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Michael Pezzetta and Jayden Struble: three penalties in 8:14 of combined ice time

 Mathis Therrien
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Michael Pezzetta and Jayden Struble: three penalties in 8:14 of combined ice time
Credit: Getty Images
Once again last night, the Montreal Canadiens gave us a great hockey game against one of, if not the best team in the entire National Hockey League.

Indeed, the Habs played a very solid game, being very engaged and determined throughout, which allowed them to secure two big points with a 3-2 overtime victory against the Washington Capitals.

Many will say that it wasn’t the Caps’ best game, which is true, but in the end, it was the Habs who managed to dominate and leave nothing for Spencer Carbery’s squad.

The Habs players put on an excellent performance and demonstrated great competitiveness in each of their shifts.

In short, Martin St-Louis’s team is playing with a lot of confidence, and it shows.

And this confidence has allowed the Habs to quickly climb the standings over the past few weeks and find themselves well positioned in the playoff race.

This morning, the Canadiens are one point away from the playoffs with a game in hand on the Columbus Blue Jackets, in addition to being just two points behind the Boston Bruins with three fewer games played.

(Credit: NHL.com)

In short, every game and every point is now very important for the Habs, which forces Martin St-Louis to coach even more to win.

This means that the head coach of the Habs will play his best players as often as possible and will trust the players who deliver good hockey.

Those who do not perform will therefore be punished, as was the case last night with Michael Pezzetta and Jayden Struble.

Indeed, both players were frequently glued to the bench, as evidenced by their combined ice time of 8:14.

St-Louis did not like their game last night and did not trust them, especially considering that they were responsible for three of the four penalties incurred by the Habs.

Pezzetta (3:05 ice time) gave the Caps a power play right at the start of the game, which allowed Jakob Chychrun to score first, and Struble (5:09 ice time) drew two penalties in the game, including one right after Pezzetta’s.

In short, this is the kind of game where St-Louis has no choice but to shorten his bench while waiting for his key players, Patrik Laine and David Savard, to return.

The Habs managed to beat the Caps with 11 forwards and five defensemen, but that won’t work forever, and reinforcements will be needed.

St-Louis will not always be able to get by by rotating players on the second line and giving a different partner to Arber Xhekaj in every shift.

We saw it yesterday, but Xhekaj looked bad on a few plays, especially on the Caps’ second goal. He misses Savard, and it shows.

In short, the Canadiens are managing for now, but they will need reinforcements very soon to avoid this kind of situation again.

In the case of Pezzetta, his career in Montreal is nearing its end, and in Struble’s case, well, at 23, he is still in development, but if he is given so little trust, he may very well end up being surpassed in the hierarchy.

It is also important to note that if the Habs continue to climb the standings and fight for the playoffs, Kent Hughes will have no choice but to seek better depth than Pezzetta and Struble.

If we don’t want to hinder the success of the Laval Rocket by recalling Alex Barré-Boulet and Gustav Lindstrom, for example, well, we will need to seek help via trade.

This remains to be closely monitored.


In Brief

– Notable and worth following.

– It’s a very confident opponent that will face the Habs tonight at the Bell Centre.

– To be followed today.

– To not be forgotten.

– Very good news.

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