The win streak is over as the Habs fell 4-3 to the Blues in a game that was much closer than it should have been. The Blues dominated play with effective forechecking and Western Conference-style physicality for which the Habs had very little answer other than Carey Price.
In a game that was over almost as soon as the first puck was dropped, the Habs throttled the Wings 10-1 on Saturday night with all four lines getting in on the action and some unlikely heroes taking care of business.
The Canadiens showed some offensive opportunism in scoring a surprising six goals against Jimmy Howard and the Red Wings to pick up their fourth win in a row.
The Habs strong start was enough to earn a 2-0 lead and they rode that and Carey Price all the way to a 3-1 win over the Blue Jackets on Monday night.
In a game that perhaps lacked some excitement, the Habs did what needed to be done as they handled the Sabres by a 3-0 score on Saturday night. If this can be a sign of things to come from former Hart trophy winner Carey Price, then this season isn’t done yet.
In a surprise turn of events, Antti Niemi and the Canadiens gave Nashville all they could handle on Wednesday but it was the Predators who ultimately prevailed 3-2 in a shootout.
After Thursday’s disappointment, one expected an aggressive Montreal team. Instead, fans were treated to a steady diet of perimeter play which lasted just long enough for Toronto to find their game and pile-drive the Canadiens 6-0 in yet another ugly loss on Saturday.
Montreal’s defencemen all appeared to have lead anchoring their skates to the ice as they allowed five goals and many more opportunities in a 5-4 loss to the Coyotes on Thursday night.
Sergei Bobrovsky is the reigning Vezina Trophy winner, and he was in full form on Tuesday as the Blue Jackets were able to steal two points from a determined Charlie Lindgren and his Canadiens in a 2-1 overtime contest.
Despite being heavily short-handed and delivering a solid performance, the Habs came out of this game with nothing to show for it as they were defeated 3-0 by the Minnesota Wild.