Here is the second Habs weekly report of the season. For the first one click here.
After having a very strong first week, the Montreal Canadiens followed it up with an equally if not better second week. After eight games, the Habs are on top of the league standings, which includes the three wins from this past week.
Habs Weekly Report: Still Undefeated in Regulation
While the team’s scoring may have fallen from the insanely high four goals per game rate that the team started with, this was to be expected. However, with goaltender Carey Price in nets, the team can get away with scoring three goals per game and win each night.
There may not have been as many x-factors when it came to the team’s offense. However, some players came up big in the clutch when they were depended on. Like Alexander Radulov, who finally broke out offensively on Monday against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Alexander Radulov
Radulov showed that he could be a dynamic player in the first week of the season. He was not putting up big points until Monday. Radulov led his team with a goal and two assists in the 3-1 win. He has been among the team’s top forwards so far this season.
Brendan Gallagher
The other top forward this season has been Brendan Gallagher who currently leads the team in goals with four. Gallagher is continuing to lead on the ice with his work ethic. He and Alex Galchenyuk have formed a very dangerous offensive duo. Radulov may fit well with the duo despite having to play on his off-wing. This line has recently been put together. Radulov’s style of play is the middle ground between the two Gallys. He has Gallagher’s work ethic and Galchenyuk’s skill level. This adds a dangerous piece to the dynamic duo to form a deadly trio.
They only played one period together as a trio but they seemed to compliment each other very well. This included playing a shift together on the power-play which resulted in the game-tying goal on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It remains to be seen if Radulov will feel comfortable playing left wing on a full-time basis. By switching him to left wing, it also forces forward like Paul Byron to play on the right wing on Tomas Plekanec‘s line.
Shea Weber
Shea Weber has been arguably the team’s most valuable player through two weeks. His slap-shot proved to be clutch in two of the three games of the week. This includes his game winning goal on Wednesday night’s win against the New York Islanders. Weber has brought his big shot as advertised, but he has brought so much more on the offensive side. He currently leads the league in +/- with a +12 rating and leads his team in points with nine points in eight games.
Weber has also continued to have a solid defensive game. He continues to block shots and dish out big checks that intimidate the opposition. He uses his size to keep players from getting to the net.
Weber’s offensive numbers will fall but he will remain a remain a force on the blue line, this season. He shows incredible hockey smarts and the ability to play safe, mistake free defensive hockey.
Tomas Plekanec
Unlike the previously mentioned Habs players, Plekanec has been a disappoinment thus far, and even worse this past week. While his most common linemates, Artturi Lehkonen and Radulov have enjoyed success together offensively, Plekanec just hasn’t been able to get going.
In the first week, Plekanec was able to put up three assists, however they went fairly unnoticed. This is especially the case when he is not able to bury his scoring chances. It happened on too many occasions that Radulov’s play-making skills get Plekanec the perfect chance to score and he just misses the wide open cage.
While some have suggested that Plekanec may not have the offensive tools to be a second line centre anymore, the encouraging aspect is that he is getting chances. Normally when players fall off due to age, it is because they can no longer generate the chances. It seems just a matter of time before Plekanec gets points again.
It should also be noted that no other centre on the team is good enough defensively to shutdown the opposing teams’ top lines the way Plekanec can. In that aspect, Plekanec has continued to be very good which means that he might be better suited with Paul Byron and Andrew Shaw on the team’s third line.
David Desharnais who is the team’s current third liner, has shown that he still has his play-making ability that makes him a decent second liner for a few games. Long-term Plekanec will need to find his scoring touch, as Desharnais is not a top six answer. If that does not happen, the Habs will need to look for a second line centre on the trade market.
Overall Thoughts
The Canadiens have continued their strong play, and still look nothing like the team that collapsed last season. There are many reasons to believe this. They now have an experienced back-up along with more leadership from the players that were acquired in the summer. Radulov also adds much needed offensive firepower, and Jeff Petry is healthy and playing like the team’s second best blueliners.
Captain Max Pacioretty has been struggling with Galchenyuk this season, but looks successful alongside his old buddy Desharnais. The new line of Pacioretty-Desharnais-Shaw could prove to be very successful on both ends of the ice with the wingers each being two-way forwards and goal scorers. This could also allow Radulov to play with Galchenyuk and Gallagher which has looked great thus far.
What needs to improve however, is Galchenyuk in the faceoff dot, he has only won just under 30% of the draws he has taken. It should eventually get better as the season goes on, however he did worse in the second week as opposed to the first week.
This upcoming week will see the Habs play a total of four games, including the game tonight against long time rival the Toronto Maple Leafs. Expect the Habs weekly report to come out slightly later, considering the back-to-back games next Friday and Saturday nights.
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