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Canadiens Instant Recap: Caufield honors Johnny Gaudreau

Posted on by Kennedy
Canadiens Instant Recap: Caufield honors Johnny Gaudreau

The Montreal Canadiens hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night, marking the season opener for both original six teams.

The Bell Center faithful were quick to recognize head coach Martin St-Louis during the pregame ceremony, a rare situation for a bench boss who has yet to coach a winning game. It just shows how much confidence the fans have in the long-term game plan during this phase of the rebuild.

The warmest reception was reserved for Patrik Laine, who showed up to the Bell Center on crutches due to a knee injury that will keep him out of the squad for several months. There's no doubt Habs fans can be tough at times, but moments like this remind you how much the city loves its players, regardless of whether they've yet to lace up their skates in an NHL game.

Samuel Montembeault was the star of the first game, posting an impressive 47-save shutout. This was the first time in 227 games that the Leafs did not finish on the scoresheet. It was also the record for saves in a shutout game to open an NHL season.

Let's take a look at the highlights from the Canadiens' 1-0 win.

For Johnny

The team's lack of success on the power play in the preseason was a continuation of the previous year's dwindling man advantage, a major problem for a team looking to take the next step in its rebuild. The 5-on-5 game is important, but you simply can't make the playoffs if your special teams are less effective than a catapult compared to the vastly superior Trebuchet.

With that in mind, Cole Caufield's season-opening power play goal was encouraging for several reasons, and not just the emotions he couldn't contain while wearing his new jersey number, 13. Caufield changed his number in the offseason to honor the late Johnny Gaudreau, and you could tell he was thinking of his friend as he celebrated his goal.

As for the play itself, it happened because of some great passes from Kirby Dach and Juraj Slafkovsky, with the latter making a beautiful one-touch pass to find his linemate. This type of move should pay off if the Canadiens can continue to cover the player in the slot like they did in front of the goal. As the Leafs began to focus on Nick Suzuki, passing lanes appeared and the Habs quickly took advantage of the open ice.

The Habs failed to repeat the experiment later in the game, but for now we'll consider the fact that they actually scored on the man advantage a success.

Montembeault dialed in

It's always important to remember that goalkeepers take a little longer to develop than most, as both Montembeault (27 years old) and his backup Cayden Primeau (25 years old) demonstrate. I would also argue that the Canadiens also took the right approach by avoiding a significant investment in a “franchise” goaltender, although recent NHL signings suggest I may be wrong. Regardless, the statistical difference between the highest-paid goaltenders and Montembeault will likely be negligible at the end of the season.

The Leafs did achieve a number of posts, including some in the second period, but in these situations I tend to quote Tom Barrasso, who famously responded to a question about posts by saying, “What, you want me to “Stop those who do that?” also go far?”

Toronto flat out dominated the shot clock, not to mention the high danger rate (82 percent), but Montembeault kept his team in the game, a very familiar refrain for Habs fans.

I've got a shot card

Other Montreal Canadiens notes

– Lane Hutson looked good as always. I know fans want to see him play on the best power play unit from the start, especially after the Canadiens' dismal 5-on-3 win midway through the game. It will happen, we know that much. And Hutson will probably do it faster than most NHL defensemen. However, we also have to remember that this was only his third NHL game. Martin St-Louis deserves a little credit in this case. Not only was Mike Matheson one of the most productive defensemen on the power play last season, St-Louis also avoids putting too much pressure on his star rookie, a smart move for any head coach when dealing with a top talent.

– Joel Armia looked good in the second row, although it's hard to look bad next to Kirby Dach. The 21-year-old center completely changes the face of this team as he gives St-Louis another quality option in the middle of the ice who knows how to help a team in transition. With Alex Newhook's speed, Armia's penchant for winning puck battles, and Badger's all-around excellence, the line certainly has potential.

– Speaking of good play in transition, for the first time in a long time the Montreal Canadiens had more than just Suzuki leading the game. Slafkovsky had some nice controlled entries, as did Hutson, Dach, Newhook and a few others. It's encouraging, but it's just a start as the team needs to control the neutral zone if they want to qualify for the playoffs.

– Alex Barre-Boulet didn’t look out of place. He's a hard worker with a certain amount of offensive ability that will likely come in handy if the first and second lines are underperforming. He is also primed and ready to prove everyone in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization wrong, and we all know that can be the ultimate motivator.

– The fourth line (Brendan Gallagher, Jake Evans, Emil Heineman) had the best possession numbers, although that may have more to do with the matchups than their offensive strengths. Other than that, it's one of the most talented fourth lines the Canadiens have played in years.

The Montreal Canadiens are back in action on Thursday. They face the Bruins in Boston, with puck drop scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET. All stats 5v5 via Natural Stat Trick unless otherwise noted.

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