In this week’s HW Recap: For the 3rd time this
season, we have a back-to-back top player in the weekly player rankings. In
Hamilton, the Bulldogs are on their best run of the season, picking up points in
all three games this week and five straight overall. Plus, my Final
Thought discusses why fans shouldn’t expect immediate changed in the wake of the
coaching change.
|
Player |
Players are rated from 1 to however many
players play on a weekly (non-cumulative) basis. Rankings will be tracked
weekly and averages provided.
1) Erik Cole: His rough (and
debatable) penalty stretch against the Devils aside, he was the lone winger who
was a significant positive factor in each game; he now leads the Habs in goals
as well. (Prev: 1 Avg:
4.90)
2) P.K. Subban: His offensive game
sprung back to life as he picked up a point in each game while still playing in
his shutdown role. Expectations for his production will surely be going up
with Cunneyworth now running the show. (Prev: 7
Avg: 8.70)
3) David Desharnais: For now, he has
taken over the role of top offensive C as his line is the only one producing
with any consistency. He had a highlight reel goal against the Flyers and
led all forwards in assists. (Prev: 10 Avg:
8.20)
4) Tomas Kaberle: I can’t say he
deserves all the credit for the PP actually looking like a PP but he gets
a lot for sure. In terms of 5-on-5 play, he was the only D who played in
every game to not record a minus rating. (Prev: 8
Avg: 6.00)
5) Hal Gill: To be honest, he probably
shouldn’t be quite this high. But he more than doubled his season point
total so I have to give him his due for that. (Prev:
16 Avg: 13.67)
6) Lars Eller: Despite having different
linemates (and not exactly the most dynamic offensively to boot) each game, he
still managed to pick up a couple of points while slightly improving at the dot
as well. (Prev: 15 Avg:
7.50)
7) Andrei Kostitsyn: The lone Montreal
forward to record multiple hits in each game, he also provided an offensive
spark at times. On the negative side, he did whiff on a couple of good
chances. (Prev: 9 Avg:
6.38)
8) Max Pacioretty: He didn’t play
poorly but this was one of his quietest weeks of the season thus far. He
seemed to be comfortable deferring to Cole which didn’t turn out too badly. (Prev:
2 Avg: 4.33)
9) Josh Gorges: Same old, same old for
him, good defensive play while failing to bury anything in the offensive zone.
I think it’s safe to say his offensive output early on was a mirage. (Prev:
4 Avg: 7.20)
10) Mathieu Darche: He logged some
important minutes on the penalty kill and chipped in with some rare points.
Yes, he’s playing too much but he’s making good things happen at least. (Prev:
18 Avg: 15.80)
11) Carey Price: He seemed to get
worse with each game. I think that can be attributed to overuse; the team
signed a better backup in the offseason but are playing him less. (Prev:
3 Avg: 4.70)
12) Louis Leblanc: He provided some
important tertiary scoring which was nice. I’m concerned with his
unwillingness to drive the net on rushes though, he always just shoots from the
perimeter. (Prev: 20 Avg:
15.00)
13) Tomas Plekanec: Opponents’ top
lines weren’t exactly being shut down which reflects poorly on him. His
offensive game has dried up, something that is never good from your top centre. (Prev:
5 Avg: 5.70)
14) Yannick Weber: He didn’t play more
than 6:24 in a game and still managed a pair of points. You can’t argue
with that type of production from a 4th liner. (Prev: 21
Avg: 14.20)
15) Mike Cammalleri: He’s managing to
pick up some secondary assists along the way but he looks lost in the offensive
zone. He needs to get going again and fast. (Prev:
6 Avg: 10.89)
16) Petteri Nokelainen: It was nice
that he pitched in offensively but I find it a little peculiar that he took only
ten draws total. That’s not enough for a faceoff ‘specialist.’ (Prev:
17 Avg: 17.00)
17) Chris Campoli: He looked pretty
good aside from an awful 3rd period against New Jersey. His offensive game
helped the PP and should help the transition game over time. (Prev:
N/A Avg:
17.00)
18) Michael Blunden: He once again saw
very limited ice time but managed to make an impact on the scoresheet and in the
physical department. Efficiency is good. (Prev:
N/A Avg: 19.25)
19) Raphael Diaz: In the battle of the
D’s who played alongside Kaberle, he gets the nod for simply not making multiple
mistakes in the game he played. (Prev: 12 Avg:
13.20)
20) Alexei Emelin: I now see why he
was a healthy scratch early in the week as he is completely lost on the right
side. Don’t be surprised to see him sit down again in the near future, he
needs practice time before being thrown back out there. (Prev:
13 Avg: 13.00)
21) Travis Moen: He didn’t do anything
really in the few minutes he played before getting hurt. Hopefully he’s
back soon as his defensive presence is important for the penalty kill. (Prev:
19 Avg: 12.60)
|
The Dog |
The Bulldogs are on their longest point streak
of the season as they slowly try to get out of the conference and division
cellars.
|
Results: |
December 14:
Lake Erie 2, Hamilton 1 (SO)
December 16:
Abbotsford 4, Hamilton 3 (SO)
December 18:
Hamilton 3, Abbotsford 2 (OT)
|
StatPack: |
The offence continues to be
sporadic for the Bulldogs who sit dead last in the AHL in that category.
|
SKATERS |
|
# |
Player |
GP |
G |
A |
+/- |
SH |
PIMS |
| 5 | Alex Henry | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 4 | 4 |
| 6 | Joe Stejskal | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 2 | 2 |
| 7 | Joe Callahan | 2 | 0 | 1 | E | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | Philip DeSimone | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 8 | 2 |
| 13 | Zack FitzGerald | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 6 |
| 15 | Phillipe Lefebvre | 3 | 0 | 1 | E | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Olivier Fortier | 3 | 0 | 2 | E | 10 | 0 |
| 17 | Mark Mitera | 3 | 0 | 1 | E | 1 | 0 |
| 18 | Dany Masse | 3 | 1 | 1 | +2 | 7 | 2 |
| 21 | Ian Schultz | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 | 4 |
| 22 | Andreas Engqvist | 3 | 2 | 0 | E | 6 | 2 |
| 23 | Joonas Nattinen | 3 | 0 | 1 | +2 | 1 | 2 |
| 24 | Brian Willsie | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 16 | 2 |
| 28 | Aaron Palushaj | 3 | 1 | 0 | E | 7 | 2 |
| 32 | Frederic St. Denis | 2 | 0 | 3 | +1 | 4 | 2 |
| 40 | Gabriel Dumont | 3 | 1 | 0 | +2 | 11 | 0 |
| 51 | Mitch Wahl | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 3 | 0 |
| 53 | T.J. Fast | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 | 0 |
| 55 | Garrett Stafford | 3 | 1 | 2 | E | 5 | 4 |
| 67 | Alexander Avtsin | 3 | 1 | 0 | -2 | 4 | 4 |
|
GOALIES |
|
# |
Player |
Record |
SV% |
GAA |
| 52 | Nathan Lawson | 1-0-2 | .935 | 1.88 |
|
SHOOTOUT |
| # | Player | G/ATT |
| 10 | Philip DeSimone | 0/2 |
| 18 | Dany Masse | 0/1 |
| 24 | Brian Willsie | 0/1 |
| 28 | Aaron Palushaj | 0/2 |
| 32 | Frederic St. Denis | 0/1 |
| 40 | Gabriel Dumont | 0/1 |
| 51 | Mitch Wahl | 1/1 |
| 55 | Garrett Stafford | 0/1 |
|
SHOOTOUT |
| # | Player | SVS/ATT |
| 52 | Nathan Lawson | 5/8 |
|
Active Leaders: |
Goals: DeSimone/Engqvist/Masse (6)
Assists: Brian Willsie (11)
Points: Brian Willsie (14)
+/-: Andreas Engqvist (+3)
PIMS: Zack FitzGerald (113)
Shots: Brian Willsie (102)
|
Schedule: |
No games scheduled until the 26th.
|
Final |
For those looking for my thoughts on the
firing of Jacques Martin, I’ll be holding those until our Writers Weigh In
segment which will be in the near future, check back for that.
One of the many themes from those happy with
Saturday’s news was the thought of change, a new style, a new system.
Something that would immediately take away the memories of the dump and change
system often employed, or the sitting back in the 3rd period. Those fans
got a rude awakening in the game against New Jersey which for the most part
resembled any other game from this season. A word of caution: Don’t expect
that to change any time soon. Here’s the two main reasons why:
– The Habs have a big road trip coming up with
the lone real break being the Christmas break where they can’t practice anyway.
I would assume that on a couple of their actual days off during the trip, they
won’t be skating to stay rested. A team needs practice time to change
their habits, something the Habs won’t have in the immediate future.
– The personnel hasn’t changed. This is a
team mired with injuries and an active payroll that hovers around the league
floor. As I discussed a few weeks ago, teams with those characteristics
play a defensive, safe style to try and stay afloat. Unless Cunneyworth
has a mandate to increase Montreal’s goals per game by a certain amount, it
stands to reason that they’ll be doing the same.
Now, there are differences between changes and
tweaks. The former is more substantial, the latter is a lot easier to
implement in a short period of time. In fact, we saw a tweak in Saturday’s
game with the removal of Mike Cammalleri off the penalty kill. I suspect
as the days go by (and perhaps with a player or two returning), we may see
another one or two with regards to personnel in certain situations. But, I
wouldn’t hold my breath on seeing anything more significant than that any time
soon.
If you have any questions/comments, please feel free to drop me a line at b.larose@habsworld.net.