“We left for Arizona on December 18. So, I think it will be fun to put our head on our own pillow. »
Martin St-Louis launched this little sentence after a loss of 6 to 3 against the Predators, Tuesday, in Nashville. The head coach was eager to return home after a long trip, split into two stays, the one before and after Christmas.
Technically, St. Louis and his players had their heads on their own pillows on December 24, 25 and 26. But he will be easily forgiven for forgetting the days after such a harrowing road trip.
Defeated in six of seven games (1-5-1) on opposing rinks, the Habs will reconnect with their fans tomorrow night for the visit of Artemi Panarin and the New York Rangers.
Coming home will give a bit of hope, but it will take a lot more to prevent the boat from sinking even more. After a rather surprising start to the season, CH plays like a team in reconstruction. It cracks everywhere.
In their last three games, Jake Allen and Samuel Montembeault have allowed 22 goals. The CH therefore gave on average a touchdown with a one-point conversion to its rivals. You don't need to be a mathematical genius to realize that this is a bit too much.
In seven games on the road, the Canadian scored 14 goals and gave up 34 goals, for a negative differential of -20. This is the temperature it was in Denver and Dallas. Strictly on the numbers, Allen and Montembeault have had an atrocious journey with averages of 4.49 and 4.98 respectively and save rates of .879 and .868. But they are far from being the only culprits.
We are still awaiting an accurate diagnosis for Kaiden Guhle. Injured in the left knee during the 7-2 loss against the Panthers in Sunrise, Guhle represents a big loss. Despite his rookie status, the 20-year-old Albertan was the most stable defenseman on the team. He was playing nearly 21 minutes (20:47) per game.
With the injuries to Guhle and Mike Matheson, Stéphane Robidas does not have many horses at his disposal. Joel Edmundson and Savard lack number one potential and the other defenders, with the exception of Chris Wideman, have virtually no experience. Arber Xhekaj, Jordan Harris, Johnathan Kovacevic and Justin Barron will gain experience in difficult conditions.
Twelve for 24. That's the sad shorthanded stat in the seven games on the road. A 50% outnumbered performance is simply catastrophic. Back in action for the game in Nashville, David Savard should lend a hand in that department. But the team misses Sean Monahan a lot.
Cole Caufield once again topped the team's scoring column in all seven games away from Montreal with four goals. After Caufield, there's Josh Anderson who hit the mark twice. Then it's dead calm.
On the eve of the game in Washington, Nick Suzuki had not been afraid to say that he was not playing well and that he had to give more. The captain has even more pressure on his shoulders in the absence of Monahan, the team's second center. Suzuki has had just one small assist in its last seven games.
If the big trio does not roll, that of Suzuki, Caufield and Kirby Dach, the Canadian does not have the ammunition to survive. There is hardly any attack from the other three units. St-Louis has juggled its lines in recent meetings, but has come back with its three guns in the last three outings.
