Habs Weekly: One Step Closer to Clinching
It wasn’t Montreal’s best week by any stretch but they did manage to creep a little closer to securing the final Wild Card spot in the East. They still have some work to do to clinch but they’re in control of their destiny while getting an intriguing late-season addition up front.
The Week That Was
Apr. 8: Canadiens 4, Red Wings 1 – The score might suggest the Habs were in full control of this one but that was hardly the case. Montreal was thoroughly dominated in the opening frame with Samuel Montembeault playing extremely well to limit the deficit to one. Cole Caufield tied it late in the second while Josh Anderson potted the winner midway through the third before they tacked on a pair of empty-netters to extend the winning streak to six games.
Apr. 11: Senators 5, Canadiens 2 – The recent trend of a sluggish first period finally came back to bite Montreal who allowed a goal on the first shift of the game and they were down by two after the first before allowing another early goal in the second. The Habs bounced back and didn’t roll over but it’s hard to win when you spot a good team a three-goal lead. Christian Dvorak and Nick Suzuki had the goals in the losing effort.
Apr. 12: Maple Leafs 1, Canadiens 0 (OT) – Toronto only had five defencemen for this game but the Habs didn’t do a good job at getting shots through. It wasn’t for a lack of attempts but too many shots missed the net. At the other end, Jakub Dobes had one of his best games of the season, keeping the Maple Leafs at bay long enough to give the Habs at least one point but Mitch Marner scored in the opening minute of overtime to secure the win.
StatPack
Skaters:
| # | Player | GP | G | A | +/- | PIMS | SOG | ATOI |
| 8 | Mike Matheson | 3 | 0 | 1 | -3 | 0 | 6 | 25:04 |
| 11 | Brendan Gallagher | 3 | 1 | 1 | +2 | 4 | 3 | 13:34 |
| 13 | Cole Caufield | 3 | 1 | 1 | -3 | 0 | 10 | 17:23 |
| 14 | Nick Suzuki | 3 | 2 | 1 | -2 | 2 | 6 | 20:37 |
| 15 | Alex Newhook | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 2 | 15:40 |
| 17 | Josh Anderson | 3 | 1 | 1 | +2 | 8 | 3 | 15:46 |
| 20 | Juraj Slafkovsky | 3 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 2 | 4 | 17:05 |
| 21 | Kaiden Guhle | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 5 | 2 | 21:38 |
| 28 | Christian Dvorak | 3 | 1 | 1 | +3 | 0 | 1 | 17:19 |
| 40 | Joel Armia | 3 | 0 | 1 | +1 | 0 | 2 | 13:21 |
| 45 | Alexandre Carrier | 3 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 2 | 2 | 20:16 |
| 47 | Jayden Struble | 3 | 0 | 1 | +2 | 0 | 2 | 12:35 |
| 48 | Lane Hutson | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 0 | 3 | 23:42 |
| 55 | Michael Pezzetta | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 7 | 3 | 5:58 |
| 58 | David Savard | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 2 | 1 | 13:05 |
| 71 | Jake Evans | 3 | 0 | 1 | E | 0 | 1 | 17:43 |
| 91 | Oliver Kapanen | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 2 | 11:06 |
| 92 | Patrik Laine | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 2 | 5 | 12:08 |
Goalies:
| # | Player | Record | GAA | SV% | SO |
| 35 | Samuel Montembeault | 1-1-0 | 2.50 | .928 | 0 |
| 75 | Jakub Dobes | 0-0-1 | 0.99 | .971 | 0 |
Team Leaders:
Goals: Cole Caufield (37)
Assists: Hutson/Suzuki (58)
Points: Nick Suzuki (87)
+/-: Nick Suzuki (+15)
PIMS: Arber Xhekaj (118)
Shots: Cole Caufield (236)
News And Notes
– The Habs signed Ivan Demidov to a three-year, entry-level contract that begins this season. More on that shortly in the Final Thought segment.
– Also signing from the 2024 draft class was winger Tyler Thorpe who got his three-year pact beginning next year. He’s joining Laval for their stretch run.
– David Savard returned after missing a game with his undisclosed injury but Emil Heineman didn’t play. However, it’s believed that he has been cleared to return and was simply scratched at the end of the week.
– Patrik Laine has just three goals and one assist in his last 12 games. His playing time has dipped to under 14 minutes a night on average in that span.
Last Game’s Lines:
Caufield – Suzuki – Slafkovsky
Anderson – Dvorak – Gallagher
Laine – Newhook – Kapanen
Pezzetta – Evans – Armia
Matheson – Carrier
Guhle – Hutson
Struble – Xhekaj
The Week Ahead
Monday vs Chicago – Yes, the Blackhawks are out of the playoff picture and, in theory, have nothing to play for. In reality, they’ve brought up a whole bunch of young players (one will be making his pro and NHL debut in this one) who have nothing to lose and are showcasing themselves for next season. We’ve seen free-wheeling teams with no pressure before do well in these situations or it’s possible that a bunch of inexperienced players could fold under some well-timed pressure from the Habs. This is somewhat of a wild card game, so to speak.
Wednesday vs Carolina – The Canadiens have struggled against Carolina’s pressure this season, even if they’ve split the first two games between the two. But it’s quite possible that the Hurricanes rest as many players as they can to avoid any risk of injury heading into the playoffs as they already have nothing to play for with their positioning locked in. Carolina has their own version of Ivan Demidov (well, sort of) in Alexander Nikishin, a defenceman widely viewed as the best outside the NHL. Like Demidov, he was released by SKA, allowing him to join the Hurricanes for the stretch run and postseason.
Final Thought
It’s hard to imagine in a market like Montreal that an improbable late-season playoff push could suddenly not become the focus. How could something command more attention than that? Of course, we saw that happen as soon as Ivan Demidov signed, an outcome that didn’t seem possible just a week ago.
With Demidov coming to play down the stretch, some are hoping that he could be the key addition that helps lead Montreal to an unlikely playoff upset. Could that happen? Sure, I suppose. But is that a realistic expectation? Hardly.
We’re talking about someone who will be one of the youngest players in the NHL jumping into a lineup without even a single full practice. And, of course, that lineup is on a team he’s never played for in a league he’s never played in. Factor in a bit of jet lag and a possible language barrier with some new tactics and strategies and it’s fair to say Demidov is being thrown in the deep end quite quickly.
In a perfect world, we’d probably be talking about waiting a few more games for him to suit up as a result of all of that. That way, he could at least ease in. But this isn’t a perfect world; the playoffs start next weekend. Getting Demidov acclimated gradually just isn’t on the table. Montreal is doing what they have to here and that’s fine.
But given the context of what he’s going to be battling through, expectations need to be kept in check. If you’re expecting him to come in and be a big difference-maker, they’re probably being set too high. Just because he has the upside to be an impact piece doesn’t mean it’s happening right away.
Frankly, for these first couple of games, my expectations are that he does enough to not give the coaching staff any thoughts of putting someone else in the lineup. Just come in, hold your own in what’s likely to be somewhat limited or sheltered minutes, and get through the games without any glaring miscues. That’s the level of expectations for the back-of-the-lineup players and if he can meet that, that’s a solid start. Anything beyond that is gravy.
It’s definitely an exciting time for the Habs. Getting Demidov into the program is great news for sure. Top prospects like that don’t come around too often. But just because he has an elite ceiling doesn’t mean he’s going to come in and play like that day one. It’s going to take time and patience. Keep that in mind if (or, most likely, when) Demidov doesn’t light it up right away.