Joel Armia and Alex Newhook were creating scoring chances during the weekend's doubleheader at the Bell Centre.
This weekend's doubleheader at the Bell Centre accentuated the Montreal Canadiens lack of depth in producing offence.
On Saturday, Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky scored against the Dallas Stars and the following day, Suzuki and Joel Armia found the back of the net against the St. Louis Blues.
The first line of Suzuki, Slafkovsky and Cole Caufield have totaled 10 of the team's last 15 goals in five games. The offence being generated by one line simplifies the opposition's job to defend.
Excluding the three players previously mentioned, the duo of Alex Newhook and Armia had the best offensive opportunities over the weekend. Their trio was completed by Rafael Harvey-Pinard on Saturday and Joshua Roy on Sunday.
Alex Newhook Audition
Alex Newhook returned to action on Saturday after missing 27 games with a high ankle sprain that occurred on November 30th against the Florida Panthers.
When he was acquired during the offseason, the Canadiens did not know yet if Newhook would be a better fit playing down the middle or on the wing. With Sean Monahan traded to the Winnipeg Jets, and Christian Dvorak sidelined with injuries, Martin St. Louis had no choice but to slot him at centre.
Newhook finished the weekend off the scoresheet, six shots on goal, plus-1, and 50-percent on the faceoffs, averaging 17:26 of ice time. He also replaced Monahan's position of the playing the bumper on the power play.
"I'm really impressed the way he integrated this weekend after missing so much time. He had a lot of jump, he had good touches and it's not easy missing all that time and to come back and integrate that way. It's a good sign," said St. Louis evaluating Newhook's return.
"He's really good. He's fast and really smart. Anywhere you are on the ice, he will find a way to get open or if he has the puck, he will be a good play with it," Roy added. It was the first time that the 20-year-old played with Newhook.
For the Newfoundland native, the final 30 games of this season will serve as an audition for a fit on this roster in the future. At the conclusion of the season, management will ideally have a better idea if he will better serve the team as a centre or on the wing and if he can consistently remain in a top-six role.
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Armia Improved Consistency
When the Canadiens trailed by one goal late in Saturday's contest, Armia was one of the six players thrown over the board in hopes of getting the tying goal. The forward's consistency has been questioned during his tenure with the organization, but he's currently on a good stretch.
St. Louis is rewarding Armia with ample ice time to acknowledge his work effort. In the two contests, he took seven shots on goal and averaged 16:45 of ice time. Armia has at least two shots on goal in the last 10 games.
On Sunday, the six-foot three-inch forward was in front of the blue paint when David Savard's shot hit his knee before crossing the red line.
Roy's Opportunity
Joshua Roy was getting ready in Laval Rocket's dressing room on Saturday afternoon at the Coca-Cola Coliseum to face the Toronto Marlies. Minutes before the 4:00 pm. puck drop, Jean-Francois Houle advised him that he needed to get out of his gear and head to Montreal for Sunday's game at the Bell Centre.
He immediately got changed, went back to the hotel to pick his gear and made it to the airport to catch a 6:20 pm. flight back to Montreal. Upon arrival, he picked up his car and headed to the hotel and got a good night of sleep.
The door was opened on his recall when Harvey-Pinard suffered a lower body injury following a collision with Armia on Saturday. With the team struggling to scoring goals, Roy became a good option for the recall from Laval.
"I think it went well. I was feeling more confident and with Newhook and Armia it went really well. We had a good first shift and it continued for the rest of the match," he evaluated his game. Roy finished the afternoon with one shot on goal in 12:00 of ice time and was inserted in the second unit of the power play.
"As the game went on, he was improving. He had good touches. The first period was his less good period, but more the game advanced, he was getting more comfortable with the environment as he was when we sent him [to Laval]. I'm happy with his game," said St. Louis.
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