For a third game out of seven this season, Jakub Dobes was in net when the Montreal Canadiens hosted the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night at the Bell Centre. After Samuel Montembeault had a tough night at the office against the New York Rangers on Saturday night, it was the backup’s chance to shine and show what he was made of. There’s no denying that with Dobes waiting in the wings, Montembeault actually has competition in net this season, this is not Cayden Primeau who just couldn’t find a way to perform in Montreal.
Montembeault wasn’t the only one who had a tough night on Saturday though, collectively, the Canadiens were less active on the forecheck and it showed. They didn’t execute their game plan as well as they had since the start of the season and it showed. They took a two-goal lead and then fizzled out, St-Louis wasn’t impressed and wanted his team to stick to the plan against the Sabres.
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A Better Collective Game
The message was heard loud and clear by the players and after it took some time for the Canadiens to find their rhythm early on, they did a much better job of applying pressure on the forecheck but also of paying the price to keep plays alive. On the first goal of the game, Alex Carrier didn’t get an assist, but if he didn’t accept to take a hit and battle three Sabres to get the puck to Alex Newhook, Oliver Kapanen wouldn’t have scored (nor would he have without Ivan Demidov’s pass either).
In the first frame alone, the Habs landed 10 hits while the Sabres only managed three, needless to say, Lane Hutson wasn’t chased as much as he was in the game against the Rangers. Unfortunately for the Canadiens though, they still struggle with consistency at times and for a second game in a row, they let the other team take the momentum in the second frame, Buffalo tied the game at 1-1 and had 11 shots to the Canadiens’ four in the middle stanza.
Top Rookie Goal Scorer
Last season, Hutson lead the scoring race for the rookies more of less from start to finish, but he did it with an overabundance of assists, this year, the Canadiens have got a couple of rookies in the mix in Demidov and Kapanen. The former has got six points while the latter has four, but all the Finn’s points are goals. Granted, he’s playing with an elite playmaker in Demidov, but he still has to get the puck in the net.
While he was initially thought to be a candidate for the 13th forward role, the youngster has proven to be pretty much essential to the Habs’ game and it’s not only by putting points on the board, but he also plays a complete game. His dedication at both ends of the ice is the stuff coaches dream of
Finish Needed
Whenever Hutson and Demidov are on the ice together, they look like the Harlem Globe Trotters of hockey and while that’s spectacular, you still need to score goals to win and that’s hard to do if you do not take shots. Speaking about Demidov and Hutson, the coach said:
They understand the rules of the game. Hockey is not an individual sport, there’s individual moments, but to me, you watch any team sport, you’ll see that [the give and go] in soccer, you’ll see that in basketball, you’ll see that in lacrosse, it’s just that, it’s beautiful.-
Later he added:
The more you play in this league the more experience you gain, the better goal scorer you become. That’s what they’re going through right now, they create chances. Of course, they are players who are capable of being pass-first players, they pass the puck instead of shooting, they’ll understand the balance a bit, but it’s hard not to pass the puck when the holes are like that, they created those holes. The only thing that’s missing is the finish, I understand their intention, I’m coaching the intentions rather than the results.-
Demidov finished the second period on the first line alongside Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki, that may be one way to create some offense, playing him on the same line as a bona fide sniper, something he hasn’t had yet. Unlike Hutson and Demidov, they have the experience necessary to know when to shoot. I’m not suggesting that Slafkovsky should lose his spot on the top line (although I did see a few things I didn’t like tonight such as missed tips in the neutral zone, a careless cross-ice pass and a couple of instances of falling over when he can normally stand his ground, but he bounced back nicely in the third, perhaps skipping a turn had something to do with it). Still, I would like to see Demidov play with Caufield, Suzuki, Hutson and Samuel Bolduc on the first power play unit. With the man advantage, Slafkovsky’s physicality is not needed as much as it is in even-strength play.
Two Impressive Performances
It was a very good night for Noah Dobson, what’s fascinating about him is that he seems to know instantly what the game needs from him whether he needs to move his feet or let the puck do the work for him, he’s got an incredibly active stick with a long reach, so far, he’s been everything the Canadiens had hoped he would be. Furthermore he has quite the shot on him, at one stage he launched a slap shot that Alex Lyon touched with his gloves but couldn’t catch because it was so powerful. He’s got a good playmaking instinct, the way he set up the Habs’ second goal was very impressive, all Slafkovsky had to do was stand his ground in front of the net and get the puck on net after that perfect pass. Asked to describe Dobson’s game Hutson said:
I think smooth is a good word. Poise, he’s so strong on his feet, such a good skater, great stick and positionally, he’s always in the right spot.-
Dobes can say mission accomplished tonight as well, he stayed focus all game long, even when he had periods of inactivity and he was always ready when called upon. He’s cut a big scoring chance with his paddle in the first half of the game and when Buffalo was desperately trying to equalize, he was not only solid in his net, but he also oozed confidence. When your goaltender makes a big glove save and holds it up as if to say “fear not guys, I’m there”, it’s just a big confidence booster.
It will be interesting to see who Martin St-Louis decides to put in net on Wednesday night in Calgary in part one of the back-to-back because on Thursday night, the Canadiens are visiting the Edmonton Oilers and their potent offense. Do you ride the hot hand right now? Or do you prefer to have the uber confident Dobes take on McDavid? Interesting dilemma.
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