Montreal Canadiens

Habs host the Red Wings as they inch closer to the playoffs
March 21, 2017, 1:11 PM ET [164 Comments]
Jennifer B Cutler
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When Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin decided to part ways with head coach Michel Therrien and hire the newly available Claude Julien, it took time for the team to find their bearings under their new coach. There was no immediate jolt of energy. The players did not regain their their confidence overnight save for goaltender Carey Price. Some may have felt disheartened that Julien alone could not turn around the Canadiens overnight.

Instead, Julien 2.0 took his time to get his feet wet with the Canadiens. He observed. He became more familiar with his new players and coaching staff. Slowly but surely he made tweaks, slight adjustments that did not go outside anyone’s comfort zone. Julien worked on the Canadiens transition game, opening up new options to clear the defensive zone. He made personnel adjustments on the penalty kill and changed the strategy so that the players were not passive and waiting for the play to develop. Those moves paid immediate dividends as the penalty kill has drastically improved. The addition of Jordie Benn to the blue line certainly helped in that regard as well.

The Canadiens confidence returned as they rediscovered their game. Sure they had to come from behind or numerous occasions to win games. However, that trait is a positive as the team now believes that they are capable of winning close games. That they should never go up or get discouraged. A game can change in a matter of seconds and that newfound belief in themselves is only going to make the team better as they inch closer to the playoffs.

The make the playoffs and succeed in them one must consider it a marathon, not a race. The Boston Bruins and New York Islanders got off to such a hot start under their new respective coaches Bruce Cassidy and Doug Weight. However, they have both come back from reality as the Bruins have lost two in a row and are just one point ahead of the Toronto Maple Leafs for third place in the Atlantic division while the Islanders are on the outside looking in as they are three point behind the Leafs for the final wild card spot. Meanwhile, the Canadiens are now 8-2 in their last ten games and have a tighter grip on first place in the Atlantic with their weekend sweep of the Ottawa Senators.

While the Canadiens are trending in the right direction, it is actually a positive that they have not yet peaked as there are still areas for improvement. The Canadiens power play continues to be a disaster. The four forward unit has to come to an end. Now that Brendan Gallagher's play has improved and become consistent, perhaps it is time to rotate him back into the units. Nathan Beaulieu also deserves more time with the man advantage. The Canadiens top line of Max Pacioretty, Alex Galchenyuk and Alexander Radulov have still not found their groove but it is really on a matter of time. Julien can afford to be patient as the team's secondary scoring has come alive. Once these two areas improve the Canadiens will truly be ready for a playoff run.

Tonight the Canadiens host the Detroit Red Wings who are all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs with just 67 points this season. It has been a disappointing season for the Red Wings and surely not the way that they wanted to close up the historic Joe Louis Arena. They have especially struggled as of late with a record of 3-6-1 in their last ten games. They are coming off a 2-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres Monday night and the Canadiens will need to stay focused and take advantage of their opponents tired legs.

There will be a couple of lineup changes for the Canadiens as Al Montoya will get the start in goal and Steve Ott will draw back in for Michael McCarron. McCarron had a strong game against the Senators but this is likely about Julien giving Ott the opportunity to play against his former team and less about McCarron’s game. Dwight King played better against the Senators over the weekend but fans would still like to see more from him as he has been perhaps the only real disappointing trade deadline acquisition thus far. Otherwise the lines and defense pairings will remain the same:

Pacioretty-Galchenyuk-Radulov
Byron-Plekanec-Gallagher
Lehkonen-Danault-Shaw
King-Ott-Mitchell

Markov-Weber
Emelin-Petry
Beaulieu-Benn

Montoya

There has been talk of the need to resign Andrei Markov as he will become an unrestricted free agent July 1st. While he is certainly deserving of a new contract, one will likely not be signed until after the Las Vegas expansion draft. If Bergevin were to resign him now the Canadiens would be at serious risk of losing him. By keeping him unsigned the Markov will be exposed at the draft but it would be too risky for the Golden Knights to take him as there is no guarantee that he would sign with him. As well, leaving Markov exposed will allow Bergevin to protect Shea Weber, Jeff Petry and one of Jordie Benn and Nathan Beaulieu. There is little doubt that Markov will be a Canadiens player for life. His next contract will come, it will just take a little extra time.