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The Canadiens are not assured of making the playoffs: the Blue Jackets won tonight

The Columbus Blue Jackets won their second game in as many matches against the Washington Capitals with a score of 4 to 1

This win for the Jackets, their fourth consecutive one, allows them to maintain their prospect of participating in the playoffs.

The Ohio club is only three points behind the habs, who currently occupy the last rank of the drafted teams. Both teams have two games left to play.

However, the habs only need one point to confirm their place in the spring series this year, because even if the teams have the same number of points, the tiebreaker favors the Montreal club.

Thus, even a defeat in overtime would confirm the habs’ place in the series.

The team will have the opportunity to get their point in the standings as early as Monday evening when they host the Chicago Blackhawks at the Centre Bell.

The habs could have confirmed their place with a win during the last weekend, but they only got one point in their two games against the Ontario teams.

Tomorrow’s game against the Blackhawks should also be Ivan Demidov’s first game with the habs.

The arrival of the young Russian sensation could bring a dose of energy to the team that seemed to lack energy in their last games.

By confirming their place tomorrow, the habs could also take advantage of their last game to rest some of their players who have been particularly overworked in recent weeks.

We can notably think of Samuel Montembeault, Mike Matheson, or Josh Anderson, not to mention the players who have been possibly injured for a while.

It would also be an opportunity to try a few experiments before the playoffs. Personally, I would like to see a few appearances by Olivier Kapanen at the center of Patrik Laine and Demidov.

Just in case…

But above all, we need to start by getting at least one point tomorrow evening.

In rafale

– Indeed!

– A volunteer?

– What a shot!

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Since his return to the game, Kaiden Guhle is hitting his opponents twice as much

Since his return, Kaiden Guhle has elevated his game and is possibly playing the best hockey of his career.

He is currently, along with Lane Hutson, the best duo of defensemen of the Canadiens, or Habs.

Although he has only obtained two assists since his return, Guhle brings defensive stability, as shown by his +5 record, which allows his partner to unleash his offensive skills.

Today, in a column published on La Poche Bleue, Florence Normand highlights the importance of robustness in the way Guhle has been playing recently.

In fact, since his return to the game on March 28, he has been playing a more physical hockey, distributing numerous hits and dropping the gloves twice.

What has gotten into the young defenseman?

He says he is not trying to chase hits, but if the opportunity arises, he will take it.

And well, the opportunity seems to be presenting itself more often, as since he resumed action, Guhle has 29 hits in nine games, or an average of 3.2 per game.

Before his injury, the defenseman had 67 hits in 44 games, or 1.4 hits per game. This is more than double the number of opponents hit, which is still considerable!

And before a possible participation in the Habs playoffs, this is excellent news for the team, as the game becomes more physical and hits are more generously distributed.

Especially since if the Habs qualify for the spring tournament, they will face the Capitals, a team that likes to play physical hockey with a few players known for hitting solidly.

Tom Wilson, I’m looking at you.

So knowing that the Habs won’t rely solely on their sheriff, Arber Xhekaj, to provide a physical response to the Capitals, that’s a good thing.

However, the Habs still need to secure their place in the playoffs, which has not been done yet at the time of writing.

Overtime

– 50th win for the Leafs

– The Oilers are launching less.

– Big win!

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Calvin de Haan : “The way I’ve been treated here, it’s crap”

Officially, the New York Rangers are eliminated from the playoff race.

Unofficially, hockey fans had given up on the Rangers and their poor season a long time ago.

When I saw that they traded Ryan Lindgren, one of the best defensive defensemen in the NHL, it told me a lot about the vision of the “Blue Shirts” management for the rest of the season.

In the Ryan Lindgren trade, the Rangers got, among other things, Juuso Parssinen and veteran defenseman Calvin de Haan.

The latter has only played three games since his arrival in the Big Apple, and he recently shared his thoughts on how the team treated him before taking to the ice for a practice.

Here’s what Mollie Walker of the New York Post reported.

“Let’s talk about how I’ve been treated here. It’s bullshit.” – Calvin de Haan

Definitely, de Haan is fed up with the treatment he’s been receiving since joining the Rangers.

He’s not the defenseman he used to be, but he still brings experience and defensive stability. And looking at the Rangers’ season, it’s hard to say he didn’t deserve more than that…

With the aforementioned comments, de Haan wanted to talk more about it with the media. After leaving the practice ice today, de Haan discussed it with the team’s public relations and came to a consensus that he would talk more about it at the end of the year.

Clearly, the Rangers didn’t want him to talk right away, and that’s understandable.

But when you’ve been left out for the last 18 games (!!!), it has to come out at some point.

And the defenseman finally did on his Twitter account (before deleting his comments) explaining his frustration.

Luckily, the B/R Open Ice page recorded these comments and included them in an image posted on social media.

“I said what I said, because I was frustrated and anyone who says they would be happy with this situation is lying. After my first three games, I really thought I could help the team win some games.” – Calvin de Haan

De Haan also specified that he didn’t want to be the villain in this story, to get attention, or to cast a shadow over the organization.

He would have preferred a press conference to discuss his time with the Rangers.

The defenseman’s contract is for one year at a salary of $800,000. At the end of the season, he will be an unrestricted free agent, and it would be very surprising to see him sign a contract extension with the Rangers.

He should be able to find a job this summer when the free agent market opens, but these comments may not help him.

Clubs generally don’t like it when a player complains about their usage.

Overtime

– Michael Hage will have reinforcement on defense with Henry Mews. He was the third-best scorer among defensemen in the OHL this season, behind Parekh and Dickinson.

– Sorokin is in a class of his own and doesn’t get enough recognition.

– Wow…

– To be seen.

– Some news from the MLB:

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Since the return of the 4 nations, the habs defensemen no longer produce

Since the return of the 4 Nations break, Nick Suzuki has been on an incredible roll, with 35 points, including 14 goals, in 24 games.

Besides the captain, Lane Hutson has also been on a great streak since February 22.

The rookie defenseman is almost at a point per game with 23 points in 24 games.

On the other hand, the Montreal Canadiens’ defensive brigade is slowing down, excluding Hutson, of course.

You won’t guess who is the second-best scoring defenseman since the return of the 4 Nations.

It’s Jayden Struble…

The athletic defenseman has collected eight points during this streak… and that says a lot about the productivity of the Habs’ blue line.

(Credit: NHL.com)

Although Matheson plays a more defensive role with the emergence of Lane Hutson, a role he likes, it takes more than five small points from Matheson.

Especially with 10 more minutes per game on average than Struble.

Matheson only has a differential of +1, while Struble is at +10.

And we know Struble plays much more physically than Matheson and still plays a better defensive game than the Quebecer.

Matheson’s experience weighs heavily in his defensive game, and let’s remember that Matheson has never really played more defensively. At least, not as much as now.

Matheson has two of the five goals from defensemen since February 22, while Lane Hutson has the other three. Hutson is also the only defenseman to score since March 11 (two goals). All the other defensemen have not scored since the return of the 4 Nations.

In any case, it will take more from Matheson and the rest of the defensive brigade.

As for Lane Hutson, he can continue to do what he’s doing, because it’s working wonders and he’s giving himself more and more arguments to win the famous Calder Trophy.

Macklin Celebrini is having an excellent streak lately, with nine points in his last five games, including a five-point game.

Hutson will have to play his best hockey in the Habs’ last two games to give himself a better lead than his two points more than the San Jose Sharks’ rookie.

Overtime

– The Capitals won’t give the Blue Jackets a chance tonight, at 6:00 PM. If Columbus loses, the Habs will officially make the playoffs.

– Chris Drury continues to make headlines for the wrong reasons… His days as the Rangers’ GM may be numbered. I would be very surprised if he’s still there next year with everything that’s been said about him.

– The final round of the Masters seems to be between Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau, but it’s off to a bad start for McIlroy, who is due for a win in a major championship. His last win was in 2014.

– Well done.

– Too bad for the Canadian women.

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Heineman: Patrick Friolet suspects concussion symptoms

We really don’t know what’s going on with Emil Heineman.

The big forward hasn’t played since April 5, when the Flyers were visiting the Centre Bell.

Is he injured? The habs announced on April 6 (the day after the game against the Flyers) that the Swede was being evaluated daily. But since then, it’s been radio silence…

Patrick Friolet, who was on Greg Lanctot’s show this morning (BPM Sports), has his opinion on the subject.

And in the eyes of the RDS journalist, Heineman may be dealing with concussion symptoms:

What I suspect in Emil Heineman’s case is concussion symptoms […] I think if he was healthy, he would have played yesterday’s game. – Patrick Friolet

This might explain why Heineman wasn’t on the ice in Brossard this morning.

Unless he simply decided to take the day off, but that would surprise me since he hasn’t played in a while…

Heineman jumped onto the Scotiabank Arena ice yesterday with the team’s other extras.

Ivan Demidov, Arber Xhekaj, and Joshua Roy were with him.

But the fact that he didn’t show up this morning in Brossard could also mean he’ll be back in the Canadiens’ lineup tomorrow. If Heineman is ready to play, the idea of putting him in the lineup makes sense because the Canadiens have lost their last two games.

Martin St-Louis will want to shake things up, and with Ivan Demidov likely to play tomorrow as well, the Canadiens’ head coach will have decisions to make.

If it were up to me, Pezzetta and Kapanen would be out of the lineup… but we’ll see.

Maybe the Canadiens’ coach sees things differently, and that’s why we’ll have to keep an eye on things until tomorrow night, when the Blackhawks will be in Montreal to face the habs.

Overtime

– Oh no.

– Wow… Hehe.

– Well done.

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It’s (really) cool that Lane Hutson made the trip to practice with Ivan Demidov

Even though he had the option to rest today since it was a day off, Lane Hutson still made the trip to Brossard.

Why?

Because… Ivan Demidov.

The Canadiens’ defenseman couldn’t skate with Demidov and the extras yesterday because he had to be ready for his game last night against the Leafs.

But today, he had the opportunity to join his new teammate for a few laps on the ice.. and he took advantage of the opportunity to do so.

Again, it’s worth noting that the Canadiens players have the day off today.

Lane didn’t have to jump on the ice this morning: he could have stayed home eating cereal and watching Netflix, lounging on his couch.

That’s what I would do on a day off. But Lane Hutson was eager to practice with Ivan Demidov:

The two guys completed a few exercises together – Arber Xhekaj was also there – and they were spotted by my colleague Charles-Alexis Brisebois chatting before leaving the ice.

They want to develop a certain chemistry before playing together in a game and that’s logical.

These two are likely to spend several years together: might as well get to know each other now to make things easier, right?

(Credit: Charles-Alexis Brisebois, who was on site this morning in Brossard)

Lane Hutson and Ivan Demidov have the talent and skills to become the new faces of the organization.

I think they know it… and they want to take advantage of it now to build a relationship for the next few years.

So much the better. And I also want to say this: Lane Hutson being there for Demidov, it’s worth noting because it can help the Russian get used to his new market and environment.

Lane Hutson is only 21 years old, but he’s acting like a veteran right now.

In Overtime

– Demidov was in shape, by the way, this morning.

– I love it.

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Ivan Demidov jumped on the ice in Brossard this morning

The Canadiens lost to the Leafs last night.

And after the match, the club announced that there was a day off on the menu for the guys today.

But that didn’t stop Ivan Demidov – who didn’t play last night – from jumping onto the ice. He took his first strides on Quebec soil.

Roles are reversed: today, it was colleague Charles-Alexis Brisebois who was on site in Brossard to monitor Demidov.

He posted a video on Twitter where we see Demidov doing laps on the ice, as he was just getting on the ice:

Notably, without much surprise, several fans showed up to see Demidov skate this morning.

Also notable is that Lane Hutson and Arber Xhekaj skated as well:

More details to come…

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Visit of the Blackhawks on Monday night at the Bell Centre: a trap game

When we see that the Montreal Canadiens’ chances of making the playoffs are currently at 98.7%, we shouldn’t be worried.

However, nothing is done yet, and as long as that percentage is not at 100%, everything can collapse for the Habs.

The Habs have already missed two great opportunities to secure their playoff spot this weekend, and therefore, nothing guarantees they will succeed in doing so in their last two games.

The chances are very slim, almost impossible, to see the Canadiens get overtaken by the Columbus Blue Jackets, but as long as we’re not at the finish line, many things can still happen.

The ideal scenario, even if it’s less respectable than winning to secure their spot, would be for the Blue Jackets to lose tonight at 5:30 PM against the Capitals in Washington.

This would remove all unnecessary pressure and stress from the Habs’ and their fans’ shoulders.

However, even if the Capitals are a much better team, the Blue Jackets are playing with the energy of despair, and that’s dangerous, as we saw yesterday when Columbus won 7-0 against the same Caps.

We can therefore expect the Blue Jackets to win again and force the Habs to qualify on their own.

And so, if the Blue Jackets win tonight, all eyes will be on tomorrow’s game, when the Chicago Blackhawks will visit the Bell Centre.

On paper, the Habs should win this game easily and secure their playoff spot.

However, this is clearly a trap game.

The Blackhawks have nothing to lose, while the Habs have everything to lose.

The Habs will play in front of their fans against a bad team, and Ivan Demidov will likely make his NHL debut.

This will be a highly emotional game, and it could play in favor of the Hawks, who have no pressure and are playing well right now.

They have two wins in their last four games, and last night, they put up a good fight against the best team in the NHL, eventually losing 5-4 in overtime.

(Credit: ESPN.com)

So, everything is in place for the Hawks to play spoilers and not give the Habs an easy win.

Briefly, if the Blue Jackets win tonight, the Habs must be more than ready for Monday and give it their all without taking a single fraction of a second lightly in this game against the second-worst team in the NHL.

Martin St-Louis must prepare his team as best he can, because they simply cannot afford to choke their playoff spot.

Overtime

– To follow if the Habs qualify.

– Here are the playoff qualification scenarios for the day.

– The Maple Leafs can confirm their title in the Atlantic Division tonight.

– The Winnipeg Jets can win the Presidents’ Trophy tonight with a win against the Oilers.

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In the silence, it’s been three games since we’ve been waiting to see Lane Hutson break Chelios’ record

Since the beginning of the season, Lane Hutson has impressed us almost every time he’s on the ice.

The fans of the Canadiens de Montreal say every time how lucky the habs are to have him among their ranks.

Hutson never ceases to amaze and, above all, he broke several records and several impressive marks for a rookie defenseman.

However, there is one record that Hutson has been close to for a few games now, but which we haven’t talked about all week.

In fact, in the silence, we’ve been waiting for three games for Hutson to break Chris Chelios’ record (64 points) for the most points by a defenseman in his rookie season.

Hutson tied Chelios’ mark by scoring his 64th point of the season last Sunday in the habs’ 2-1 win over the Nashville Predators, and since then, nothing.

The habs’ number 48 hasn’t gotten any points all week, and that’s three games he’s missed the opportunity to break Chelios’ record.

Yet, nobody’s talking about this record this week, while the media’s and the Tricolore fans’ attention is completely focused on other things.

Do you have any idea where all this attention is currently focused?

Bingo. On Ivan Demidov.

In fact, since Tuesday, or since the announcement that Ivan Demidov would be joining the Montreal Canadiens, nobody’s been talking about Lane Hutson.

It’s the first time this season that the fans of the habs are looking at another sensational rookie.

All season, Hutson has been the talk of the town for the Tricolore, but everything has changed now.

Hutson is one point away from becoming the best rookie defenseman in Montreal Canadiens history, but we’re talking more about Ivan Demidov this week.

We can even add that Hutson is close to breaking another record, namely the most assists in a season for a rookie defenseman, as he is three assists away from breaking Larry Murphy’s record.

In short, Hutson is making history, and we mustn’t forget that, even if we’re all very excited to see Demidov in action.

Imagine if Hutson broke Chelios’ record this Monday by serving a great pass to Ivan Demidov for his first goal in the NHL.

It would be simply magical.

Overtime

– Gabriel Landeskog scored his first goal in three years last night. It was his first career goal in the American League.

– The Sharks are guaranteed to have the best chances of getting the first overall pick in the next draft.

– Marc-Andre Fleury is always so funny.

–

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Ivan Demidov would have shot, him

For a second time in as many nights, the Montreal Canadiens failed to confirm their place in the playoffs.

Even though they got a point in their 1-0 loss to the Maple Leafs in Toronto, the Habs still don’t have a little x next to their name in the standings.

Despite everything, the Habs still have 98.7% chances of making the playoffs.

So, it’s not the end of the world to have lost last night to the Leafs, but still, it’s a shame the Habs can’t confirm their playoff spot, which would relieve everyone.

Even if the Red Wings, Islanders, and Rangers were eliminated last night, the Columbus Blue Jackets are still alive, and the Habs must not give them a chance to come back, or else things could turn ugly.

And if the Canadiens want to avoid a catastrophic end to their season, they’ll have to find a way to get more shots on goal.

Last night, it was pathetic how Martin St-Louis’ team couldn’t even get a shot on goal, while the Habs were missing the target on every attempt.

Seven shots after two periods is unacceptable, especially in front of Ivan Demidov, who would have shot on goal if he had played.

Obviously, I know Demidov wouldn’t have played last night, but still, he needs to be given time to arrive, and watching the Habs last night, it was clear they lacked the offensive talent to at least reach the net, which Demidov would have been able to do.

The Habs didn’t play a bad game, as they managed to contain the Maple Leafs’ attack for 60 minutes (thanks to Jakub Dobes), but getting only 15 shots on 57 attempts is pathetic.

When compared to the Maple Leafs, they attempted exactly the same number of shots, 57, but they hit the target 35 times, forcing Jakub Dobes to be the renaissance of Carey Price.

In short, the Habs need to shoot more, and those shots can’t just come from the top line, which got 10 of the 15 shots on goal in the entire game last night.

Caufield had five, Suzuki had three, and Slafkovsky had two.

The shot distribution needs to be more varied, because it’s not normal that 10 players didn’t even get a shot on goal.

More shots need to come from the point and therefore from the defensemen. Only Alexandre Carrier (1) and Lane Hutson (1) hit the net last night, which is way too little.

Directing shots on goal from the point is always a good threat and a good opportunity to score if the goalie is screened, and therefore, the Habs’ defensemen need to generate more offense.

It’s not normal that only one defenseman (Lane Hutson) has scored since March 11. Two goals from the defensemen in over a month is not enough.

In short, let’s hope the Habs will fix the situation by Monday, and that Ivan Demidov will be part of the solution.

Overtime

– We all hope for a Blue Jackets loss in Columbus. We’ll all be Capitals fans tonight.

– Recall in Tampa.

– A first championship in their history for Western Michigan.