A successful comeback! | The Press

The break-in period foreshadowed the worst. Eight consecutive defeats in preparatory matches were bound to demoralize the troops and spoil the first official game, right?

Well no. Against all odds, the Canadian made a comeback by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3, thanks to an inspired performance. This result was all the more unexpected since the Habs fielded five rookies, including four defensemen, against one of the NHL’s offensive powers. A look back at this spectacular victory, in seven observations.

1. Cole Caufield is ready

The small attacker has the hands of a surgeon – and he operates. The team’s top scorer in the preseason schedule, Caufield continued his momentum on Wednesday with two goals and five shots. All evening, he managed to sow his cover. He did not remain camped in his favorite house, near the circle of face-offs. He walked briskly in the opposing zone, and was threatening everywhere. It is really encouraging. The crowd recognized his efforts by showering him in love during the star presentation. Caufield took a few seconds to savor the moment, before responding “thank you” in French. A good moment of communion.

2. Sean Monahan, darling of the coach

The first match is an opportunity to learn a bit more about the coach’s preferences. Who plays on the power play? Outnumbered? Who takes the important faceoffs? Sean Monahan got all these missions, against the Leafs. He made Martin St-Louis look good. First announced on the wing, the former Flames was delegated for 15 face-offs, a record for the Canadian. Expect it to become the Swiss army knife of St-Louis.

3. Kirby Dach in the middle? Not sure

Conversely, Martin St-Louis used Kirby Dach very little on face-offs. Only twice in the entire game. It must be said that Dach’s career success rate (34%) does not inspire confidence. On Wednesday, the Canadian’s new striker made two very good plays: a battle won along the boards, which led to Monahan’s goal, as well as a turnstile that almost fooled Matt Murray. On other presences, on the other hand, he was much less involved. He is an enigmatic player who will represent an interesting challenge for Martin St-Louis.

4. Surprise outnumbered!

The Canadian struggled during the camp in numerical inferiority. We could see that Martin St-Louis lacked figures in his game. The head coach of the Canadian went there with a surprising combination, Wednesday, by entrusting missions to the player who was least expected: Evgenii Dadonov. Not particularly known for his defensive withdrawals, the Russian played nearly three minutes outnumbered. That’s forty seconds less than in his 413 previous matches – combined! The counter-employment was convincing. Dadonov did pretty well. It was more difficult at even strength, late in the game, when one of his blunders in opposing territory led to the Maple Leafs’ third goal.

5. A rear view mirror for Arber Xhekaj

The Habs rookie shows great ability to read the game in front of him, which allowed him to create the attack. The problem ? What was happening behind him. Twice, a Maple Leafs forward snuck up behind him, to go on a breakaway. Also, during a two against two, Xhekaj went towards the free player, already watched by a teammate, rather than towards Auston Matthews, who came with the puck, and who obtained a good opportunity to score. It’s the job that comes in, quite simply.

6. Kaiden Guhle resists brilliantly

Kaiden Guhle generated little offense. Or not at all. The young defender even spent almost the entire game in his territory. Except that his calm and assured game allowed the Canadian to extricate himself from difficult situations, after long puck possessions from the Maple Leafs. Do you know many of the players who lead their team in playing time (22 minutes) in their very first NHL game? Neither do I.

7. Patience with Juraj Slafkovsky

A quick word in closing on Juraj Slafkovsky who, like Xhekaj and Guhle, was also playing his first career match. The Slovak has played little. Barely 10 minutes. It was less a disavowal than a combination of circumstances. Martin St-Louis had already warned us, earlier this week, that Slafkovsky was going to play on the power play this season. Just not now. Obviously, it is excluded, for the moment, to send him short of a man. However, as there were several minor penalties on each side, the 18-year-old hopeful had to content himself with warming up the bench for long periods. The few times he had the puck, we noticed it. He notably extracted a penalty from the Leafs during a climb. A small gain for him, in a well-deserved team victory.