Canadian 1 – Bruins 5 | In pain

The close-up of Jake Allen’s face left no doubt: it hurt.

Simon-Olivier Lorange
Press

After the first goal of the game, the Canadiens goalie spent a long time on the ground. And a few minutes later, he entered the bench. Evening over. We haven’t learned much more about his situation, but we suspect it is medical, as the late Pat Burns would have said.

It was an assumed pain in the “lower body” that made Allen wince. But it’s a whole other pain that must have disfigured the supporters of the Canadian Wednesday night. At least the courageous who listened to the end of this long correction ended with a score of 5-1.

“We will not put anyone in the dock,” warned head coach Dominique Ducharme after the meeting. No less than nine of his men were returning to play after missing one or more games with an injury or infection with COVID-19. And the few survivors who escaped the virus were, like the rest of the squad, forced to take a full week’s training break after New Years Day.

So goes for the rust argument. But it’s not just that.

Two elements jumped out at this meeting.

On the one hand, the titanic gap in talent between the two clubs on the ice. It can only get better for CH, which foresees other short, medium and long term returns, but the imbalance of power will last for a while.

On the other hand, this probably explains the almost incalculable quantity of gaps to be filled. No trio has had a really good game. In defense, a duo made up of Sami Niku and Chris Wideman would not be united in any good team on the circuit. In the power play, it’s total drought. The problems go beyond the existing staff.

The defeat was therefore painful, yes. But it was doubly so because, if the forced break had made his fans forget the setbacks of the Habs, the recall could not be clearer. They’re not a very good team, and they haven’t played very well.

The next few weeks, if not the next few months, are therefore likely to unfold accordingly. In pain.

In the manner of Pezzetta

If, at least, Ducharme’s troop had worked hard, the tone of this column would undoubtedly be more cheerful.

But when the CH Player of the Match is Michael Pezzetta, that’s not the best news.

A word, first, about the fiery and long-haired Ontarian. Before this season, nothing seemed too destined for the NHL. And now that approaching the middle of the calendar, we do not see how the Canadian could do without.

Realizing the limited talent the Lord has given him, he approaches every game as an “audition” – his words, not ours.

The harshness of his playing is one of the few things that is in his control, he recalled. “I never want that [cet aspect de son jeu] be called into question. I want to bring intensity, heart, fire. I know what I can do. ”

However, for him, “there is not an easy day”. “In every game, I want to improve and show that I have my place here. It’s never over: there are always guys coming in and wanting your job. ”

In a season like this, this is the state of mind that should be shared by almost all the players in the squad. There are of course some who seem busier than others. Against the Bruins, Laurent Dauphin did pretty well, Ryan Poehling and Lukas Vejdemo too. All three have in common that they have no insurance for a position when the last injured are back to health.

You don’t feel that flame burn so much at Cole Caufield, for example. He who has only scored one goal this season and who only took one shot on Wednesday. Jeff Petry, who has already looked much worse it is true, did not seem willing to give a clinic back to excellence him either.

Of Pezzetta, Petry said he brought “a lot of energy”, that he went to the “difficult areas” and was “not afraid to play physically”. “He was rewarded,” he recalled, with a goal and additional ice time. For only the second time this season, the number 55 has passed the 12-minute mark.

If the supporting striker is such an inspiration, why hasn’t his engagement snowballed? “I don’t know,” Petry admitted. “I want to play my way, and if the guys want to be inspired by that, they do it,” added Pezzetta.

Ducharme again said he was managing his workforce on a day-to-day basis. After the long break, conditions were not “ideal” for anyone. However, he felt that some of his players “deserved” more minutes “than others”

Right there, there is a message to grab. That ice time will now be given to merit. And that to win it, you have to go in the manner of Pezzetta.

In pain.

On the rise: Michael Pezzetta

A goal, checks, intensity. This good soldier, used to the fourth trio, was rewarded with a promotion to the right of Christian Dvorak.

Down: Joel Armia

Invisible before his injury, invisible on his return. He did the opposite way from Pezzetta towards the fourth trio. After 30 games, he still has only 5 points.

The number of the match

3

Advanced stats site Natural Stat Trick calculated the Canadiens had three quality scoring chances in 42:11 of the five-on-five game. It’s very, very little, especially with such a weak punch on the power play.

They said

In details

Hats off, Marchand!

With all due respect to the Bruins’ most ardent slayers, Brad Marchand may be destined for the Hall of Fame. However, contrary to a certain perception of Montreal supporters, it was not against the Canadian that he built his offensive success. His 31 points in 44 games (before Wednesday) against this historic rival are below his career production rate. In addition, he had scored only 10 goals in that interval, and never two in the same match. The proud rascal set out to reverse the trend by scoring the fifth hat trick of his career. For his three goals, it was in his favorite work zone that he was: very close to the opposing goal. On his first, he was forgotten by Sami Niku, who left him alone. On his second, he rushed to catch his own return on the fly after a shot taken from a good distance. And on his third, shorthanded, he mocked Chris Wideman and Joel Armia, who, in retreat, let him maneuver as he pleased. As he never does anything like the others, after his last net, Marchand drew his favorite hat from all those who have been thrown on the ice: a fuchsia cowboy hat, which one suspects he will wear with pride under little.

Wideman suspended?

In the tradition of a good old Canadian Bruins, the spirits were heated in the third period. After the locals had passed long seconds outnumbered, the corner of the rink ignited a passionate rififi. Erik Haula then rushed at Chris Wideman and grabbed him; Disgruntled, the Habs defender responded with a header that cut the face of the Boston striker. Wideman was punished for unsportsmanlike conduct, but remained in the game. Anyone who hasn’t played since Dec. 11 should get extra time off in the short term, as head shots usually end in suspensions – though Calgary Flames Rasmus Andersson got away with it. fined during a preseason game last fall. We will know more about this on Thursday.

Rask’s return

Not surprisingly for reporters who follow the Bruins’ activities, as the goalie has been skating with his teammates for quite a while now, but Tuukka Rask caused some surprise by signing a low price (1 million) contract earlier this week. Fully recovered from hip surgery that required a long rehabilitation, the Finn was in uniform for the first time on Wednesday as an assistant to Linus Ullmark and will be in net on Thursday. In the morning, Rask addressed members of the media. He said he had no long-term plans and missed the locker room vibe. But above all, he said he came back to give himself another chance to win. At the same time, he recognized that the adventure would inevitably end for the last Bruins veterans who participated in the conquest of the Stanley Cup in 2011. “You have to be realistic: you get older,” he said. The window closes, there are two or three years left, who knows […] We’ll see what happens. “As a joke, he suggested to Patrice Bergeron, whose contract expires at the end of this season, to imitate him by taking a half-season off next year.