Why Montreal Needed To Get Blown Out

I'm not saying that getting beaten 6-0 (though outshooting them 28-25) was a great thing for the Montreal Canadiens, it was a huge knock to their confidence, and an especially huge one for Halak, who is still only 25 years of age. However, this loss could nonetheless turn into something positive for the Canadiens. Last series, they outshot the Penguins in game one 32-24, and lost 6-3. But they went on to lead that series, and trailed in shots and time on attack in the subsequent six games. If the Canadiens are going to reach the Stanley Cup Finals, they'll need to do the same thing now.

As strange a concept as it seems, the Philadelphia Flyers are not good enough for the Habs to beat. Last night, the Flyers didn't move the puck beautifully, and they didn't set up their offense around the perimeter. The Flyers are a seventh seed, and play like one. That could be a problem. The Habs find their success in playing a desperation game, they need to play opponents who man-handle them in the shot department, control the puck for most of the game, get lulled into a sense of false dominance, and then leave themselves exposed to neutral zone turn overs that translate into Montreal goals. The Canadiens need to play like underdogs, and last night they played like competitors.

If the Canadiens are going to win this series, they need to go back to what they were doing before. They have to crash the net, play team defense, the forwards need to come back hard on the back check, and they need to get those neutral zone turnovers. Last night they didn't really do any of it, and what little of it they did, they did poorly. Yes, they came back hard on the backcheck, however they only did so just to get burned again.

The Flyers may just be too big, too fast, and too physical for the Canadiens to play with. The microcosm of last night's game was definitely when Scott Hartnell passed the blue line, and had P.K. Subban matched up on him as he did it. Hartnell then turned on the gas and drove hard to the net. Subban could not keep up, and fell to the ice as he watched to see what would become of the play. The Flyers were faster, they drove the puck right up center-ice, and they out-bodied the Canadiens. The Canadiens tried dumping the puck and getting offense along the boards down low, just to have a Flyer break up the play after ten to twenty seconds. The Flyers were too big for the Habs to establish proper board play, and that could be a serious issue in the long run. Though the Habs are scrappy, they just don't have the size.

Not only are the Canadiens under-sized, but their game last night was full of mistakes. The very first goal of the game was cause because a Habs forward did not pick up Braydon Coburn as he entered the play and crashed the net. The Habs also tried using the body in the neutral zone, when active sticks would make much more sense against a team that's bigger and faster. Scott Gomez would also handle the puck and slow down the break out from the defensive zone. Though I would have done the same thing, as the Flyers were clogging the neutral zone, he slowed down the break out too much, and prevented the Habs from executing their counter-punch style offense. Thus, they tried establishing sustained offensive pressure, which causes issues for forwards coming back on D, and can lead to defensemen making ill-advised pinches in the offensive zone.

The Canadiens may still have the magic (and the swagger) left to overcome this defeat and win the series. But they can only reach the Finals if they stick to their guns and stay the course. Don't change the game plan. The Flyers may easily win this series, however I think it's interesting that I would expect a sweep of the Flyers by the Blackhawks*, when I wouldn't expect them to sweep the Habs.

*Yes, The Sharks are just as good, I was just making a point.