Author: Dose

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No goals in 17 games: it’s been (really) tough for Brendan Gallagher this year

Lately, there’s been a lot of talk about the Montreal Canadiens.

Of course, there’s the two consecutive thaws the Habs have suffered. Then there are the long absences announced today for Kaiden Guhle and Alex Newhook.

One thing is clear: the Habs need more from every player, and that MUST (above all) come from the veterans.

Among the players with mileage in the Montreal line-up, Brendan Gallagher’s name often comes up in relation to his performances: He’s got to give more.

The feisty 33-year-old forward has not scored a single goal in 17 games this season. He has racked up seven assists so far this season, but the veteran still needs to find the back of the net to help his team.

Clearly, he’s slowed down and it’s questionable whether he can really give more.

Without taking anything away from Gallagher, who has given more than his all to the organization since his arrival, he’s just not able to keep up anymore and it’s painful to watch him go, in the words of Kevin Lefrançois.

The forward made his mark in the NHL by playing with energy and disrupting opponents every time he took to the ice (and scoring goals in the process). We’re not seeing any of that this year.

However, when they say that veterans have to give more, Gally already knows what he had to do in such circumstances. This morning, there was a practice scheduled for 11:30, but he and Jake Evans were on the ice from… 10:00.

Gallagher was mainly working on his technique around the net with the right-handed center.

In short, even if Gallagher isn’t the same player he was in his prime, we know he’ll never stop working, even if his body can’t keep up.

Overtime

– Seems like a small thing, though. Let’s hope he gets better soon.

– Interesting.

– What a shot for the St. Louis Blues rookie.

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Jonathan Drouin is doing really well with the Islanders

The New York Islanders are off to a good start this season, with 20 points (9-6-2) in 17 games.

The team is benefiting in particular from the presence of rookie Matthew Schaefer, who is off to a very good start to his NHL career.

One of the surprises on Long Island is the performance of Jonathan Drouin, who has started the campaign well with his new team.

The Québécois has 13 points, including two goals, in 16 games so far this season with a plus-8 rating. He’s currently on a hot streak with six points in the last three games.

If he continues to produce at this rate, he could beat his personal mark of 56 points with the Avalanche in 2023-24.

This performance could silence some critics who said Drouin was only producing because he was playing with Nathan MacKinnon.

The former Habs forward currently plays on the Islanders’ first line with Mathew Barzal and Simon Holmstrom, and feeds his teammates well with precise, intelligent passes.

Barzal is an excellent hockey player, but he’s no MacKinnon, and Drouin is still racking up points.

What’s more, even though the forward only has two goals, his role is first and foremost that of a playmaker, and he’s been doing just that since the start of the season. His eleven assists place him at the top of his team in this respect.

Coach Patrick Roy has faith in him, and he’s the team’s fourth most-used forward, averaging 17:46 minutes per game. That’s slightly less than in Colorado (18:11 minutes), but a good total for a forward.

Drouin also plays on the Islanders’ first powerplay, averaging 3:58 minutes per game and three assists so far this season.

In short, at 30 years of age, the Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts native could well be enjoying the best season of his career, and general manager Mathieu Darche seems to have had a lucky hand in giving him a two-year deal worth an average of $4 million a year.

Overtime

– A great story!

– His second goal in less than a minute

– Oops…

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Alex Newhook: don’t expect the same player when he returns

Yesterday, the Canadiens were thrashed 7-0 by the Stars, at home no less.

However, aside from the two points at stake, what hurt the Habs the most was the loss of Alex Newhook, who suffered an injury and had to leave the game.

Today, we learned the bad news about Newhook, who suffered a fractured ankle that required surgery earlier in the day. He is expected to miss four months.

The Habs also announced that Kayden Guhle’s recovery from surgery will take longer than expected, and that he will miss another 8 to 10 weeks.

This will be a good test of the Habs’ depth, which will be put to the test in the coming weeks as the team experiences its first rough patch of the season (1-2-2 in its last five games).

Newhook’s injury has come at a very bad time. The forward had been playing good hockey since the start of the season, possibly the best of his career, with 12 points, including 6 goals, in 17 games.

With his speed, he rounded out the team’s second line with Ivan Demidov and Oliver Kapanen.

The problem is, even if Newhook can return for the end of the season and the playoffs, there’s no guarantee he’ll be at the same level when he returns.

The guys at Le Tailgate podcast discussed the question of his (and Guhle’s) return to action, and while Greg Lanctot believes it’s 100% possible to come back from an ankle injury, citing Drew Doughty’s example last year, Ben Roger seems less optimistic.

Let’s not forget that one of Newhook’s main strengths is his skating stroke, and an ankle injury could slow down his speed and explosion on the ice.

What’s more, even if his ankle recovers 100%, it also has the mental effect that such an injury can have on a player, who can lose his rhythm, his confidence and sometimes play in such a way as to avoid injury.

In short, let’s hope Newhook can come back from his injury fully recovered with the same level of play on the ice.

Overtime

– They don’t make the important saves.

– Ready for Sunday.

– The latest predictions.

– A big clash tonight.

– All for all?

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Kent Hughes has lost quite a bit of leverage on the transaction market

Two weeks ago, we were thinking that the Canadiens were doing well.

The club was relatively healthy (Patrik Laine hadn’t had a great start to the season, and Kaiden Guhle wasn’t out with a long-term injury) and in the standings, things were going well.

It was beyond expectations.

But things are changing. The Canadiens are losing a little ground on the heels of four losses in their last five games.

It’s nothing catastrophic , of course, but all the same, the lead is smaller than it was at the beginning of the month. It’s becoming a bit more natural for a club turning the corner on its rebuild.

(Credit: NHL.com)

But for the past 24 hours, the bad news has been piling up. Alex Newhook will miss four months of activity, and Kaiden Guhle will also miss a good two months (at least) longer than expected.

In both cases, it hurts because these are players capable of making a big impact on the ice.

Of necessity, if the Canadiens want to stay in the game, they’ll have to find a way to replace the excellent work of Guhle and Newhook over the long term.

Just yesterday, we thought Guhle would be back soon… and Newhook was healthy. The situation has changed drastically in the last 24 hours.

The result? On the heels of the standings and the guys’ health, it’s clear that Kent Hughes has less leverage in negotiations with his 31 counterparts across the NHL.

It can’t be any other way.

Mind you, no one is saying that Kent Hughes is desperate to make a bad deal. But what we are saying is that executives elsewhere in the league are waiting for him more with a brick and a lantern.

Maybe the time to overpay to make a deal will come sooner rather than later…

If I’m following a team with a center or right-handed defenseman (be it a veteran like Nazem Kadri in Calgary or even a youngster like Tage Thompson in Buffalo), I expect to get a call from 514.

Whether that happens soon remains to be seen.

extension

While waiting for a potential deal from the Habs GM, it’s internally that the club will have to turn to for a bit of reinforcement for what’s to come.

We know that Jared Davidson has already been recalled as the club’s 12th forward. But what if he hasn’t?

How comfortable is the Canadiens with the likes of Joshua Roy, Owen Beck, Florian Xhekaj, Adam Engstrom and David Reinbacher in this world in the event of further injuries? Because yes, there will be others along the way.

Obviously, the Canadiens aren’t going to call Russia to release Alexander Zharovsky from his KHL contract, and they’re not going to ask David Savard to come out of retirement… but if they do, (quite a bit) everything will be on the table.

We’ve never really seen Kent Hughes in a situation like this because, in the past, he sold more than anything else and time didn’t work against him as much. What will the GM pull out of his back pocket?

And how quickly will he want to move?

I’m wondering just how much many opposing teams will want to move before the holidays. It’s a theory that’s been circulating for several months, not least because of the interesting first pick in the upcoming draft.

This could help the work of Kent Hughes, who can hardly move faster than the market. Unless David Kampf is the miracle solution, of course… #Lol

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Injury: Jack Hughes cuts his hand during a team dinner

Hockey injuries are the talk of Montreal today. Earlier today, we learned thatAlex Newhook (four months) and Kaiden Guhle (eight to ten weeks) will be out long-term with the Habs.

No, it’s not ideal.

However, in the last few minutes, we also received news of another injury, this time to the Devils. Last night, the Devils held a team dinner with Frank The Tank, a media personality for Barstool Sports who is a big fan of the club.

Unfortunately, however, the dinner turned sour for the club: according toSportsnet‘s Elliotte Friedman, Jack Hughes “slipped and cut his hand”.

No, you can’t make that up.

The Devils have confirmed that Hughes currently has a non-hockey-related hand injury. He is still under evaluation and the club does not know when he will be able to return to play.

He’s not expected to face the Capitals tomorrow, though.

It’s obviously a very, very unfortunate injury. We’ll just have to hope it doesn’t keep him sidelined in the long term, because we know how important Hughes is to the Devils.

His 10 goals and 20 points in 17 games this season are club highs. Yes, the Devils need him.

Extension

Let’s not forget that earlier this year, Lukas Dostal, the Ducks’ goaltender, was briefly absent because he fell down the stairs.

Take your pick for the most surreal injury of the two.

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Kaiden Guhle: the Habs tried to avoid surgery (but realized the obvious)

Are you familiar with the expression “adding insult to injury”? If you haven’t, here’s a good example: the Habs giving a (negative) medical update on Kaiden Guhle while everyone waits for news on Alex Newhook.

A long absence for Newhook was expected. But (another) long absence for Guhle hurts, given that his return was supposed to be imminent.

So it’s only logical to ask what happened in the defender’s case. Because, in fact, not only was he due back soon, but we saw him skating just last week.

And on this subject, Renaud Lavoie gave us some information. What you need to know is that, at the outset, the club knew that the operation was a possibility. But before proceeding, we tried to see if a return to fitness would be enough to see Guhle healthy again.

But in the end, he didn’t respond well to last week’s on-ice sessions. So it was clear to everyone, and Guhle underwent surgery yesterday.

We know that, generally speaking, we always hope to see athletes get healthy via a return to fitness rather than via an operation. And in Guhle’s case, we obviously tried this avenue to see if a full recovery was possible.

And obviously, it wasn’t possible. But that’s probably why he didn’t undergo surgery right away.

This means that the Habs, whose defensive game has been in serious trouble for some time now, won’t be able to simply wait for the savior’s imminent return. The six defensemen who are there now will have to step up their game, because they’re the ones who’ll be holding down the fort for the next few months.

The Hutson-Struble duo, for example, are really going to have to settle down. It’s very difficult for both guys at the moment.

Of course, it’s frustrating to see Guhle sidelined again in the long term. That said, injuries are part of the game… and the next few months will test the six regular defensemen in town.

Guhle should be back for the final sprint, at least. But it’s without him that the Habs will have to hold out for a good part of the campaign… once again.

Overtime

– Well-deserved.

– He’s a transformed player this season.

– Zach Hyman: his return is imminent.

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David Kampf: the Canadiens are interested, says Chris Johnston

Over the past few days, David Kampf’s name has been circulating in Montreal. The forward, who was not called up for the waivers today (as expected), had his contract terminated by the Maple Leafs.

So, at the time of writing, he’s as free as a bird.

And the rumours linking Kampf to the Habs aren’t dying down. In fact, just the opposite is true… not least because of Alex Newhook. More on that later.

In a piece for The Athletic, Chris Johnston gave an update on Kampf’s case, mentioning the teams to watch for a possible signing. And unsurprisingly, the Habs are among them.

Because, according to Johnston, there’s interest in Kampf in Montreal.

We know that the club, at the moment, only has right-handed center players. Kampf, a left-handed center, would therefore bring an interesting element to the Montreal lineup… but over the past 24 hours, the Habs’ need for Kampf has grown.

Over the course of his career, Kampf has often played at a numerical disadvantage. He’s a solid player when his club is short a man… and with the Habs having just lost Newhook, an important piece of their shorthanded unit, they’ll need to find options to replace him.

And in that respect, Kampf really is a perfect fit.

The club’s numerical disadvantage was already a bit ordinary this season (the Habs are 17th in the league in this respect so far this year), and they’ll be without Newhook(and Kaiden Guhle, remember) for several months.

So right now, the Habs could really, really use a guy like Kampf. Let’s see if the club can come to an agreement with him… because Kent Hughes won’t be the only GM in this race.

Overtime

– Interesting stuff.

– That’s right.

– Rasmus Andersson almost made the switch to the Maple Leafs last March.

– Great read.

– It would be a home run.

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Alex Newhook and Kaiden Guhle to miss several months of activity

Alex Newhook had to leave his team’s game last night with an injury. We suspected the forward would miss some time, but it was unclear exactly how long.

Jared Davidson was recalled to take his place.

And then, in the last few minutes, we finally got some news: Newhook underwent ankle surgery and will miss four months of activity.

At the same time, the Habs also gave us an update on the health of Kaiden Guhle, whose four-to-six-week timetable was beginning to approach.

And the news is very, very bad: he too has undergone surgery (on his adductor muscle, in his case) and will miss another eight to ten weeks.

In Newhook’s case, we’re talking about a fractured ankle, which was the dreaded scenario. This injury should keep him sidelined until early March.

He will therefore miss the vast majority of the campaign, although he should still be able to return for the final sprint.

In Guhle’s case, it’s another major blow for the club. We expected to see him back soon, and even saw him skating last week… except that this week, we never saw him on the ice.

And now we know why.

These are two very tough blows for the Habs, whose depth will be seriously tested over the coming months. Let’s see how the club responds.

Extension

It’s far from impossible that Guhle’s absence could be longer than 10 weeks. After all, in 10 weeks’ time, we’ll be seriously approaching the Olympic Games… and as long as we’re not bringing him back too quickly for 2-3 games, the club could opt for the cautious approach and bring him back following the Olympics.

So don’t rule out a scenario where the next time Guhle wears a Habs uniform, it’ll be after the Olympics.

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Jared Davidson recalled by the Canadiens: the club preferred him to David Kampf

Last night, Alex Newhook went down fighting in the Habs’ loss to the Stars. And with Martin St-Louis confirming that the forward would miss some time, the Habs were going to need a replacement.

Because this morning, there were only 11 healthy forwards with the big club.

We assumed it would all come down to a recall, and we were keeping a close eye on Jared Davidson.

And now it’s confirmed: Davidson has been recalled by the Habs in the final minutes.

He should make his NHL debut tomorrow night.

Davidson is off to a great start in the AHL and was the logical choice for recall. He’s scored nine goals in 13 AHL games this season, and brings an element of grit and dog to a lineup.

He was the most deserving candidate for a recall.

More details to come…

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Martin St-Louis confirms Alex Newhook will miss time: it comes at the wrong time

Last night, the Habs lost to the Stars. But in addition to losing the game, they also lost Alex Newhook in defeat.

The forward fell heavily against the boards… and when you look at the images, it’s hard not to think that this could be a very, very serious injury.

And this morning, in front of the media, Martin St-Louis confirmed what Brendan Gallagher was saying last night: don’t expect to see Newhook back in the line-up tomorrow night.

The coach, who didn’t see Newhook this morning, confirmed that the forward will “definitely miss some time”. He didn’t close the door on shuffling his trios tomorrow, but didn’t confirm anything on that front.

And what the coach notes is that all this is frustrating for a player who was off to a great start to the season. And it’s true that since yesterday, this is something we don’t talk about enough: it all comes at a really, really bad time.

Obviously, for the club, it’s not good news in the sense that we’ll be without a big forward. But for the player, it’s even worse: he was finally taking off in a Canadiens uniform.

He collected 12 points in 17 games this season, while maintaining a plus-7 rating. It’s night and day compared to his numbers from the previous two seasons.

(Credit: Screenshot/HockeyDB)

Of course, some of this has to do with the fact that he’s playing with Ivan Demidov. However, it would be dishonest to think that this explosion is solely attributable to Demidov: Newhook looked more in control than ever on the ice.

And it’s a pity to see that this flight of fancy has been hampered by an injury that will obviously keep him sidelined for a while.

It’s not yet known how long Newhook will be out, and it’s possible that it will be for the rest of the campaign. But, of course, we have to hope that’s not the case.

Because for both the club and the player, this injury could hardly have come at a worse time. Let’s hope he’s avoided the worst now.

Overtime

– Interesting stuff.

– I can’t wait to see how this plays out tomorrow night.

– Maple Leafs Insuccess: Craig Berube wants to break down a wall. Or climb it. Whatever.

– Interesting.

– Good news.