“The Lightning’s best defensemen should be on the third pairing.”

Félix Forget
“The Lightning’s best defensemen should be on the third pairing.”
Credit: Capture d'écran/Twitter

When it was announced that Noah Dobson would be sidelined due to an injury, there were concerns about how the Habs would handle the Lightning's offensive firepower in the playoffs. At that point, Alexandre Carrier was also out… and Kaiden Guhle was sitting this one out because he wasn't 100%.

It wasn't exactly a perfect recipe.

Except that last night, it didn't really show. The six defensemen in uniform did a solid job, including Alexandre Carrier, who looked really, really sharp.

In fact, it's mainly the Lightning who are raising questions about their defense right now. And during his appearance on JiC tonight, Renaud Lavoie was pretty clear: the Lightning's defense didn't impress him, especially when it comes to their two defensive pillars.

Their best defensemen are Ryan McDonagh and Erik Cernak. Those guys should be on a third pairing. – Renaud Lavoie

We know, in reality, that McDonagh and Cernak are more defensively oriented players. Both guys are capable of playing physical hockey, but it's true that Victor Hedman's absence puts them in a bit of a tough spot right now.

Darren Raddysh is a guy who makes up for it (he still has 70 points this season), but he hasn't exactly impressed the reporter, who compared him to Sheldon Souray 20 years ago.

It's fair to say the Lightning's defense didn't have a great game. The team didn't allow a ton of shots… but they did allow a ton of quality scoring chances. And in reality, it was the Habs' opportunism (and their big power-play advantage) that allowed Montreal to win yesterday rather than the volume of shots.

And with Charle-Édouard D'Astous sidelined, the unit is likely to be even thinner tomorrow. Yes, Jon Cooper must be missing Victor Hedman (who, it should be noted, has also slowed down) right now.


In a nutshell

– Leon Draisaitl is back.

– I love it!

– Hehe.

– Great read.

– Phew.

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