Livescore
The Montreal Canadiens are in the race for the final wild-card spot in the NHL’s Eastern Conference midway through the season.
The battle is more competitive than anyone could have imagined, with six clubs within four points of each other.
After Tuesday night’s action, the Columbus Blue Jackets, on the strength of a 4-3 shootout win over Pittsburgh, have a temporary hold on the final post-season berth, but lurking just one point behind them is the Canadiens. The same Montreal Canadiens who were one point out of last place in the NHL on Dec. 1 have gone 11-5-0 since.
How is that possible?
Here are five reasons why Les Habitants are one of the hottest clubs in the NHL:
The Return Of Patrik Laine
The loss of the 2016 second-overall pick in a pre-season collision with Toronto’s Cedric Pare denied the Canadiens much-needed secondary scoring. Since his return in early December, Laine has eight goals, all on the power play, in 13 games. the Canadiens went 9-4 in those games.
Calder Candidate Hutson?
The names most mentioned in pre-season predictions for the NHL’s rookie of the year were Macklin Celebrini, Matvei Michkov and Logan Stankoven, among others.
Lane Hutson was considered an intriguing prospect coming out of Boston University but was possibly thought to need time in the AHL or play limited minutes. Instead, the defenseman leads all rookies in scoring (30 points) and average ice time (22:38).
Unexpected Scoring Sources
Canadiens coach Martin St-Louis entered the season with former 20-goal scorers Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky expected to lead the way in scoring. Suzuki and Caufield have accounted for nearly 30 percent of the club’s goals this season, but Slafkovsky has struggled in the first half with just four goals.
The pugnacious Jake Evans has picked up the slack – on pace to exceed his career-high 13 goals in a contract year – as well as 23-year-old Swede Emil Heineman, who scored 15 goals in 48 games with Laval last season and has 10 so far this season.
A Shrewd Trade
GM Kent Hughes took advantage of Nashville’s desire to shed struggling defenseman Alexandre Carrier’s $3.75-million contract, swapping younger blueliner Justin Barron to the Preds for the 28-year-old Quebec native just before the Christmas trade freeze. Carrier has solidified the right side of the Habs’ blueline, playing just under 20 minutes per game and recording five assists.
Related: NHL Rumor Roundup: Latest Trade Buzz On The Canadiens And Senators
A Quality Backup
Samuel Montembeault is respected enough to be one of Canada’s three goalies for the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off. But Cayden Primeau’s struggles forced St-Louis to give the 28-year-old Montembeault one of the heaviest workloads in the league, with 32 games.
The Canadiens sent Primeau to AHL Laval in late December and called up Jakub Dobes. In two starts, the 23-year-old Czech has two wins, his first NHL shutout, a 0.48 goals-against average and a .982 save percentage. Dobes’ performances could allow Montreal to give Montembeault a lighter workload in the second half.
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