The Montreal Canadiens have entered that phase where every game is the biggest game of the season. Not only are the Canadiens playing meaningful games, they are on the verge of playing post-season games.
The final 16 will decide it, with Montreal having as good a chance as any for that final wild card spot. They needed to keep the winning going over the Ottawa Senators.
They did in the wildest of third periods where the Canadiens put up five goals in a 6-3 win.
Wilde Horses
The hottest line in hockey since the Four Nations break has been Nick Suzuki’s trio. It’s why the Canadiens are fighting for a playoff spot.
They are top-10 in the league this season. However, if Montreal is going to accomplish its goal of a post-season berth, help is required from the other lines. One line, eventually, cannot carry a team without any help.
That message must have been clear to the other nine forwards because every line stepped up to show outstanding energy as well. The first goal was an absolute beauty from the Dvorak line. Brendan Gallagher made a perfect breakaway pass to Dvorak.
He made an outstanding move on Linus Ullmark, who had lost his stick due to an earlier shot from Patrik Laine. Laine didn’t get an assist on the goal, but it was his shot that was so powerful, Ullmark couldn’t keep his stick in his hand. That made Dvorak look like Mario Lemieux on the breakaway with his move.
That line was strong in the third period as well. Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson were both a nuisance in front of the net. It was Anderson who found the puck for a rebound tally. Two huge goals for that line.
Alex Newhook had the second line bouncing as well. Newhook is playing his best hockey, by far, since joining the Canadiens. He is bringing huge speed to every shift backing off defenders. It feels like Newhook has finally figured out that he can’t quit his stride and coast. He must keep the legs moving. He’s doing that and suddenly the line with Laine and Joshua Roy looks more dangerous.
Newhook almost scored the goal of the year in the second period. He took the puck all the way down ice, then split the defence, before his shot just missed the top corner. The crowd was buzzing even before Newhook took his shot. He could be turning into the player Kent Hughes traded for.
The fourth line was also strong as Jake Evans simply makes a huge amount of smart decisions. Evans is Tomas Plekanec with only a percentage of the offensive skills, but decision-wise, Evans is an extremely cerebral player.
And then there was Lane Hutson. Looking for a spark, Hutson flew down the left side and ripped a wrist shot into the far corner to tie it at two. Hutson has 53 points on the season, tying Quinn Hughes for the best rookie season this century. Hutson has 15 games to play to pass Hughes.
It was the best player on the team who provided the decisive moment. On the tail end of a power play, the head coach is playing a hunch. He’s got Suzuki staying out with the second unit, and they come through. Gallagher pokes a puck out of the pads of Ullmark. It’s free for Suzuki. He slides it home. The Bell Centre absolutely erupts. Everyone is standing still when the PA announcer calls out Suzuki’s name for his 21st.
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They didn’t really sit down for the final three minutes as the Canadiens added two empty-netters from Anderson and Gallagher. It was a night to remember at the Bell Centre. They put five on the board in the third period.
Wilde Goats
Both David Savard and Arber Xhekaj backed into their goalie too much on the opening goal, allowing Drake Batherson far too much room to fire a high shot home.
On Michael Amado’s go-ahead goal in the second period, Samuel Montembeault didn’t handle an easy shot from the point. He should have caught it for a face-off, but it bounced around and went behind him for a tap-in.
The third goal was even worse. It was an absolute banana from Montembeault, an unscreened 50-foot shot from defender Travis Hamonic. It was his first goal of the season, and he didn’t deserve it. A truly painful moment from Montembeault.
One minor complaint is that Juraj Slafkovsky keeps setting up on the power play basically on the goal line in the corner. He needs to improve that angle just a smidgen, it’s too difficult. There’s no one checking him five feet in front of the goal line. That’s a much better spot to shoot from. Go there.
All in all, though, there haven’t been many exciting nights like this, so don’t even bother yourself too much with the negatives. This team is pouring their hearts out. Celebrate that instead.
Wilde Cards
General Manager Kent Hughes said at the NHL meetings in Florida yesterday that he is prepared to overpay to get a second line centre. He indicated that he made a strong push to get Dylan Cozens at the trading deadline March 7th. He lost that bidding war to the Ottawa Senators.
It’s a significant statement on two fronts. Firstly, it firmly indicates that the organization knows its primary roster need. Secondly, it shows what type of acquisition they view as optimal — a young player who has already proven himself.
This is what they had hoped, as well, in acquiring Kirby Dach. Whether it was the massive knee injury, or Dach would have never been able to deliver on his promise, it is clear from management’s actions that the Dach experiment at centre is at an end.
It is difficult to get a young centre. No GM wants to give up on theirs. It’s too risky a proposition, because the centre position is likely the hardest to fill. It’s also the hardest to evaluate if a player will mature to their potential. For every Nick Suzuki, there is a Cody Glass.
Failure at centre happens a lot because centre is so cerebral. It’s not enough to be big, skate well and have a good shot. The player has to think the game at an extremely high level, and many don’t understand the decision-making and positional play required. As a result, many are forced to move to the wing.
Montreal’s centre position is coming into view for next season: Suzuki will key the top-line. Second line centre is a mystery man. Third line will be who excels at camp most between Dach, Alex Newhook, Owen Beck, and Oliver Kapanen. Fourth-line centre will be Jake Evans.
When Hughes says he will overpay, it means top prospects, and first-round draft picks are in the offing. Players like Logan Mailloux, Joshua Roy, and Adam Engstrom will be available. The two first round picks in the mid-teens this summer will be available. It may take even a higher level of prospect to get that second line centre mystery man.
The young prospect untouchable list likely has only Ivan Demidov, Michael Hage, David Reinbacher, and Jacob Fowler on it. The rest will have to be available. If this is a trade, that second line centre is going to fetch a high price.
However, it can be done. The Washington Capitals looked to be in a rebuilding phase. Instead, they built their centre position up quickly, and are at the top of the standings. Dylan Strome, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and Lars Eller were all recently acquired leading the Capitals to an amazing turnaround.
Who could be on Hughes radar? The top priority is a young player with a big future. This is the hardest of the trades to make. Other general managers know they also need that player to succeed. No one has a surplus of young centres that they can trade away. Everyone is clamouring for more strength down the middle.
The more likely scenario is either trade for a veteran, or try to win a sweepstakes for an unrestricted free agent. If it is trade for a veteran, it’s a player like Nazem Kadri who comes to mind. It has risk. Age is a factor. Money is a factor.
A UFA also has risk. Sam Bennett is the first name up usually, but that will be seven years and a lot of money. Matt Duchene has taken awful one-year deals to stay in Dallas. He is a UFA this summer. John Tavares wanted to play for his hometown heroes when he grew up, but perhaps the petal has fallen off that rose.
With trades of aging and expensive veterans for youth, and big money purchases for aging free-agents, there is big risk. The Canadiens have to get this right. They’ve done it all well, so far, but this will be the biggest test in the rebuild.
It simply does not seem possible with the readiness that these players have shown this season to not fill that second line centre hole this summer. Demidov and Patrik Laine need a 200-foot line-mate to make the Canadiens a complete hockey team.
It is highly unlikely that they will simply wait for the arrival of Hage. He will play one more season at Michigan, and then a season in Laval, before a tryout at centre at the NHL level. That long-curved timeline is unacceptable to this group elevating its play so significantly already.
There’s no crystal ball here. Usually, the player who is acquired isn’t even considered in the numerous articles of speculation. All that history tells us at this point is that Hughes is likely to get it done, and get it done right.
Brian Wilde, a Montreal-based sports writer, brings you Call of the Wilde on globalnews.ca after each Canadiens game.