The Coyotes taunted Juraj Slafkovsky and the Habs after yesterday’s game

Last night, after the game between the Coyotes and the Canadiens, Martin St-Louis wasn’t the most satisfied of men. And it’s hard to blame him.

While his group was coming off “the best game under his command” on Monday night, in yesterday’s 3-2 defeat, few players deigned to give a maximum effort in Arizona.

Actually, it’s not complicated: in the coach’s eyes, only three or four guys showed up.

After a promising start to the game, in which the CH dominated the shootout, the guys looked as sleepy as I do in my living room, fighting off sleep.

Did I mention I don’t like 10pm games?

Clearly, the trio of Alex Newhook, Juraj Slafkovsky and Josh Anderson were among the players who needed to give it their all.

It’s not a trio that’s likely to survive when Christian Dvorak returns to action, in any case.

In fact, at five-on-five, this trio is not only no good, it doesn’t create anything. The club doesn’t generate any scoring chances with them on the ice.

Juraj Slafkovsky’s difficult start to the season continues. The first overall pick in the 2022 auction didn’t take a shot on goal yesterday. Nor did Josh Anderson, for that matter.

That’s not how Slaf is going to score his first goal. Neither is Josh Anderson, for that matter.

Slaf obviously wasn’t whipped by playing Logan Cooley, who more and more people see as the best player in the 2022 crop after a year and a half of hindsight.

And even though Cooley (one assist) didn’t dominate the game, the Coyotes took the liberty of taunting the Habs on Twitter (via a popular meme ) by mentioning that the club had missed out on Cooley in the draft.

I realize that a club like Arizona needs to stand out on social media, but…

When your club sucks, you’re playing in a college arena that’s not filled, you’re the laughingstock of the league and you’re living on life support because of Pôpa Bettman‘s efforts, it seems to me there’s still a way to be less arrogant.

I still thought it was a good idea, that said… but that doesn’t stop me from thinking that the time was right. If you’re the Golden Knights, it’s a little easier, let’s say. #Success

But the fact remains that Slaf proved André Tourigny right when he said that the NHL is not a development league. He looked like a guy who could do with a trip to Laval.

Is the CH bringing its youngsters into the NHL too quickly, as Craig Button said?

If he keeps his place in the NHL, we have to think that on Saturday, the state of the Habs’ health (Rafaël Harvey-Pinard’s injury to watch and Christian Dvorak’s potential return) will help Martin St-Louis give Slaf new trio partners.

But hey. Slaf isn’t the only player deserving attention this morning.

What else can I take away from this second game of a three-game road trip, in which the CH looked like a college club? Nothing against university clubs, but yesterday, the CH wasn’t playing like an NHL club…

1. Rafaël Harvey-Pinard was injured yesterday. He tried to return to the game after the initial hit, but was unsuccessful.

On the second shot, the one that ended his match, he seemed to falter. Will the player who hasn’t had a great start to the season have to take a trip to the injury list?

And if so, who will play on the first trio? Joel Armia? Sean Monahan? Alex Newhook? Josh Anderson? Juraj Slafkovsky? Jesse Ylönen? Joshua Roy?

The fact that Christian Dvorak is expected to return to action on Saturday (he’s been healthy for a while, according to Renaud Lavoie) will help the CH look for flexibility at center. Sean Monahan or Alex Newhook could move to the wing, whether it’s for the good of the club… or for the good of the player. #Newhook

Note that if the Habs are going to bring back Dvorak, they’ll have to make room in their 23-man roster. Will a guy make his way to Laval? Will RHP be placed on the injured list?

We’ll have to wait and see.

2. One reason why Martin St-Louis wasn’t the happiest of men? Player indiscipline. Nothing new under the sun, then.

The fact is, even if the CH were 1-in-5, the Coyotes were 1-in-4 and it doesn’t look that bad, you can’t conclude everything just by looking at the score sheet.

The Coyotes’ first goal was scored on a penalty shot. Justin Barron momentarily saved the day, but another penalty shot? That’s three games in a row that the CH has given one away.

Arizona’s second goal was scored just seconds after the end of a penalty. So it’s not a power-play goal, but we agree that…

And the winning goal was scored short-handed.

In fact, when the CH were down a man, they had a hard time getting into the opponent’s zone. When you combine all this with the CH’s unnecessary penalties, you can understand the coach’s dissatisfaction.

3. Still, there were a few players who performed well.

Mike Matheson (who looked better than Monday) and Kaiden Guhle once again ate up big minutes. Nick Suzuki, who scored a big goal (ultimately disallowed), and Sean Monahan also did well. Cole Caufield, who has just one goal in his last six games, looked a little more lost on the ice.

Sean Monahan has once again demonstrated his importance. He can really play in all circumstances.

In fact, he’s scored a goal in his last four games, making it six in ten games. Last year, he also scored six goals, but in 25 games. Good thing he’s here.

4. Jake Allen, playing in his 400th regular-season game, finally lost a game in 60 minutes this season. He did, however, look good over the course of the game, which is interesting.

I wonder if he’ll play tomorrow against the Blues, his old team. I have a feeling he will.

Extension

The Canadiens will enjoy a day off today in St. Louis. We’ll have to wait and see how Rafaël Harvey-Pinard fares.

The CH will play tomorrow night in Saint-Louis. It will be the last game of the trip.

After that, the Canadiens return to the East for a four-game week, three of them at home. The Lightning will be at the Bell Centre on Tuesday before flying to Detroit for Thursday’s game.

The Bruins and Canucks are on the menu for the weekend.