Martin St-Louis had a hard time explaining how Kaiden Guhle has improved over the season.
“It’s hard to say because he’s pretty strong everywhere,” dropped the head coach, Thursday night, following a creditable 4-3 shootout loss to the New York Rangers.
Guhle was competing for his 40e game of the season and only his 5e of the year 2023, Thursday. Returning from an injury that kept him out for two games, he finished the night with a goal, an assist and two shots in the loss.
Alex Belzile’s reaction to the evocation of the young defender also spoke volumes: “Guhle… Listen,” he said before pausing.
Before getting hurt, he played big. Even now he’s back from his injury and it’s like he didn’t miss anything. We forget how young he is, the way he behaves and what his game. It bodes very well for the future.
Alex Belzile, about Kaiden Guhle
At the other end of the locker room, Samuel Montembeault made substantially identical comments.
“He’s quite a player, said the goalkeeper. He’s a rookie in the National League, but it doesn’t show at all. »
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Samuel Montembeault and Mika Zibanejad
Guhle, whom some perceived above all as a defender with limited offensive potential, seems to be taking a liking to attacking. In the second period, he intervened in front of a Filip Chytil who came into the enclave, before relaunching the attack and taking advantage of a scoring opportunity.
“The biggest thing is his confidence,” said Martin St-Louis. […] We are very happy with what he shows. We knew it was going to be good, but we didn’t know it would be this good, so soon. »
“We all love each other”
If the Habs’ season was a song, the refrain would go like this: the Canadian can compete with all the teams on the circuit. He proved it again on Thursday night. For the second time in two games, he stood up to one of the best teams on the circuit.
So even after a fifth loss in a row, Martin St-Louis was not an unhappy coach.
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Chris Tierney, Josh Anderson and David Savard
“That match could have gone either way, the last one too, on the road too. Guys don’t arrive moping. »
No one is unaware that the CH has in its training a good number of players looking for a full-time position. Thursday night, 5 of the 12 forwards were players who spent most of the season with the Laval Rocket. Still, the team “still competes,” noted St-Louis.
“It proves to me that our collective game is more important than any individual. »
Remarks supported by Josh Anderson, who effectively summed up the overall feeling that reigns in the locker room: “We all love each other. »
As to whether the newcomers are somehow dragging the team down with their desire to show what they can do, Anderson replied that “everyone does it and pushes their limits.”
“It brings energy,” he added. It’s positive when you see these young people arrive and give themselves body and soul. It makes everyone want to work hard and contribute to success.
“The atmosphere is pretty good right now. I know we don’t win, but we do a lot of good things. We approach each game with confidence. »
The Canadian has only one thing left to do: “find the killer instinct and go get some,” says Alex Belzile. Because nobody likes to lose five games in a row, no matter what.
Up: Josh Anderson
PHOTO DAVID KIROUAC, USA TODAY SPORTS
Josh Anderson
He scored one goal, had three breakaways, created scoring chances for his teammates and gave up three hits.
Down: Nick Suzuki
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Nick Suzuki (center)
He caused five turnovers and finished the night at -1.
The number of the match: 1
For the first time this season, Nick Suzuki did not score in the shootout. He had scored on his 5 occasions before the match.
In details
Anthony Richard sweated!
PHOTO DAVID KIROUAC, USA TODAY SPORTS
Anthony Richard
Anthony Richard didn’t steal his pay on Thursday. It all started Wednesday night, actually. The Quebec forward was playing at Place Bell, where the Rocket suffered a 5-1 beating, “probably our worst home game of the year,” he said. Thursday was originally supposed to be just a day of travel to Syracuse for Friday’s game, but Jean-Francois Houle changed the plans and led a practice that Richard called “punishing.” “There was a lot of skating, one-on-one battles, so I was happy to take the four hour bus ride to rest. Then, after training, J.-F. called me into his office to tell me that I had been recalled. I was happy, but I immediately thought about my recovery! Besides, we played [mercredi], night was short. It was Christian Dvorak’s withdrawal that forced his recall to the Canadiens at the end of the morning, and Richard did pretty well. He spent nine minutes on the ice, and thanks to checks from Michael Pezzetta, who forced the Rangers defensemen to rush their moves, this hard-working trio spent the evening in the offensive zone. Alex Belzile was rewarded with a goal, and the unit finished with a 3-0 ratio in high-quality scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.
On a roller coaster for Kane
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Patrick Kane
Patrick Kane was playing his third game since the Blackhawks traded him to the Rangers. He certainly finished the night with a goal and an assist, his first two points in his new uniform, but it wasn’t exactly a masterpiece. He was guilty of a stupid puck loss on the power play in the second period, which led to the goal of Josh Anderson. Then, he very nearly gave the victory to the Habs when he received a more or less useful penalty for a stick with less than five minutes left in the third period. Luckily for him, the Montreal power play had one of those nights when it generated very little pressure, so the Rangers got away with it.
Instant cohesion
PHOTO DAVID KIROUAC, USA TODAY SPORTS
Rafaël Harvey-Pinard tries to outsmart Igor Shesterkin
With the high turnover in the infirmary, Martin St-Louis is having a hard time keeping the lines intact for a long time. However, one of the units that enjoyed some lasting success was that of Nick Suzuki, accompanied by Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Josh Anderson. The three players were together very briefly twice in the third period, and each time they generated a chance. The first time, Anderson escaped, and Igor Shesterkin stopped him. Then, just before extra time, that same Anderson spotted Harvey-Pinard, whose shot was blocked by the Russian goalkeeper. “We were trying to generate something. It was good to meet for a few appearances, but it’s a shame that we didn’t take advantage of our chances, ”lamented Anderson.
Xhekaj operated
PHOTO ERIC BOLTE, USA TODAY SPORTS ARCHIVES
Arber Xhekaj
In addition, the Habs indicated after the match that defender Arber Xhekaj had surgery on his right shoulder on 1er March. “He should be reinstated for training camp,” it was said. Unsurprisingly, the team also announced an additional absence of “three to four weeks” for Brendan Gallagher, who until recently wore protective boots. Recall that on January 11, the Canadian announced an absence of a minimum of six weeks. If the current schedule is met, Gallagher could play a few games by the end of the schedule on April 14. Finally, the team also indicated an “indefinite” absence for Kirby Dach, who has been missing since mid-February.
They said
Hey, Lord! It’s crazy, you see he’s in shape. He played 32 minutes and it didn’t show at all. He skates so fast, he is good at supporting the attack. It seems like he never runs out of energy.
Samuel Montembeault, on defender Mike Matheson
It’s the difference between a 20-goal scorer and a 30-goal scorer. I often tell myself that. You take advantage of these quality chances and that changes everything.
Josh Anderson on his many scoring chances
He has all the tools, with his speed, his size, his strength. He learns to play with guys and he stands out. He had three breakaways tonight. He has qualities that cannot be taught.
Martin St-Louis, about Josh Anderson
You see what it brings. He goes forecheck with his speed, and he goes behind the defenders. I’m happy with his game for a guy who had a tough 24 hours.
Martin St-Louis, about Anthony Richard
When [Michael] Pezzetta arrives with speed, it forces the defenders to be on the heels. They have big defenders, but they are not fast. He put pressure on them and our trio had chances to score.
Anthony Richard