Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton did a good job at the trade deadline but that was the easy part. The time to pass judgment on how they’re doing will come when the heavy lifting gets done in the offseason and beyond.
The Habs had a good first half on Tuesday night but were unable to keep it up for the entire 60 minutes. Add to this an inability to counter Ottawa’s man advantage and the end result was Montreal getting handed a 6-3 defeat.
It was a tough road trip on paper for the Habs as they faced off against three of the top teams in the league. Unsurprisingly, they had some struggles although they were able to pick up a victory in Tampa Bay to at least end the week on a winning note.
Saturday night marked the NHL debut for Jordan Harris and the young defenceman played well as the Habs were able to pull off the comeback and beat Tampa Bay 5-4 in a shootout.
Who were the top performers for the Habs in March? Make your selections for Montreal’s three stars of the month.
Of all the days to name an interim captain through the rest of the season, the Canadiens felt that the first of April was the appropriate time to do so.
Thursday was just one of those games where the Habs had absolutely no answer for the juggernaut that was the Carolina Hurricanes as they fell 4-0. Good thing Jake Allen was stellar, otherwise the score would have been much uglier.
The Habs looked to get back in the win column on Tuesday as they were in Florida to take on the Panthers. It was certainly an eventful game and featured a three-goal comeback from Montreal but it wasn’t enough as they fell 7-4.
One thing that has quickly become evident with the Habs under Martin St. Louis is that there are few blowouts and a high compete level almost every night. That was the case this past week as while Montreal only walked away with four of eight points, every game was close despite their roster being further depleted at the trade deadline.
In a game that was filled with intensity, good intention, and terrible execution on Sunday night, the Habs were true to the team they’ve gotten us used to of late. They relied on timely saves from their netminder, some bad defensive coverage, and a never-say-die attitude that allowed them to tie the game in the final moments before finally falling to the Devils 3-2 in a shootout.