Samuel Montembeault attempts to make yet another save - Photo credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/4bb923c5-efb5-499a-920a-ecbf2fe31661.jpeg] Samuel Montembeault attempts to make yet another save - Photo credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images The Montreal Canadiens [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens] started their four-game road trip against the red-hot St. Louis Blues [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/st-louis-blues] on Tuesday night, and the Habs seemed unable to execute early on. Martin St-Louis’ men needed over 12 minutes to get a shot on net finally, and it was a dump in on a penalty kill. By that time, the host had already tested Samuel Montembeault nine times. Exclusive Interview With Jayden Struble On His Game, His Teammates And The Upcoming Lineup Change [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/players/exclusive-interview-with-jayden-struble-on-his-game-his-teammates-and-the-upcoming-lineup-change] Kaiden Guhle Will Travel With The Canadiens [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/kaiden-guhle-will-travel-with-the-canadiens] Rafael Harvey-Pinard’s Injury Impacts Laval [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/latest-news/rafael-harvey-pinards-injury-impacts-laval] NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR STAGE FRIGHT Over the last few games, the Canadiens have made it a habit of falling behind in the first period and being unable to execute, like actors who have forgotten their lines. Against the Colorado Avalanche [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/colorado-avalanche] on Saturday night, they were down 2-0 after 20 minutes, and against the New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders], they gave up the first goal even though they tied the score before the end of the first. Last Thursday, they trailed 2-1 at the start of the third. It’s all well and good to be able to pull out a comeback win now and then, but having to do it every game is far from ideal. Halfway through the first period, St. Louis led 13-1 in shots on goal and had three high-danger chances, while the Canadiens had none, which was understandable since their sole shot on goal was a dump-in on the penalty kill. Part of learning to win for this young team is learning to start on time and not be intimidated by the importance of the game. Should Montreal qualify for the playoffs, every game will be do-or-die, and the Canadiens won’t be able to afford false starts. TIME FOR A REST Before this season, Montembeault had never played more than 41 games in a campaign. Earlier this year, when the team had lost confidence in Cayden Primeau, he played 10 games in a row. He admitted his pads felt heavier after a 5-4 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/columbus-blue-jackets]. Tuesday night, Montembeault was playing his fifth game in a row. Over the last few games, he has not looked as sharp, and that’s perfectly normal. He has seen a lot of rubber this season, and this current situation is different from the one in December. It’s not a matter of just hanging on until a break. The Habs are in the middle of a race for the playoffs, and if/when they make it, it won’t be time to rest. With the team playing so poorly in front of its goaltender on Tuesday night, it would have made sense to pull Montembeault and give him a rest. The Canadiens have three games in four nights starting Thursday. Give the man a break, let Jakub Dobes see some action, and shake off the rust in readiness for the start he will get this week when the Habs have a back-to-back. By the time St. Louis finally put him in on Tuesday night, the damage had been done, and there wasn’t much time left for his regular to rest. Giving Dobest a start over the last few games wouldn’t have been about sending a message to Montembeault, it would have been about resting your top option in the net and making sure he’s as sharp as can be for the 12 games left in the regular season, and, hopefully for at least a round of playoffs hockey. TAILORING YOUR STYLE TO YOUR OPPONENT The Canadiens have been very good of late, placing pucks in deep and getting them back, a kind of dump-and-chase with real purpose. Josh Anderson, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Emil Heineman have been perfect examples of how much you can create that way. St-Louis has praised his players for how well they’ve placed the puck to set the opponent up for punishing hits, but that’s not necessarily a good course of action against a goaltender like Jordan Binnington. The Blues’ netminder might not be one of the best goaltenders in the game in the classical sense of the expression, but his puck handling is brilliant. He may not quite be as good as Martin Brodeur when handling the puck, but he is solid enough to be considered in the game plan. Putting the puck in his vicinity is like turning it over to a third defenseman. Overall, just about everyone struggled all night for the Canadiens on Tuesday. Alexandre Carrier and Mike Matheson were minus-four, while Joel Armia and Jake Evans were minus-three. Those are not normal numbers. Montembeault gave five goals on 32 shots for a .844 save percentage, and Patrik Laine just couldn’t get his shot off properly, not even on the power play. In short, the Blues played an aggressive game and just wanted it more as evidenced by this 6-1 win. This is one to forget for the Habs, who will need to shake it off and move on to their next challenge, a duel with the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night. Thankfully, Montreal’s opponents in the playoffs race could not make any ground tonight, the Buffalo Sabres [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/buffalo-sabres] even beat the Ottawa Senators [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators] in regulation, while the Los Angeles Kings [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/los-angeles-kings] did the same to the New York Rangers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-rangers], but the Canadiens would do well to start winning again if they want to remain in control of their fate. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Canadiens stories, analysis, breaking news, and more! 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