(New York) Samuel Montembeault always has an easy smile. In a position where several athletes have particular personalities, sometimes hard to define, the Quebecer stands out with his candor and his relaxed side, in victory as in defeat.
After Sunday’s game, however, he demonstrated that he possessed the attention to detail typical of many masked men.
During his scrum in the visitors’ locker room at Madison Square Garden, a colleague pointed out to him that he had just played two games in 10 p.m., and that he had received nearly 80 shots in those two games.
“In fact, I had 160 shots in my week, he corrects, tit for tat. It’s good volume! »
Montembeault was right then, because the NHL had not yet finalized the statistics of the Canadian’s 2-1 victory over the Rangers. The league then gave the Rangers 40 shots, but eventually took one away; 159 shots, therefore. It’s just a trivial detail, but in this age of alternative facts, it’s important to lead by example.
In short, it’s been a busy week for Montembeault. He rose to the challenge brilliantly, allowing only 9 goals on those 159 shots, for an efficiency of .943. He came out of it with two wins and two losses, a perfectly correct result given the state of the forces in front of him.
His first victory of the week, against the Predators, did not have the same flavor. His counterpart was Yaroslav Askarov, a hyper-promising goaltender, but playing his first game in the NHL, and the Predators don’t exactly have the offensive punch of New Yorkers.
Sunday, Montembeault was opposed to Igor Shesterkin. The same Shesterkin who won the Vezina Trophy last season. A guy popular enough in Manhattan that Rangers fans chant “I-gor, I-gor” after his spectacular saves, the same way they used to shout “Hen-rik, Hen-rik” in another era.
The first name of the Russian resonated from the first minutes of the match, but at the other end, Montembeault was just as solid.
“Me too, I made some saves at the start, it helped me get into the game, underlined Montembeault. So I wanted to beat him even more. He’s so calm, he’s hard to beat on straight shots. He had to be moved. »
It went on like this all evening. To score their only goal, Rangers had to buzz for a good minute, six against five because there was a delayed penalty. At the other end, Shesterkin blocked two breakaways, in addition to a few saves against players – Jonathan Drouin and Evgenii Dadonov – simply forgotten in front of him. To outwit him, it took a major league shot from Kirby Dach, and one from close range from Cole Caufield.
In short, for those who know how to appreciate a good duel of goalkeepers, the show was worth the price.
“Me, as a goalkeeper, of course I want us to score lots of goals. But seeing a good show of goalkeepers making good saves is fun. I like 2-1 matches better! »
healthy this time
The world of sport is filled with examples of players who seized their chances, to the detriment of absentees. Talk to poor Wally Pipp, who might still be the Yankees’ first baseman today if Lou Gehrig hadn’t taken his job.
But you still have to be able to seize it, this chance. Last winter, all of the Canadiens’ goalies ended up being sidelined, from Carey Price to Jake Allen to Andrew Hammond. Montembeault was also inconvenienced, but he played despite his wrist injury and postponed the operation until May. Except that he ended the season with an efficiency of .891.
“We had so many injured goalkeepers, I had my chance. It was hard getting ready every night. It was a chance to learn, but it was not an easy season, we experienced a lot of roller coaster of emotions. I’m glad things are going much better this year. »
A year later, the CH still has to rely excessively on the goalkeeper of Bécancour, in the absence of Allen, injured. The return of the latter seems imminent, but until then, Montembeault is the imposed option. Cayden Primeau is looking for himself in Laval and is coming back from an injury. Martin St-Louis therefore hinted before the match that this was not the ideal context to send him into the fray, even if it meant a busy weekend for number 35.
After Saturday’s defeat, Éric Raymond spoke to Montembeault. “To ask me how it was going and if I was okay to play today, explains the goalkeeper. He told me he was pushing for it to be me again, so I’m glad it went well. »
The end of the Canadian season will be one of development. We often talk about defenders who have to do mileage, but that also counts for goaltenders. Especially for one who only has 80 games of NHL experience.
Rising
Jordan Harris
We don’t talk much about him because of his unobtrusive style, but he remains very adept at defending his territory with his always well-placed stick and his skating.
Falling
Johnathan Kovacevic
He’s been going through tougher times lately. One of his mistakes forced teammate Joel Armia to take a penalty. His playing time is reduced; he played only 13 minutes against Rangers, 11 the day before.
The number of the match
23
While setting up Kirby Dach’s goal, Cole Caufield ended a bizarre 23-game assistless streak. He now has 26 goals and 10 assists. Jared McCann (22 goals, 8 assists) is his most serious rival for hockey’s Cy-Young.
In details
PHOTO ADAM HUNGER, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kirby Dash (77)
Successful audition for Armia…
Finding a suitable linemate, who is not called Kirby Dach, is not easy. If the program Take up the challenge was still on the air, Martin St-Louis could very well appear before Gaston Lepage and submit this challenge to him. For the second time this season, and after a few unsuccessful experiences last year, it was Joel Armia’s turn to have his chance. The big number 40 played his role well and allowed his two teammates to shine. “Like Dach, he’s capable of winning battles for the puck. They are not identical players, but they have similarities in certain categories. Armia played a good game,” said St-Louis.
… And for Dach
If it’s so important for St. Louis to find the right complement for Suzuki and Caufield, it’s because he needs Kirby Dach at center. The CH has only four healthy centers, and again, it is by calculating Jonathan Drouin, who is more of a winger. Dach also succeeded in his mission. Despite often facing the dangerous Artemi Panarin, Dach’s trio kept the damage limited. When Dach was on the ice at 5-5, the Canadiens and Rangers tied the scoring odds at high danger, 3-3. Most importantly, Dach was in the thick of the action on those occasions, showing his great talent in possession and puck protection. Let’s exclude his goal from the equation, since he was listed on the power play. Of course, he will have to find success in the longer term before we can be sure that he can shine in the center, but St-Louis is curious. “He is calm and creative, analyzed the head coach. It covers a lot of ice with its size. We are all intrigued. Can he play center this league? At 21, I don’t think anyone here has the answer yet. »
A pillar, already
Before the game, Gerard Gallant said that K’Andre Miller had made “giant strides” from the last two months of last season. It was obvious on Sunday. While he didn’t necessarily look good on the streak leading up to Cole Caufield’s goal, he had a very strong game overall. In the third period, the way he caught Nick Suzuki to prevent him from going on a breakaway, without even coming close to being punished, was a gem in itself. Miller, a choice of 1er tour in 2018, turns 23 next week and is already playing 22 minutes a game. While Adam Fox is garnering attention for his offensive prowess, Miller is playing more and more like the true general of New York’s defense.
They said
After two periods, each team had a goal. There, you have 20 minutes to play and there is no better building on the road, with the day off tomorrow, to empty the tank, as they say, and get what you want.
Martin St Louis
They have found their rhythm for half a dozen games. It’s a long season, they’re going to experience lows.
Martin St Louis
In both games, we faced quite good goalkeepers. Some nights you’ll have to settle for a goal or two and play well defensively. It’s good to be rewarded.
Kirby Dash
Knock on wood, I’ve never lost here. It’s fun, we work really hard. We were ready to win on the road, the last victory before Christmas. We didn’t win [samedi]but we made a good effort.
Samuel Montembeault