Like the Canadian against the Leafs two days earlier, the Detroit Red Wings were pumped up for their opener on Friday night. Had it not been for Jake Allen’s prowess in front of the Habs net in the first periodthey would have spun to an easy victory.
If Allen’s performance allowed his team to stay in the game until the third period, we felt that the Canadian’s chances of winning were slim.
The Red Wings were pressing hard in all three areas. Martin Saint-Louis’ men couldn’t achieve much.
When Elmer Soderblom opened the scoring in the opening minutes of the third period, it felt like the carrots were done for Martin Saint-Louis’ men.
The Red Wings finally put the game out of reach for the Canadian with two empty-net goals in the last minute of the game.
Defeat is not due to lack of effort. The effort was there, but the Red Wings played with brilliance and aplomb.
They deserved the win.
Difficult evening for Suzuki
The Suzuki-Cole duo was less visible than Wednesday night at the Bell Center. Suzuki, in particular, didn’t have its best game.
He had no shots on goal and struggled with face-offs. He won just three of nine, averaging 33 percent.
On the rookie side, Jordan Harris had a good game. He was the Habs’ second most used defenseman, after David Savard, with an ice time of 21m 28s.
He wasn’t on the ice for a Red Wings goal, had four shots on net, had just one turnover and blocked three shots.
For his part, Kaiden Guhle recovered well from an injury that limited him to three appearances on the ice in the first period.
Arber Xhekaj made his presence felt again with six hits.
What to do with Slafkovsky?
As for Juraj Slafkovsky, again he had no impact whatsoever.
After two games, we can think that he is not ready for the National League. It wouldn’t be surprising if St. Louis left him out for Saturday night’s game in Washington.
But you shouldn’t panic.
At the risk of repeating himself, Slafkovsky was not considered an exceptional player in the draft last July.
If he has the physique for the job, he still has a lot to learn and it is not by playing nine or 10 minutes per game that he will improve.
A stay in Laval seems to indicate in his case.
The return of Drouin?
Evgenii Dadonov doesn’t break anything either.
Also, we can expect to see Jonathan Drouin in the lineup for the first time against the Capitals, who will be looking for a first win after two losses.
It will be up to him to seize his chance if the opportunity arises. It will first have to go through an absolute implication.
A player may have all the talent in the world, but he must make every effort to earn his place.