There were a lot of youngsters in the Montreal Canadiens’ lineup last night, most of them still trying to prove that they deserve consideration to be up with the big club this season.
Fortunately for fans, this also gave us another look at these players. Unfortunately, this meant a pretty easy win for the Ottawa Senators.
Brandon Davidson had a rough start to the game, backing off of two separate rushes, one of which led to a goal in his own end. The Senators scored two in the first half of the period.
Johnny Oduya got things rolling early in the second period, with a long shot that got by Al Montoya. Not long after, Jeremy Grégoire dropped the gloves against Max McCormick, perhaps in an attempt to fire up the Montreal bench.
Mark Stone made the score 4-0 just nine minutes into the second period.
Thankfully, Charles Hudon ripped a shot top shelf and got the Habs on the board. This would be their only goal of the game.
Essentially all this matchup did was to expose the Canadiens’ depth chart. Certainly not the strongest showing, but it is important to understand that it was a young, primarily Laval-bound team wearing the CH last night. Of course, the main positive of the evening was the Hudon-Plekanec-Lehkonen line which I hope we see much more of going forward.
The final score was 5-1 for the Sens, and I have a feeling that this game has made coach Claude Julien’s decisions very easy over the next few days.
Thoughts
- As another round of cuts occurred directly after this game, this was the last chance for a few in-between-ers to prove themselves to management. Daniel Audette, Brett Lernout, Jeremy Gregiore and David Broll were all sent down.
- I have been liking the looks of the Hudon-Plekanec-Lehkonen line, and tonight was definitely no exception. Hudon had glimpses of brilliance, as per usual. He is definitely not afraid to be creative, attempt a play, or shoot the puck. Hudon fits in nicely with Plekanec’s defensive abilities and Lehkonen’s speed. This could be a viable line come regular season, and Plekanec seems to have some genuine chemistry with Hudon and Lehkonen on his wings. Some consistency in his linemates will only benefit Plekanec, who often gets moved around during the season. Additionally, Hudon and Lehkonen can learn a lot from the veteran who is in his 13th season with the Canadiens.
- Speaking of Charles Hudon, are we all officially in agreement that he stays in the NHL this year? Yes? Ok, good./
