Well the Montreal Canadiens at least won bragging rights over the Ottawa Senators this season. With last night’s 5-1 win, they took the regular season series with a 4-0-2 . A small victory in what has been a disappointing season by far.
Another achievement was Erik Cole’s three goals that came in the first 5:41, setting a team record for the fastest hat trick from the start of a game. Cole had several other opportunities throughout the game, but the team record of six in a game (Newsy Lalonde) still stands.
Cole equaled his career best with his 30th goal of the season. Hmmm, remember how people wondered how the Habs winger would do without Eric Staal?
Cole and Max Pacioretty became the first pair of Canadiens to score 30 goals in a season. Vinny Damphousse and Pierre Turgeon did it 16 years ago, although they both scored 38.
Holding a 4-1 lead, the Habs were subjected to a meager attempt at goonery by Chris Neil and company as the game progressed.
Practically every whistle in front of Carey Price ended up in a shoving match. It was at it’s worst in the second period, which made the middle 20 minutes feel longer than a baseball game between the Chicago Cubs and the Iowa Baseball Confederacy All-Stars.
What makes the Habs less resistant to these shenanigans though is the presence of Brad Staubitz, and Ryan White. Staubitz does not chose his fights, unlike Georges Laraque, and White will stand up to virtually anyone, just ask Neil.
An interesting tweet from TSN990’s John Bartlett last night, noting the Canadiens are 11-8-3 when they fight and 2-2 when two fights occur.
Yannick Weber left the game with a lower-body injury. The Canadiens called up Frederic St-Denis following the game.
The Habs were quickly on a plane and off to Philadelphia last night, where they play the Flyers this evening.
Advanced Stats: Shift Charts / Head to Head / Corsi & Fenwick
The Early Days of Hockey Statistics
Interesting read on how hockey helmets have changed the game
