(Washington) Good humor. It’s in the slogan of a certain suburban town, in the name of a program by Michel Louvain, too. It’s important in life, but also in hockey. “You go nowhere without enthusiasm,” recalled Martin St-Louis after practice with the Canadiens on Friday.
To hear the Habs players screaming with joy during the exercises, the good mood was there, no doubt. To stimulate it, St-Louis organized one of its classic internal competitions, between the white jerseys and the red jerseys. The whites tied the score at the very end, in the controversy if we believe the protests of the reds around the coach.
“They sent Anderson as the sixth player, they said they had removed the goalkeeper,” explained Brendan Gallagher, still falsely outraged in the locker room.
It therefore took a shootout to determine a winner, and Joel Edmundson (!) was the only scorer, giving the victory to the reds. White had to submit to laps as a result, while Gallagher taunted them.
Good humor and enthusiasm are therefore not lacking. It’s the rest that’s been a bit more complicated lately. The team’s schedule has gotten tougher, after the first two months of playing against several weaker opponents. Injuries to Sean Monahan, David Savard and Mike Matheson then added to the level of difficulty, so the Habs are 1-6-1 in their last eight games.
And as is often the case in struggling teams, the best players are struggling. This is especially true for Nick Suzuki. “I know I have to fix things and play better,” he admitted.
Thursday, he was devoured all round by Aleksander Barkov in Florida. The Panthers’ star center won 7 of 10 faceoffs against Suzuki, including one that led directly to the game’s first goal in the third minute. Barkov finished his night with five points, Suzuki with a -3 record.
It was a game like the Canadian captain’s last two weeks. In fact, it’s been downright night and day since Montreal’s 2-1 win over the Flames on Dec. 12.
Nick Suzuki’s record (goals-assists-points)
- Until December 12: 14-15-29 in 28 games, 56 shots, differential of 0
- Since December 13: 1-1-2 in 8 games, 10 shots, -7 differential
We also see less of his sidekick, Cole Caufield, but he still scored three goals during this streak.
Except Suzuki’s troubles are particularly noticeable, because as a first-line center who aspires to be reliable in all aspects of the game, he should be able to help his team even without blackening the scoresheet.
I always wanted to produce offense and help the team win. I can do it in many ways, he recalled. But I don’t play as well defensively as I can. When it doesn’t work offensively, there can be a domino effect on your game in other aspects of your game. I have to make corrections.
Nick Suzuki
Is the dynamic duo of Suzuki and Caufield more covered by opponents? “They’ve been playing against the other team’s best players for a long time. It’s nothing new. On this trip, it’s no different,” said Canadian head coach Martin St-Louis.
Is Suzuki dragging an injury? Several CH players are mortgaged, but Suzuki is in all of his team’s full training sessions.
Monahan’s absence may have something to do with it, though. The veteran center has been missing since December 6. He and Suzuki weren’t playing 5-on-5 together, but the numbers indicate Monahan was key on the power play. When he was on the ice in this situation, the CH scored 7.61 goals per 60 minutes. This is a peak among the team’s attackers, far ahead of Mike Hoffman (5.63).
“When your power play doesn’t work, it becomes difficult for your offensive players,” said Saint-Louis. When your power play rolls, you produce scoring chances, you touch the puck and you build your confidence. All things that help five against five. »
Suzuki and his teammates will at least have a good source of motivation for Saturday’s duel against Alexander Ovechkin, since the mothers of the Canadiens players will be attending the game. “My mother is waiting for me at the hotel. We’re going to do stuff together this afternoon and we’re going to eat,” Suzuki said.
More reasons to stay in a good mood. We will have to see if the rest will follow.