HW 3 Stars of the Night:

1) Jaroslav Halak: Once again was bombarded with way too many shots
for anyone’s liking (including some due to shoddy rebound control) but as we’ve
come to expect as late, he stood on his head and stole this one.  With the
way he’s playing as of late, Slovakia’s chances at the upcoming Olympics are
starting to look better and better.

Statline: 45/47 saves, .957 SV%, 1.85 GAA, 3/3 saves in the shootout

2) Scott Gomez: The game didn’t get off to a great start for him but like
the team in general, he got better as the game went along.  Offensively, he
had a pair of helpers and led the team in shots, while his defensive play helped
bring the game to OT with some strong work on the PK.

Statline: 2 assists, 4 shots on goal, 21:54 TOI, 8/21 faceoffs (38%), 0/1
shootout

3) Jaroslav Spacek: He was playing better before this recent injury and
kept it up in his comeback tonight.  Though not really a factor offensively
(he had an assist taken away later in the game), he was for the most part
flawless in the defensive zone which considering the amount of shots allowed is
something of a minor miracle.

Statline: 0 points, 4 blocked shots, 1 hit, 20:18 TOI

HM) Mathieu Darche: What’s the one thing commonly said from any coach at
any level?  When the team’s struggling to score, get to the net. 
Tonight, Darche heeded those words as he was right at the blue paint on both
Montreal goals.  With only 1 game left now before the Habs have to make a
decision on whether or not to return him to Hamilton (without needing waivers),
he’s making a strong case to stay.

Statline: 0 points, 3 shots, 1 blocked shot, 1 hit, 14:43 TOI