Capitals 5 – Canadian 2 | Hope and Martin St-Louis

We cannot say that Martin St-Louis did not warn us.

Richard Labbe
The Press

Simon Olivier Lorange
The Press

In the morning, before this other CH defeat and his first, the new Montreal driver had warned Montreal, Quebec and part of Canada that “it will take a little time”. In other words, that the fans of the CH were going to have to be patient, because the gentleman with the white gloves who walks with the Stanley Cup is not exactly at the gates of the Bell Center.

Another proof, as if it were necessary: ​​this defeat, this one by a score of 5-2, against the Washington Capitals who were without their leading scorer, Alex Ovechkin, and also without T. J O’Shie .

So yes, it will take time, because this club is the same one Dominique Ducharme had on hand. It will occasionally be mentioned that in the history of professional sport, it has already happened that a change of coach produces stunning results, and it is with great pleasure that we can bring back the example of the Blues in 2019. But these transformations are used to being done with teams that have a lot of talent at the base.

The Canadiens are not one of those teams.

“I love winning, but I’m a guy who’s always in thought,” explained Martin St-Louis at the end of the evening. As a player, even if I scored, it didn’t mean that I had played well. It’s the same thing ; we didn’t win, but we played very well. If you just focus on winning, it can be very hard on player morale. I was impressed with our guys’ work ethic, their speed. Washington hasn’t been given a lot of space in the last two periods. »

This theme of work ethic came up often late Thursday evening, as did the far more crucial theme of commitment. This is probably the most important end for St. Louis: these players, for the most part completely disinterested in Dominique Ducharme’s last three games, have finally shown energy and hard work. At a minimum, this is a step in the right direction.

“We could see from start to finish that every guy was committed, that everyone was focused and ready,” noted Josh Anderson. If we look at the chances of scoring, and also the number of shots on goal, it was all to our advantage. I liked our degree of competition, and we have to continue to build on that. »

Among those who can build on something: Cole Caufield, who played perhaps his best game of the year, and looked like the Caufield of last spring—he scored his second of the season, and he was refused another. If he can find his magic touch, the Canadiens’ games between now and April will be a lot more exciting.

Now, the new driver will have to ask questions about Cayden Primeau, who would do well to head for Laval as soon as possible. The poor young man, after giving up 4 goals on 14 shots, had to give way to Samuel Montembeault, having been knocked out of a game for the fifth time in nine starts this season.

From memory, it was Gustave Flaubert, towards the end of his life, who wrote that a coach is only as good as the goalkeeper he sends in front of the net. That’s exactly what we thought Thursday night at the Bell Center, seeing Martin St-Louis revise his notes behind the bench, then seeing this poor Primeau placed in a situation that is more and more untenable for him.

With a 34-12 advantage in shots over the last two periods, the Canadian could have won this game with a respectable performance in net.

“I’m not making any decisions yet,” added St-Louis. Of course I feel bad for the youngster, his confidence is affected right now. But I always say that the most important day is tomorrow, and that’s what we’re going to do. Cayden will continue to work on his game. Over time, he will gain confidence, and we will help him more and more by playing the right way in front of him. »

In the right way, then. This one too, we heard often on Thursday evening. Jeff Petry, who is obviously not going to invite Dominique Ducharme to a pool party this summer, explained at length that under St-Louis, the Canadiens players, finally, were going to have the freedom to control the game, to keep possession of the puck, to relaunch the attack, and that all of this, in turn, would push the club to play with renewed confidence.

First, that’s what Martin St-Louis brings to this club: hope. In the circumstances, it’s still not nothing.

Up Cole Caufield

A goal, but above all, Caufield found a way to put himself in a position to score very often. In his case, it must continue.

Down: Jeff Petry

Soft and uninspired play, again (-3 record), and only 18 minutes and 16 seconds of playing time, his lowest total of the season.

The number

44

The number of shots by the Canadiens, the club’s highest total of shots in a game this season.

In details

Jeff Petry’s Magic Trick

It had nothing to do with the impending dismissal of Dominique Ducharme, but CH defenders coach Luke Richardson had a long chat with members of the media on Wednesday morning after training for his team. He explained in particular that the exercises of the day had focused on the commitment in the defensive zone and the importance of “killing plays more quickly and not wasting energy”. “I think the guys got the message right,” Richardson added. It was, remember, before his boss lost his job. Fast forward to Thursday night. After the game, Jeff Petry enthused that he and his teammates had been “solid” in their zone, had “killed plays faster” and hadn’t wasted energy unduly. In the same breath, Petry praised the greater “clarity” in the defensive zone, which he obviously attributed to the indications provided by Martin St-Louis – as opposed to those of Ducharme, we deduce. It’s still quite extraordinary what the pre-game speech of a head coach who has still not supervised training with his new team can bring about structural changes in defense. It almost feels like a magic trick. In any case, the veteran number 26 kept his good habits: he finished the evening with a differential of -3 and missed his cover on the Capitals’ fourth goal.

Caufield gets embarrassed

The principal concerned did not go so far as to invoke a “Martin St-Louis effect”, but it must be admitted that to see Cole Caufield break a lethargy of 17 games without a goal, the very evening when his youth idol comes behind the bench, had something poetic about it. The attacker’s smile said a lot about the relief he felt, especially since he had just performed a maneuver reserved for the finest stickhandlers. In fact, Caufield played a strong game overall, both at even strength and on the power play. “I feel the confidence coming back,” said the man who wore number 26 in minor hockey in honor of St. Louis. “No matter the score or the type of season we have, I want to play the right way. Other goals will come. The young man is certainly one of those who could most benefit from the attacking creativity that the new coach expects from his men. Caufield’s goal was also scored on the power play, a first for him this season. Before the match, he was part of the small group of 11 attackers who, despite 75 minutes or more of 5 v 4 play, had still not scored in such circumstances.

Josh Anderson and accountability

The dismissal of Dominique Ducharme may still be fresh, but it was almost old news on Thursday night, after the baptism of Martin St-Louis as head coach in the NHL. Josh Anderson nevertheless briefly addressed the subject, recalling the “difficult situation” that his team was going through. “Everyone is responsible for what happened, not just Dom,” he said. It is up to the players to perform on the ice. We have to do everything to start winning games again. Asked about his club’s sudden awakening after several dispassionate encounters, he admitted he was “not sure” what to explain but insisted that after the thunderclap the day before and Tuesday’s poor performance (7-1 defeat), “you had to be ready”. “We still have 36 games to play, we can’t give up. We operate in an exceptional market, we have to work every day and be competitive. All that remains is to put this plan into action.

They said