It wasn’t a good end to 2019 for the Habs and 2020 hasn’t started off any better as the Habs dropped a trio of games to slip further out of the playoff picture.

Christian Folin has been the eighth defenceman on Montreal’s back end for most of the season and the Habs are giving him a chance to play in Laval after he cleared waivers on Monday.

The Habs kicked off the second half of their schedule by taking on the visiting Penguins on Saturday night. It was a tight-checking game and was tied 2-2 headed into overtime but a controversial non-call for goalie interference led to Pittsburgh getting the extra point.

The Habs have been hit hard by injuries as of late and they’ve dipped into the free agent market to try to help in that regard as they’ve signed winger Ilya Kovalchuk to a one-year, two-way contract.

A tough first ten minutes and a Carey Price brain cramp were all the Lightning needed to skate away with a victory at the Bell Centre as they handed the Habs their fourth consecutive loss by a 2-1 score on Thursday night.

In advance of Thursday’s game against Tampa Bay, the Habs swung a pair of trades.  They acquired Marco Scandella from Buffalo for a 2020 fourth-round pick and flipped Mike Reilly to Ottawa for a 2021 fifth rounder and minor leaguer Andrew Sturtz.

The Canadiens were looking to get back on track after a disappointing weekend when they took on the Carolina Hurricanes on New Year’s Eve. It was a lower scoring game compared to their last two but they once again came up on the short end, losing 3-1.

The week started off with some promise for the Habs but the enthusiasm quickly cratered after a pair of disappointing losses to teams they’re battling with for a playoff spot over the weekend.

In a tight playoff race in the Atlantic Division, the Habs refuse to buckle down and play a tight defensive game when faced with elite goal-scoring. That proved costly once again as they fell 6-5 to Florida on Sunday.