SEATTLE | We can say that the Canadian is learning in the school of life during this long trip to the west with two games remaining.
The Habs, who are still without their head coach Martin St-Louis, are still looking for their first victory after three failures on Canadian soil against the Calgary Flames, the Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks.
Despite the obvious gap, the Montrealers were still not downgraded during these first three games of which they collected only one point in an overtime defeat in Edmonton.
“It’s not a lack of effort, the guys want to continue to win, but we’re playing against teams like Vancouver and Edmonton while Calgary wants to earn a spot in the playoffs. These are not easy matches,” said assistant coach Stéphane Robidas after Saturday’s training in Seattle.
“During our last game in Vancouver, against the best team in the league, before we had our penalties, we were there with them and that’s encouraging for us,” added Robidas.
We are going forward
The Bleu-blanc-rouge will face the Kraken on Sunday evening and will conclude its trip with a visit to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday, a team that is not used to being accommodating for the visit.
Robidas recognizes it, it’s the kind of trip that can help a young team grow, because apart from the Kraken, who has just lost seven games in a row, all the opponents are in the playoff picture.
“We move forward as a team together and each game is an opportunity to move forward. If we look at the game against Vancouver, it’s a heavy team which has a forecheck like we don’t see many and which finishes its checks. It’s a learning experience to play against these teams.”
“It’s different from Edmonton which doesn’t play the same type of game. It’s a form of awakening when you play against a team like that which suffocates you and which doesn’t leave much room on the ice. In the playoffs, that’s how it plays.”
To mark
Besides the quality of the opponent, the common denominator of the first three parts of this trip is the team’s difficulty in generating attack with five goals scored.
“We have to try to find the back of the net a little more. We don’t give ourselves many chances when we have one or two, it puts a lot of pressure on our goalkeepers, but we are in every match and we have to continue to compete against the best teams,” agrees David Savard.
To this, Robidas adds what is a cliché of hockey, even of professional sport, but what is above all a fact.
“The difference between winning or losing is thin. It’s a little play or a little lapse in attention on a play, a little mistake or a turnover. What’s positive is when we’re in the matches.”
Bravery
This trip is mostly a crash course for a young defenseman like Kaiden Guhle who often has the poise of a veteran despite being only 22 years old and in only his second season in the NHL.
The Albertan has the opportunity to taste the more physical style of play practiced in the west and he does not shy away from the task.
“He’s a guy who plays against the best opposing lines every night,” recalls Stéphane Robidas. “When you play against a team that is physical, sometimes the game is to take the body check. Yes, you have to protect yourself, but sometimes there are no other options. Either you leave the puck there and you let him take the puck or you go there first, you take the check and you try to make a play.
“He has a lot of courage and what I like is that when he plays against the best players, his game goes up a notch. He accepts the challenge and for me it’s encouraging.”
Nice goal
Even if they are on the other side of the continent, the members of the Canadiens are well aware that David Reinbacher scored his first goal in the American League in his first game with the Laval Rocket, Friday night against the Belleville Senators .
“From what I understand, he still did well, David, and it’s fun to see that,” Robidas maintains. “It’s not easy to leave European ice to arrive at a time of year when it’s not easy to play in the American League.”
For his part, David Savard hopes that this will allow Reinbacher to play even more liberated.
“It’s a great game. It’s fun for him to go out first already to make sure he doesn’t have any pressure about it.”