There weren’t a lot of conflicting opinions
when it came to voting for the HW 3 Stars of December. The Habsworld readers
made their selections almost unanimously, and as a result, it was practically a
landslide when it came to selecting the 3 Stars. Specifically, two Canadiens
received all but 2% of the 1st place votes, making this the first time that
there has been such consensus among the voters. The HW Stars this month
include Carey Price, Alex Galchenyuk and Max Pacioretty.
| 1st Star | Carey Price | 11 GP – 7 W – 4 L – 1.93 GAA – 0.937 SV% |
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One of the criticisms mentioned in last month’s article was that although Price was playing well and posting good numbers, his overall performance was inconsistent throughout November. The same can not be said of this month, as Carey was consistent game by game, and this contributed significantly to his successes in December. En route to posting season-best numbers, Carey allowed 3 or more goals only 3 times in the entire month. This in itself is impressive, but Carey tightened up his game even more so as the month progressed; he allowed no more than 2 goals per game in the final 7 matches of December. This stinginess compensated for Montreal’s occasional inability to score and allowed the Canadiens to maintain a healthy distance from the non-playoff teams in the standings. |
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★ 75% |
★★ 11% |
★★★ 13% |
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| 2nd Star | Alex Galchenyuk | 12 GP – 5 G – 5 A – 10 P – +6 Rating |
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★ 23% |
★★ 51% |
★★★ 14% |
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| 3rd Star | Max Pacioretty | 12 GP – 3 G – 6 A – 9 P – +8 Rating |
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With a 39-goal season on his NHL resume already, it’s not surprising that most fans see Pacioretty’s defining qualities as those of a goal-scorer. But there’s more to "Patch" than sniping, and December demonstrated that with the proper line-mates, he can make an equal impact on a game with his passing abilities. Freed from his habitual line-mate, David Desharnais, Pacioretty learned that it’s not always his responsibility to take the shot on goal, and the addition of Galchenyuk to his line gave him another option that had been lacking for some time. That is not to say that he changed his game drastically; although his 6 assists were tied for the team lead, his 37 shots on net topped the rest of the team as well. Finally, in spite of facing the opposition’s top checkers, Pacioretty shared the team lead in the plus/minus category with P.K. Subban with a +8. |
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★ 1% |
★★ 12% |
★★★ 26% |
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| Honourable Mention | P.K. Subban | 12 GP – 3 G – 6 A – 9 P – +8 Rating |
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Despite the fact that Subban is on pace to set a career-high in points, there are still many who feel that this season has been a bit of a disappointment for the former Norris Trophy winner. First, this probably has a lot to do with the massive contract he signed in the off-season, and the ridiculous expectations that accompanied it. But another reason may be that P.K. no longer has such an obvious impact on the game; the flashy end-to-end, stick-handling demonstrations have mostly been replaced with steady defensive play, which in turn favours his team as well as his personal statistics. It’s no coincidence that P.K.’s plus/minus has benefitted as a result (though one must credit Andrei Markov’s influence as well) and although P.K. might not be as exciting to watch as often, the Montreal Canadiens are better off for it. |
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★ 0% |
★★ 8% |
★★★ 8% |
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Thanks to all that voted, and be sure to check in for next month’s edition of
the HW 3 Stars.