“We weren’t ready tonight”: the Canadiens’ ups and downs

How could the Montreal Canadiens not be ready for the fourth game of the season?

I don’t have the answer, but anyone who saw yesterday’s 6-3 loss to the Penguins knows it’s true.

Kaiden Guhle confirmed it after the game: the Habs weren’t ready for the start of their game. We’re still talking about game #4 of the club’s regular season.

“If you wanna win consistently in this league, you shouldn’t have to be motivated to come out & do the right things on the ice, especially in the first 10 (mins). I think that’s probably if not the most important part of the game. We didn’t come out ready tonight.”

-Kaiden Guhle pic.twitter.com/qKiQnKhv3k

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) October 15, 2024

To see that it took more than half a period to get a shot on goal is not acceptable. Against Sidney Crosby (who knows how to start games on time) at home, it’s unforgivable. And that’s exactly what happened.

It’s funny, because it’s usually the second period that’s difficult for the Habs. But yesterday, the Habs had a good second… while periods #1 and #3 were more difficult.

The club got into trouble too often, and Samuel Montembeault couldn’t do it all on his own. The Habs also lacked execution, which was another factor that prevented the club from winning.

But what else should we remember (positive and negative) about a game in which the Habs were unable to protect their lead?

1. Emil Heineman belongs more and more to the NHL. Yes, he scored a goal in his second straight game – and it was a beautiful goal – last night, but he also has the best relative Corsi.

He’s also the skater who’s played the least for the Habs.

Emil Heineman had an 80.52 xGF% in tonight’s game. The next best player was Christian Dvorak at 49.54 xGF%. Basically, everyone got outplayed except Heineman, and he dominated. #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/85qKMR9190

– Data Puck (@DataPuck) October 15, 2024

2. Juraj Slafkovsky scored his first goal of the season (on a superb play by captain Nick Suzuki) and has four points from four games. But defensively, it’s tough.

Learning to pinch is an art.

3. The Habs took just one penalty and were 1/2 on the powerplay. The club ranks 15th in the league with a 23.5% success rate on the powerplay this season.

Small sample size, but still.

4. On Emil Heineman’s five-on-five goal, Kaiden Guhle was not on the ice. It was the first time this season that a goal scored at five-on-five by the Habs was scored without #21 on the ice.

He’s off to a good start.

5. The Habs may not have played as a group in front of Samuel Montembeault, but the fact remains that the goalie wasn’t perfect. He’d like to see Lars Eller’s second goal again.

The goalie said he couldn’t take a direct hit like that. And it’s true that it clipped the habs’ wings.

Canadiens hockey I Samuel Montembeault of @CanadiensMTL didn’t back down after the game.https://t.co/vxPQX7Kvuv

– 98,5 Sports (@985Sports) October 15, 2024

6. Lane Hutson, as good as he is, was -4 yesterday. He started the game with David Savard, who had a nasty one in the body, and finished it with Kaiden Guhle. He wasn’t perfect, of course.

But he played more than 24 minutes against the Penguins. That’s something.

Extension

Although the Canadiens were supposed to train this morning at the base, the club had the day off instead. There’ll be no training in Brossard this morning: it’s all set for tomorrow morning, in preparation for Thursday night’s match against Marc Bergevin’s Kings at the Bell Centre.

On Saturday, the Habs take on Patrick Roy’s Islanders in Long Island.