Bolduc
Gallagher was, of course, referring to the forward's two 50-goal seasons with the Quebec Remparts in the QMJHL. As for the man himself, he said he smiled when Gallagher’s comment was reported to him and said the veteran was telling everyone about his 50-goal seasons when the team was in Quebec. While that may seem like a detail, this is just one way to make a new player feel right at home; there’s nothing like good old-fashioned ribbing to make someone feel part of the group.
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