Author: Dose

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If the Canadiens wanted to give Joshua Roy an important role, they would

MONTREAL, CANADA - MARCH 12: Joshua Roy #89 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates his goal with the bench during the first period of the NHL regular season game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Bell Centre on March 12, 2024 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Arianne Bergeron/NHLI via Getty Images)

This morning, the Canadiens announced that the Oliver Kapanen experiment is over – for now. The center is off to Sweden, where he will be placed in winning conditions.

Was it the right thing to do? Surely, yes.

After all, he wasn’t getting much playing time and wasn’t producing much. The magic of training camp was no longer present, which tends to prove Antoine Roussel right about the place of youth.

To take his place among the club’s 13 forwards, Lucas Condotta was recalled from Laval. He is now on the road with the other members of the Canadiens for the rest of the season.

Clearly, the organization respects him. He’s the one who’s been recalled and he’s the captain down in Laval.

For the second time this year, he was recalled when the Habs could have called up Joshua Roy or even Alex Barré-Boulet, who started the season with the Canadiens.

Condotta, for the second time, went ahead of Roy.

The first time, the Habs simply needed a guy “in case” Josh Anderson couldn’t play. Calling Roy back to sit in the stands or giving him bad minutes wasn’t worth it. It made sense to put him in front.

But this time?

If the Habs don’t intend to give Condotta big minutes (he could even be the 13th forward if Michael Pezzetta were to play), not calling Roy back was the right thing to do.

That’s the most likely scenario in my eyes.

If Condotta starts playing crazy, it’ll be a (big) message. But in the meantime, I look at it this way: the Habs needed a guy while they waited for Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, who is making progress toward a return to action.

Condotta will probably go back down if RHP comes back and everyone’s healthy.

Let Roy continue to break things down below, and if the Habs feel like calling him back up, he will. But in the meantime, it’ s clear that the club has no desire to make room for him… and that, too, is a message.

After all, giving him big minutes wouldn’t be that hard. It’s not as if the Habs’ top-6 is made up entirely of indispensables.

Overtime

– You still have time to ask us questions: the text isn’t out yet.

– A name to keep in mind?

– Good question.

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Brendan Gallagher is tired of rebuilding

Brendan Gallagher is still under contract for three seasons... and he's untradeable.

The Canadiens don’t have a great hockey team right now. When will that change?

We’re all anxious to see when the players will be able to take the next step. And let’s just say that over the past month, the answer has become increasingly nebulous, hasn’t it?

This obviously frustrates fans, who expect more. But guys who had better years with the Canadiens must also, by necessity, expect more.

And that brings us to Brendan Gallagher.

Gallagher is the little warrior who has seen better days in Montreal. He’s the player who sees the end of his career approaching and tells himself he’d better win soon if he wants to drink champagne in the Stanley Cup one day.

And it shows in his recent comments.

In a recent Arpon Basu piece on team standards, it’s clear that Gally is fed up with the Canadiens losing games they could be winning.

Take yesterday’s game.

The Habs put themselves in a position to win, late in the game, but the Flames rallied and they won in overtime. And that obviously pisses Gally off.

That’s enough (escaping late-game advances).

We have young players, but they’ve been in the league long enough. We have expectations and we’re not going to use age as an excuse. – Brendan Gallagher

That’s saying a lot.

Gallagher, who couldn’t really give much more since the start of the season, talks like a guy who’s tired of rebuilding. He wants tangible results in terms of wins in winnable games.

Would I go so far as to say he wants to be… #InTheMix this season? I think he does. And I think he’s angry that he’s not, right now, given the last few years.

Will his teammates get the message?

Overtime

– Not to be missed.

– Is Jakub Dobes healthy, then?

– The Blue Jays’ solution: the trade market. [MLB Passion]

– Don’t miss it at 8pm tonight.

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Oliver Kapanen leaves for Sweden: Lucas Condotta called up

MONTREAL, QC - SEPTEMBER 23: Look on Montreal Canadiens center Oliver Kapanen (91) during warm-up before the Philadelphia Flyers versus the Montreal Canadiens preseason game on September 23, 2024, at Bell Centre in Montreal, QC (Photo by David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

A surprise.

When Habs started practice today in Brossard, Lucas Condotta was in attendance. This obviously means that the Canadiens have decided to recall him for the club’s trip.

Here he is before the start of practice.

We quickly realized that it’s because Oliver Kapanen is no longer with the Habs that Condotta is in town. The European has been returned to his father’s club in Sweden for the rest of the season.

It was rumoured… and it’s done.

Details to come…

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Christian Dvorak in overtime: Phillip Danault’s ghost is back

Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

Last night, the Canadiens lost. I could also have said that the Habs played on a Tuesday and it would have had the same effect.

Joking aside, after two straight games of getting destroyed on Tuesdays, the Canadiens offered a much more dignified outing last night. Martin St-Louis’ men even took the game into overtime against the Flames.

But in the space of seven seconds, the club conceded its third goal of the game and that was it.

Say what you will about what happened at the faceoff on Nick Suzuki or Christian Dvorak, but the fact remains that the Flames scored in part because Dvorak didn’t win his faceoff cleanly.

That’s why he was there.

Because, yes, Mike Matheson and Nick Suzuki started overtime with Dvorak. Even if he didn’t have an ugly game (by his 2024 standards, at least), he didn’t deserve to be there.

Imagine losing at three-on-three without Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson touching the ice…

Dvorak was there to win his face-off. And although he was good yesterday (73.7% efficiency in the face-off circle), he wasn’t able to win the one that mattered most.

Remember that this week, Marc Bureau came to Brossard to help the centers.

It reminds us of when Claude Julien and Dominique Ducharme sent Phillip Danault to start the 2021 extension. He, too, was there to win the face-off.

And that enraged everyone.

A good overtime team plays to win and sends its best players out on the ice from the opening face-off. They trust them, instead of sending in a “specialist” for a few seconds.

The Canadiens, on the other hand, played and still play, a few years later, not to lose. And yesterday, they lost.

Right-handed as he may be, Nick Suzuki still won more than 60% of his face-offs yesterday. He’s no deuce of spades in this respect, and would have had a chance of winning the face-off, too.

Yesterday, the Habs paid for their blunder in cash , leaving a point on the table. It lost in seven seconds, one second away from making history, since the fastest overtime in history lasted six seconds.

So, for the fourth time in a row, the Canadiens lost.

This is the ninth time the Habs have lost this season. The club isn’t #InTheMix , since winning only four times in thirteen games isn’t exactly enough.

(Credit: NHL.com)

But at least the players’ effort was there (the Habs didn’t throw up on themselves) and the guys didn’t get washed up on a Tuesday night. If there were a column for moral victories, that would be a nice little two points.

So what else am I holding back?

1. Lane Hutson was everywhere on the ice. You could see him flying across the ice, and he was very creative… even if he wasn’t always placed in winning conditions to score.

Joel Armia, Oliver Kapanen, Alex Newhook and Josh Anderson on the second wave with him? At least it wasn’t Mr. Five-on-Three and Mr. Prolongation, i.e. Christian Dvorak.

2. We were talking about Marc Bureau earlier. But what was his impact on yesterday’s game? How much better or worse did the guys do in the face-off circle against the Flames?

Here’s how it looked.

  • Christian Dvorak: 73.7
  • Nick Suzuki: 62.5
  • Jake Evans: 55.6
  • Oliver Kapanen: 20

3. Yesterday, Juraj Slafkovsky took two shots on goal, but he seemed to be in a better position to do so. My colleague Marc-Olivier Cook wanted to see him take a few more shots on goal.

By the way, speaking of colleague Cook, he’s lying here: he doesn’t find it “harmless” at all.

4. We couldn’t wait to see how Samuel Montembeault would react following a couple of difficult outings. And while he wasn’t perfect, it’s clear he was much better last night.

Good for the Habs.

5. The Habs didn’t play badly, but they only took eight shots on goal in the last 40:07 minutes of play. 23 shots against 36, after leading 15-10 after 20 minutes, is not enough.

Something to work on.

6. Brendan Gallagher scored on the powerplay yesterday, and had it not been for an offside he would have scored a second time during the game. That might have helped avoid overtime.

He’s doing well, Gally. He and Jake Evans have been surprises for the past month.

Overtime

The Canadiens will practice at 11 a.m. this morning in Brossard. Then it’s off to New Jersey to convince Johnathan Kovacevic to return.

Tomorrow, the Devils are on the menu. And Saturday night, the Maple Leafs host the Canadiens.

Next week, the club will be in Buffalo on Monday (at 12:30 p.m.) before a game in Minnesota on Thursday evening, at 8 p.m. It’s sure to be a busy week on the road for Martin St-Louis’ men.

Next Saturday? Columbus will be in town. But that’s a long way off.

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Dylan Holloway collapses on the bench after receiving a puck in the neck

Last night, there were 11 games on the bill.

Of course, there was the Canadiens-Flames match. Calgay won in overtime.

Here are the other results and highlights:

1. Bloodcurdling scene: Dylan Holloway rushed to hospital after receiving puck on neck

In 13 games with the Blues this season, Dylan Holloway isn’t hurting. He’s collected four goals for six points.

But yesterday, it wasn’t his prowess that caught the eye. During one sequence, he received a puck in the face.

He continued to play, but when he returned to the bench, he collapsed.

He was immediately rushed to hospital.

A little later, the Blues announced that he was alert and conscious. Good news, then.

A pretty scary scene in St. Louis.

The club defeated the Lightning 3-2.

2. Another 13-game point streak for Nathan MacKinnon at the start of the season

As at the start of every season, Nathan MacKinnon is off to a strong start.

Yesterday, with five assists, he extended his season-to-date point streak to 13 games.

Only he and Wayne Gretzky have multiple seasons of at least 13 games with at least one point to start the year. What a player!

He already has 25 points this season. And in franchise history, he joined Michel Goulet and Peter Forsberg for the most games with four or more points (25).

As for the game, Colorado defeated the Kraken 6-3.

On his return to action, Artturi Lehkonen scored.

3. Macklin Celebrini returns: Sharks win

We’ve been eagerly awaiting this news: Macklin Celebrini returned to action last night.

And his return helped the Sharks win another game. San Jose has won four of its last five games.

Celebrini may not have picked up a point in a 2-1 overtime win, but Vitek Vanecek stopped 49 shots.

It was Alex Wennberg who gave the Sharks victory over his former team.

The California team’s other goal was scored by Jack Thompson.

His first in the big league.

4. Another Jets win

I’m repeating myself, but the Jets seem invincible.

Yesterday, they won 3-0 against Utah. They have now won 12 of their first 13 games of the season.

They are the sixth team in history to achieve this feat.

Connor Hellebuyck was excellent in the win, stopping all 21 shots he faced.

He’s one shutout away from 40 for his career.

As for the scorers, it was Nino Niederreiter who led the charge with two goals. This was his 900th game on the Bettman circuit.

Adam Lowry also had two points (two assists).

5. Bo Forsberg Horvat

The Islanders aren’t off to the hoped-for start to the season, and Patrick Roy must certainly be feeling the pressure.

Yesterday, the Québécois went ballistic after seeing that his challenge didn’t work.

However, his troupe didn’t give up and despite trailing 1-3 in the game, they won in a shootout 4-3.

Thanks to Bo Forsberg Horvat for this sensational goal :

Overtime

– Oops.

– It stirred.

– The Hurricanes and Martin Necas are on fire.

– Top scorers from the previous day.

(Credit: NHL.com )

– Three games on the bill tonight.

(Credit: Google )

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“The Canadiens aren’t going to fire Martin St-Louis. Not right now. Not anytime soon either.”

Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

In Montreal, people love hockey.

Millions of fans follow the activities of the Canadiens de Montréal because they’re passionate.

And when the club is constantly losing, as it has been lately, you can sense that the passion is extreme at times because everyone wants to see the Canadiens succeed.

That said, I invite you to check out what’s being said about Martin St-Louis in the comments on our Facebook or Twitter page.

Many people are fed up and would like to see the Habs head coach fired because of the disappointing and frustrating results so far this season.

But Eric Engels brought them all to order today in an article published on the Sportsnet website.

Want to see Martin St-Louis be the one to take the blame? You’ll be disappointed…

The Habs aren’t going to fire Martin St-Louis. Not right now. Not anytime soon. – Eric Engels

Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton hired Martin St-Louis because they saw in him a coach who could get the team on the right track… in the long term.

It’s a process that can take a long time, because the club is still rebuilding.

But Martin St-Louis is also an inexperienced coach, and that’s why lately we’ve been hearing a number of experts advising the Habs to hire someone who can help them in an advisory capacity who doesn’t necessarily have to be behind the bench every night.

Because across the league, even the teams know that this is a problem with the Canadiens. That’s what Pierre LeBrun said earlier today on the Georges Laraque and Stéphane Gonzalez show (BPM Sports).

And it’s far from ideal:

It’s far from ideal because opposing clubs can adapt their game plan more easily, knowing full well that the Canadiens’ side lacks the experience to do so.

So, what this means indirectly is that facing the Canadiens automatically becomes easier…

It remains to be seen whether Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton will act to provide some help to their head coach, who is not in a great situation at the moment.

It would make sense if the organization wants to move forward with its rebuilding plan.

Overtime

– All this after being benched by Patrick Roy over the weekend…

– Kirill Kaprizov will break the bank, according to Elliotte Friedman.

– Tyler Johnson signs contract with the Bruins.

– A page turns in Oakland.

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Islanders also in search of a defenceman

The Habs are having a lot of trouble at the start of the season, particularly on defense. The hybrid system used by Martin St-Louis is going nowhere, and opponents are having a field day in Habs territory.

Frank Sevaralli reported that Kent Hughes was looking for a right-handed defensive player to solve a few problems.

Since then, there’s been no movement, but today we learn that the Habs aren’t the only team interested in trading for a defenseman.

According to The Fourth Period, the Islanders would like to add a defenseman to their roster.

Adam Pelech is out with a long-term injury, and Mike Reilly and Alexander Romanov are also sidelined, which isn’t helpful.

What’s worth noting is that the Islanders are going to have to get creative with their payroll. They’re not in an advantageous situation on that front.

So there’s competition for Kent Hughes if he wants to get his hands on a defenseman. Acquiring a player at this stage of the season is already complicated, and it won’t get any easier.

In this context, the Habs’ defensemen will have to raise their game. Jayden Struble isn’t delivering the goods after a good training camp, Mike Matheson is making too many mistakes in the defensive zone, and Arber Xhekaj and Justin Barron aren’t consistent enough.

Acquiring a solid right-handed defenseman would be ideal, but the solution may lie in the locker room. It’s up to the Habs players to roll up their sleeves and work harder.

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Juraj Slafkovsky is angry about the NHL’s decision regarding his contact with Noel Acciari

It’s been a long time since blows to the head were welcome in the NHL. They’re dangerous and show a lack of sportsmanship.

When Noel Acciari of the Pittsburgh Penguins hit Juraj Slafkovsky in the head towards the end of Saturday’s game, many expected the NHL to sanction Acciari in some way. Unfortunately, the gesture went unpunished after the game.

In an interview after Monday’s practice, Slafkovsky explained to reporters that he was frustrated with the situation.

Slafkovsky sincerely believes that the league should have revised the sequence, but did not.

The young Habs forward explained that he understands that he put himself in a bad position at the moment of contact, but that players are taught to tackle with the back of the body in the corners to keep it as effective as it is safe.

The good news in this situation is that Slafkovsky did not suffer a concussion on the sequence. He retreated to the dressing room as a precautionary measure and explained that he felt like someone who had been knocked out, but we’re not talking about a serious injury here.

The Habs’ number 20 thinks the situation should have been reviewed by the NHL. He compared the sequence to that of Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who was fined $5,000 a few days ago.

Slafkovsky went on to explain that he has his opinion on the situation, but prefers not to talk about it because it’s “bad.”

The NHL’s Department of Player Safety has been doing a strange job since the start of this season. Arber Xhekaj’s dangerous hit on Tim Stützle at the start of the season is a case in point.

After the sequence, many Canadiens fans admitted that the hit probably merited a fine or suspension. In the end, the NHL did nothing about it!

This gesture is now a thing of the past and Slafkovsky does not seem to have suffered any injury as a result of the contact, but the NHL’s Department of Player Safety should start making better decisions to protect players on the Bettman circuit.

.

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Olympic Games 2026: A 3-on-3 hockey competition?

The next Winter Olympics will be staged in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, in 2026.

And for the first time since 2014, NHL players will be able to take part.

And to set the stage for the Games, fans can look forward to the 4 Nations Tournament next February.

But what’s interesting is that there could be another hockey competition at the Olympics, without necessarily talking about the actual tournament.

Allan Walsh, on Twitter, reported today that the IIHF is working on an application to include a 3-on-3 hockey competition.

The idea is intriguing… and very exciting:

One has to wonder – if the project sees the light of day – what the different nations’ teams will look like.

Will NHL players be able to participate? If so, will the focus be on talent… or speed?

There are some guys who would be perfect for this kind of competition. In Montreal, I’m thinking of Cole Caufield, a player who’s always dangerous when there’s a lot of space on the ice.

We’ve seen him score a lot of overtime goals since the start of his career, after all.

Personally, I’d really like to see a competition like this presented at the Olympic Games.

It’s different from 5-on-5 hockey, and whenever there’s a game that goes to overtime in the NHL (3-on-3), it’s always pretty exciting.

That said, 3-on-3 hockey on the international stage… who wouldn’t love that?

Overtime

– Seen the same way…

– Who will make Team Canadiens?

– Absolutely.

– His return to the game wasn’t long…

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2 shutouts in 5 games for Jake Allen

A very quiet night in the NHL last night.

Only four teams were in action.

Here are the results and highlights:

1. Two shutouts in five games for Jake Allen

Jake Allen seems to be enjoying life in New Jersey.

Yesterday, he was on duty in front of the Devils’ net and blanked the Edmonton Oilers. A 31-save shutout against Leon Draisaitl and Co.

Despite Allen’s fine performances (two shutouts in five games), don’t expect the Canadiens to receive a second-round pick. Remember, if he plays 40 games and New Jersey makes the playoffs, the third-round pick becomes a second-round pick.

But with Jacob Markstrom healthy, the reserve probably won’t play half the games. I hope I’m wrong.

As for the Devils, they were playing in a third consecutive game where the result ended in a shutout (2-1-0 record during that stretch).

In the 3-0 win, Jesper Bratt collected a goal and an assist.

2. Preds’ nightmare season continues

The other game also ended 3-0 in favor of the visitors.

The Kings and Darcy Kuemper blanked the Preds. Kuemper has yet to lose a regular season game.

In the Kings’ win, there was a lot of action.

Two fights broke out in quick succession.

It was Anze Kopitar who scored the winning goal and the first goal of the match.

He found the back of the net from an impossible angle.

The Preds’ disastrous season continues. Nashville is 30th in the NHL with the same record as the Habs (4-7-1).

Extension

– A great save by Allen.

– A beautiful piece of play.

– Scorers from the night before.

(Credit: NHL.com )

– Busiest night in the NHL.

(Credit: Google )

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