January 22nd, 2013: Raise your hand if you’ve already watched this goal a thousand times? The first goal in a career every Habs fan is hinging their hope on. Galchenyuk awkwardly wins the faceoff and gets the puck back to Tomas Kaberle at the left point. Kaberle blasts it but the puck doesn’t get through and deflects to the half wall. Galchenyuk is first to it and takes a hard hit to make a pass down the boards to Brendan Gallagher, who pushes it deeper to Brandon Prust. Prust tries a sharp angle shot but can’t get it through. Galchenyuk takes the puck deep and passes to Gallagher behind the net, who tries to set up Prust, but Prust reverses the flow of play instead and goes back behind the net, and out to the faceoff circle before firing on net, where Galchenyuk is waiting to tip it in. This goal was a team effort on a zone play.
February 19th, 2013: Lars Eller carries the puck out of the zone and tries to set up Galchenyuk on a 3-on-2 break, but Ryan Callahan gets in the way with a poke check. Galchenyuk displays some sick skill by chipping the puck over Callahan then knocking it to Prust, who passes it back to Galchenyuk, who snaps it past Henrik Lundqvist. This goal was a team effort off the rush.
February 23rd, 2013: Erik Cole flips the puck out of the zone and Eller picks it up and breaks in 1-on-1. With no options he likes, Eller uses his body to shield the puck and turns around, and throws a pass to Galchenyuk, who’s coming in late. Galchenyuk drives hard to the net, and as he’s stickhandling in, Dan Girardi gets a stick on the puck, which causes it to bounce up and over the shoulder of Martin Biron. This goal was a team effort off the rush.
April 4th, 2013: Michael Ryder picks up a loose puck in the offensive zone and tries to set up Galchenyuk on the far side of the net, but he can’t get the puck through. It looks like a failed play until Travis Moen flips the puck through the Jets‘ defense and Galchenyuk snaps the puck home. This goal was a team effort on a zone play.
April 6th, 2013: P.K. Subban sends a half clapper in on Tuukka Rask but it’s stopped, and although Prust gets on the rebound, he can’t get anything on it and just slides it beside the net. Galchenyuk jumps on it and banks it off of Matt Bartowski and in. This goal was was a team effort on a zone play.
April 11th, 2013: Galchenyuk rims the puck around the boards to Ryder behind the net. Ryder comes out beside the net and sends a cross-crease pass back to Galchenyuk, who neatly deposits it into the Buffalo goal. This goal was a team effort on a zone play.
April 15th, 2013: Eller battles down low, protecting the puck along the boards, then sends it to Davis Drewiske, who wrists it on net. The shot is blocked by the Flyers‘ defenseman, but Galchenyuk picks it up, and while being blatantly held on to, powers his way around Bryzgalov for the goal. Normally rebound shots are team efforts, but I think Galchenyuk did enough here in moving the puck and fighting off a check that we can say it was an individual effort on a zone play.
April 17th, 2013: Travis Moen breaks into the offensive zone and gives the puck to Lars Eller, who’s covered, but manages to smack the puck into empty space. Galchenyuk bears down on the puck, pulls a nasty little deke and beats Marc-Andre Fleury over his blocker. This goal was an individual effort off the rush.
April 18th, 2013: Gallagher brings the puck into the zone and puts a shot on Ben Bishop, which he bobbles and smacks into the air with his stick for some reason. Drewiske recovers the loose puck and puts a shot on net that Bishop stops, but Gallagher is right there and flips the puck to the front of the net, where Galchenyuk out-battles three Lightning players to smack the puck into the cage. This goal was a team effort on a zone play.
May 7th, 2013: Jeff Halpern’s excellent backcheck causes a turnover and a break the other way, and he finds Galchenyuk at the perfect time, just as he’s crossing the blueline. Galchenyuk creates some distance between himself and the chasing Senator defender, and rips a wrist shot through Craig Anderson. This goal was an individual effort off the rush.
Next we’ll break this down further and see where Galchenyuk stands going into next season.
