Habs Inside/Out

Game 23: Rally falls short with SO loss to Wings

Dave Stubbs — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:40:50 -0500

Brad Stuart beats Habs goalie Carey Price, defenceman Roman Hamrlik for Detroit's first goal. 
John Kenney, Gazette

 • POSTGAME AUDIO: Mike Cammalleri I and II | Jacques Martin | Tomas Plekanec | Ryan O'Byrne

Apologies for the delay; dressing-room duties came first tonight

• At a Glance: For a time, it seemed that early penalty trouble had dug the Canadiens an inescapable hole Saturday night. Then two third-period goals by Michael Cammalleri, his team-leading 10th and 11th of the season, lifted the Habs into overtime that morphed into a shootout. But shootout goals by Detroit's Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg and misses by Cammalleri and a struck goal post by Tomas Plekanec lifted the visiting Red Wings to a 3-2 victory at the Bell Centre.

 • Summary: The Canadiens fell behind 2-0 in the first period thanks/blame to their indiscipline. Georges Laraque was serving six minutes – four for the high-sticking and drawing the blood of Detroit's Darren Helm, and another two for tripping Niklas Kronwall (a knee-on-knee hit, by the looks of it) to send the Wings defenceman to the dressing room for the night – when Brad Stuart made it 1-0. Then with Paul Mara off for cross-checking, giving Detroit a 5-on-3 with Laraque still off, Datsyuk put the Wings up 2-0. Habs' Travis Moen and Ryan O'Byrne promptly went off in rapid succession for roughing and slashing, giving the Wings another lengthy 5-on-3 that Montreal ultimately killed. First-period shots were a revealing 16-3 for the visitors. The Canadiens outshot Detroit 8-7 in a penalty- and heartbeat-free second period. Then came Cammalleri's two goals in the third to make things interesting.

• What It Means: The shootout win/loss ended the Canadiens' modest two-game winning streak and dropped their season record to 11-11-1. An overtime or shootout win would have given the Habs a share of the NHL record nine straight wins in extra time. Monday should provide more news on the health of Scott Gomez, who missed Saturday's game with what reportedly is a groin injury that lists him as day-to-day.

• What's Next: The Canadiens are home to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, in Pittsburgh on Thursday and back home next Saturday to Alex Ovechkin's Washington Capitals.

A special greeting to our Summit gang

Dave Stubbs — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 09:06:56 -0500

A special greeting to the Habs Inside/Out Summit crew, who have descended on Montreal from far and wide for the third annual gathering of our website members. They got things started last night in a downtown pub, watching the Habs beat the Capitals; they will take part in a Bell Centre tour today before meeting for a "team dinner," which precedes a stroll across Ave. des Canadiens de Montréal and the game against the Detroit Red Wings before they head back uptown for a refreshment or two.

At 11 am today, the annual Santa Claus parade rumbles down Ste. Catherine St. Just so you know – that is NOT Ian Cobb in the red suit on the final float.

24 Cups looks at the Red Wings

Mike Boone — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 07:23:10 -0500

The latest from Stouffville Central Scouting's Steve Kerley:

Over the years, one of Detroit’s greatest strengths has been their transition game.

This is not only true for the team on the ice but also for the management team that oversees the day to day operations of the franchise. There is no better team in the NHL than Detroit when it comes to turning over their players - both in terms of building blocks and role players. It is the secret to their success.

Game 22: Habs win thriller over Capitals

Dave Stubbs — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:33:20 -0500

Even on his back, Canadiens forward Travis Moen enjoyed a fine game against Washington.
Mitchell Layton, NHLI via Getty Images

• AT A GLANCE: Washington superstar Alexander Ovechkin was pretty much a non-factor tonight. And full credit for that to the Canadiens, whose attention to Ovi was a good part of the reason for Montreal's thrilling 3-2 victory over the Capitals at the Verizon Center. A brilliant game for defencemen Jaroslav Spacek and Roman Hamrlik, forwards Travis Moen and Tomas Plekanec and, again, goalie Carey Price.   A dimmer note: forward Scott Gomez left the game in the third period for undisclosed reasons. We're bound to learn more Saturday morning.

• SUMMARY: Washington's Eric Fehr scored the game's only first-period goal, cashing a 25-foot slapper past Price, despite the Habs enjoying a 14-7 edge in shots. The Canadiens tied it early in the second when Moen deflected a point shot from Roman Hamrlik past Capitals goalie Michal Neuvirth, then took the lead on Plekanec's conversion of some fine work by his linemates, Andrei Kostitsyn and Max Pacioretty. The Caps certainly turned the tide with their 11-4 shots lead, sending the teams to the dressing rooms after 40 minutes with 18 apiece. The Caps gave the Habs all they could handle, but Montreal bagged a power-play off the stick of Michael Cammalleri with about 7 1/2 minutes to play to provide a bit of breathing room. But Washington's Brendan Morrison got inside Habs coverage with two minutes and change remaining to make it 3-2 and the Habs withstood a furious Caps attack with Maxim Lapierre taking a late penalty to hold on for the win.

• WHAT IT MEANS: The victory was the Canadiens' second straight, including Tuesday's 3-2 home-ice shootout win over Carolina. It was just the third victory of the year in regulation time for Montreal, which pulled back to .500 with a record of 11-11-0.

• WHAT'S NEXT: The Habs returned home immediately after the game and Saturday night will entertain the Detroit Red Wings, the currently-underachieving 2009 Stanley Cup finalist, at the Bell Centre.

Live chat: Canadiens at Capitals

Kevin Mio — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:30:21 -0500

Friday night will be our second live chat on Habsinsideout, starting at 7 p.m. For this one, I will have some help from Chris Aung-Thwin in moderating comments. Once again, keep it clean and enjoy the chat, it was a huge success last time.

Canadiens vs. Capitals

O'Byrne looking for quick start

Pat Hickey — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:48:25 -0500

Defenceman Ryan O'Byrne returns to action tonight when the Canadiens play the Washington Capitals at the Verizon Center. O'Byrne said he hopes to pick up where he left off when he suffered a knee injury in the second game of the season. He saidhe expects to have some butterflies but he's hoping they will disappear with a quick start, which is almost guaranteed against the high-powered Washington offence. O'Byrne will be paired with Marc-André Bergeron and Jay Leach will be a healthy scratch.

Coach Jacques Martin also confirmed that Georges Laraque will play for the first time since Oct. 20.

Defenceman John Carlson, a 19-year-old from Natick, Mass., will make his NHL debut for the injury-riddled Capitals.

Audio: Martin shuffles the deck again

Pat Hickey — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:33:20 -0500

Glen Metropolit celebrates goal scored last week in Phoenix.
Rick Scuteri, Reuters

• AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Carey Price | Georges Laraque | Glen Metropolit | Scott Gomez

"I won the lottery."

That's the way Glen Metropolit described the latest line changes in preparation for the Canadiens' visit to Washington tomorrow. Metro, who played right wing on the top line earlier this week against Carolina, is back at centre on the fourth line and he will have Georges Laraque and Tom Pyatt on his wings.

Travis Moen will join Scott Gomez and Mike Cammalleri on the top line while Ryan White will join Guillaume Latendresse and Maxim Lapierre on the third line. Carey Price will start in goal.

Greg Stewart has been to Hamilton for a two-week conditioning assignment.

In case you were going...

Dave Stubbs — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 06:31:48 -0500

L'Actualité magazine offers this scenic photo tour of Anahim Lake, B.C., 15 images of the hometown of Canadiens goaltender Carey Price.

Audio: Broken foot shelves Gionta indefinitely

Pat Hickey — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:23:56 -0500

• AUDIO: Brian Gionta | Michael Cammalleri | Ryan O'Byrne 1 and 2 | Max Pacioretty

Right-winger Brian Gionta will be out of the Canadiens lineup indefinitely with a broken bone in his left foot.

Gionta said he suffered the injury when he was struck by a shot in the Nov. 3 game against Atlanta. The veteran said he tried to play through the injury, and he skated in the next four games, but the pain became too much to bear Saturday night in Nashville, hence his last-minute scratch. Subsequent tests have revealed a broken bone.

On the plus side, defenceman Ryan O'Byrne and Georges Laraque have both been cleared to play and could be in the lineup Friday night in Washington. Laraque practiced on a line with Guillaume Latendresse and Maxim Lapierre Wednesday morning.

Another roster move saw defenceman Mathieu Carle returned to the Hamilton Bulldogs to make room for O'Byrne.

Carle returned to Bulldogs

Dave Stubbs — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:54:07 -0500

The Canadiens have returned defenceman Mathieu Carle to the Hamilton Bulldogs, clearing the way for Ryan O'Byrne's return. O'Byrne, who's missed 19 games with a sprained knee, is expected to return to action in Washington on Friday vs. the Capitals.

Game 21: Price, Kostitsyn save Habs vs. 'Canes

Kevin Mio — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:10:23 -0500

Canadiens goalie Carey Price makes save as teammate Josh Gorges holds off Hurricanes' Erik Cole during first period Tuesday night. John Mahoney, The Gazette

• POSTGAME AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Carey Price | Josh Gorges | Tomas Plekanec | Mike Cammalleri

• PREGAME AUDIO CANADIENS: Glen Metropolit | Mike Cammalleri | Coach Jacques Martin
• PREGAME AUDIO HURRICANES: Erik Cole | Rod Brind'Amour | Coach Paul Maurice 1 and 2

• At a Glance: Carey Price was perfect in the shootout, stopping all six Carolina Hurricanes shooters in a 3-2 Canadiens win on Tuesday night. And several of those stops were of the spectacular variety and gave his team a chance to win, and Maxim Lapierre finally beat Manny Legace before Price stopped Matt Cullen for the win. Price also made 30 saves in regulation in overtime, his second straight solid outing between the pipes. But for a while on this night, it did not look good for the Canadiens, who trailed 2-1 for most of the game before Andrei Kostitsyn tied the game with a little less than three minutes to play, getting his own rebound and slipping it by Legace, who replaced Michael Leighton midway through the second period when Leighton suffered a lower-body injury. Max Pacioretty opened the scoring in the first period, beating Leighton after a nice pass from Tomas Plekanec. Brandon Sutter and Jussi Jokinen scored for the Hurricanes, who have now lost 15 of their last 16 games.

• Key Moments: Jaroslav Spacek took a penalty with two minutes to go in overtime and Price and the trio in front of him were spectacular in preventing the Hurricanes from scoring the winner in overtime.

• What It Means: The Canadiens remain perfect in overtime and shootouts, improving to 8-0 in the extra format, with four wins in overtime and four in the shootout. This was only the second time the Hurricanes have lost at the Bell Centre since the lockout, both times in a shootout.

• What's Next: The next few games do not get any easier for the Canadiens, who take on the Capitals on Friday in Washington before returning home to host the Detroit Red Wings. After the Columbus Blue Jackets come to town, the Canadiens wrap up November with games against the Pittsburgh Penguins and Capitals again.

Price to start

Pat Hickey — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:11:36 -0500

Carey Price, coming off a 53-save performance in a 2-0 loss in Nashville, will start tonight. He'll face Michael Leighton, whose shootout victory snapped a 14-game winless streak for Carolina on Sunday.

Metro replaces ailing Gionta on top line

Pat Hickey — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:50:43 -0500

Glen Metropolit's versatility will be put to the test once as the third-line centre lines up as a right wing tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. Metropolit replaces the injured Brian Gionta on the top line with Scott Gomez and Mike Cammalleri.

CKAC reports that Gionta had an MRI on Monday and that results are expected to be known today. But the radio station reports that his absence could be "prolonged."

There was no early word on whether defenceman Ryan O'Byrne has received medical clearance but he practised with Mathieu Carle during the morning skate which indicates that he won't play before the weekend.

Other lines this morning:

Pacioretty-Plekanec-Kostitsyn
Latendresse-Lapierre-Moen
Stewart-Pyatt-White

AUDIO: Glen Metropolit | Mike Cammalleri | Jacques Martin

Hurting Gionta out tonight

Dave Stubbs — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:26:16 -0500

No Brian Gionta tonight for the Canadiens. The first-line winger missed Saturday's game in Nashville, a late scratch with a nagging lower-body injury. He's not skating with the Habs in Brossard this morning and will not play tonight vs. Carolina at the Bell Centre.

Cup-of-coffee former Canadiens goalie Michael Leighton, still grinning ear to ear after lifting the Hurricanes to a skid-snapping shootout win over Minnesota on Sunday, starts in goal tonight for Carolina. No word yet on the starter for the Canadiens.

24 Cups looks at the Hurricanes

Mike Boone — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:35:34 -0500

Steve Kerley checks in with another scouting report:

How could a team that beat out two top seeds in last year's playoffs (New Jersey and Boston), have fallen so far, so fast?

Tobacco Road, indeed.

Any high hopes that Carolina might have had for this year have Staaled indefinitely as the Hurricanes are now the cellar dwellers of the NHL. It appears that the team has gone to the well too often as many of its players have seemingly aged overnight.

It may well be time for a total rebuild in order to take advantage of the youthfulness of the team's two main stars, Eric Staal and Cam Ward.

Hockey Inside/Out special section

Kevin Mio — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 07:41:40 -0500

Our second Hockey Inside/Out section of the year was published in Tuesday's Gazette. Here are links to the stories from our hockey experts, Red Fisher, Pat Hickey, Dave Stubbs, Mike Boone and Kevin Mio, as well as several other writers.

Red Fisher: Time to reunite Habs' Punch line
Dave Stubbs: Padding goalie stats no longer an option
Pat Hickey: Cardiac Habs defy the odds
Mike Boone: Former Leafs fan hooked on HIO
Kevin Mio: Steady as she goes for Bulldogs coach | Full audio of the interview
Ian MacDonald: Napier carries torch for city, Habs
Stephanie Myles: Hockey history lesson

Canadiens enjoy a day off

Dave Stubbs — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 11:40:49 -0500

And so do we, almost, at Inside/Out. The Canadiens are off until tomorrow morning, when they'll skate in Brossard to prepare for tomorrow night's home game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

So in the morning we hope to learn more on the health of Brian Gionta and Max Pacioretty, who both didn't take part in Sunday's practice – Gionta missed Saturday's game in Nashville with a lower-body injury – as well as whether defenceman Ryan O'Byrne has been cleared to play after having missed 18 games with a sprained knee.

At the very least, this post will provide fresh space for your comments to resume.

From today's Gazette:

• Canadiens goalies caught in line of fire
• O'Byrne chomping at the bit for game action

Audio: And on the 7th day, Habs skated

Dave Stubbs — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 14:47:58 -0500

Canadiens goalie Carey Price resists the attack of Nashville's Steve Sullivan on Saturday.
J. Masotti Jr., Reuters

• AUDIO: Mike Cammalleri | Travis Moen | Josh Gorges | Ryan O'Byrne

It was supposed to be a day off after a late-night flight home from Nashville. But stink out the joint in a 2-0 loss and you practice, says head coach Jacques Martin, who ran his club through a 75-minute, up-tempo practice in Brossard that concluded with eight minutes of drop-dead (almost) wind sprints. Not as bad as in Vancouver on Oct. 8 the morning after the Habs' 7-1 shellacking on the West Coast, but surely enough to sear the lungs and send a message.

"Embarrassing," Josh Gorges called the Nashville effort. "Unacceptable," said Travis Moen.

Live updates from practice are archived by Stubbs on Twitter here.

No sign of Brian Gionta, who missed Saturday's game with a lower-body injury that's been plaguing him for some time, apparently. Neither did Max Pacioretty practice, though the team offered no update on that.

Lines used in Brossard: Cammalleri-Gomez-Metropolit; White-Plekanec-Pyatt; Latendresse-Lapierre-Moen; Laraque-Chipchura-Kostitsyn (you read that right). On defence: Gorges-Mara; Spacek-Hamr; Leach-MAB; O'Byrne-Carle.

O'Byrne, having sat out six weeks with a sprained knee, is eager to be cleared for a return to action. He hopes that comes Tuesday, then it's Martin's decision when he's back in the lineup.

Both Carey Price and Jaroslav Halak were banging, even breaking sticks today after being drilled by pucks. Halak got the worst of it, taking one off the collarbone and then seemingly the chin, under the protective flap on his mask, while Price was doubled over and splintering his Warrior stick after having taken one awkwardly in the upper thigh, lower abdominal region where hard contact changes your singing register in the choir.

Game 20: Preds pelt price with 55 shots in win

Kevin Mio — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 21:50:43 -0500

Canadiens goalie Carey Price makes a stop against Predators' Andreas Thuresson Saturday night. John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Carey Price | Mike Cammalleri

• At a Glance: Carey Price did his best to keep his team in this one, but as has been the case too many times this season, his teammate gave him little support. Price made 53 saves as the Nashville Predators dominated the Canadiens from the opening faceoff to the final whistle in a 2-0 win for Nashville. Steve Sullivan scored both goals for the Predators, including one on the power play in the third period. The 53 saves for Price are a career high. Any Tweets from Allan Walsh tonight? Didn't think so. Nashville's 55 shots was only two shy of the record 57 the Canadiens allowed to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 1974 game.

• Key Moments: After 40 minutes of play Saturday night, the Canadiens had all of 10 shots on Pekka Rinne in the Nashville net. Hard to win Hockey games that way. In all, the Canadiens had only 20 shots on net.

• What It Means: The Canadiens are now 9-11 on the season, which is now 20 games old. Before the season began, everyone agreed the team would need that many games to gel after all the changes in the offseason. Well, after 20 games, there are more questions than answers.

• What's Next: The Canadiens are home to take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday before facing the Washington Capitals on Friday. The Canadiens are then back against the Detroit Red Wings.

Gionta out

Pat Hickey — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:04:18 -0500

The Canadiens made a last-minute lineup change when Brian Gionta was scratched with a lower-body injury. That opened a spot for Guillaume Latendresse, who was scheduled to be a healthy scratch.