While the Canadiens were able to open up the scoring on Saturday night in Toronto, things went downhill from there in a hurry as the Maple Leafs picked up five unanswered goals to take the 5-1 victory.

Thursday’s game was close through 40 minutes as it looked like Montreal might be able to pick up a win in Carolina. However, things fell apart in the third as the Hurricanes scored four unanswered goals to pick up the 6-2 win.

After a pair of victories over the weekend, the Habs looked to make it three straight as they hosted Chicago on Tuesday. They got some scoring from some unexpected players to help lead the way to a 4-0 win.

After a long layoff, the Habs were back in action over the weekend with a pair of matinee affairs. While many were expecting them to be rusty, the opposite happened as they put up two strong efforts against the Islanders and Oilers to pick up two unexpected victories.

The Habs played the back half of their weekend matinees on Sunday against Edmonton. Alex Belzile scored his first career NHL goal and Montreal’s offence came to life as they skated away with a 6-2 victory.

Following a long layoff for the All-Star break and the bye week, the Habs were back in action on Saturday afternoon against the Islanders. It was a back-and-forth affair that needed over time and after Montreal killed off a penalty, Mike Matheson potted the winner for a 4-3 victory.

January wasn’t a great month for the Habs overall but a few players managed some decent performances. The votes have been tabulated and here is who our readers voted for as Montreal’s three stars for the month.

The Habs took care of one of their pending restricted free agents on Friday, announcing that they’ve signed defenceman Jordan Harris to a two-year extension that carries a cap hit of $1.4 million.

How can the Canadiens tank, because they have to (to attain high-level draft picks) and not tank at the same time? In other words, can two opposites exist at the same time and both are true and needed? They can and there is a very specific word for it: Tankapalooza.

January wasn’t a great month for the Habs when it came to getting victories (or avoiding injuries) but there certainly were some players who were able to stand out in a positive way. Who were their top performers of the month?