Column|Haris Shahid
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| ''We can’t expect our Habs to keep playing on this pace, it’s only a matter of time before they lose a game.'' |
7 and 0. Who could have imagined?
As a huge Habs fan, even I couldn’t have imagined this in my wildest dreams.
Even after 107 years of hockey, the most storied franchise in National Hockey
League history keeps making history.
Did you know that legendary Montreal
Canadiens teams with the likes of Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau, Henri
Richard, Guy Lafleur and Patrick Roy never won 4 straight games at the start of
a season? Somehow, this “good” Canadiens team with no “number one center” has won
7 straight games. The 2015-2016 Habs were supposed to be what they have been
for the last decade, a good team. However, this team led by captain Max
Pacioretty have come out of the gate with a historic debut to the season. As of
writing this article, the Canadiens are 7-0-0 and they might have a chance of
matching the league of 10 straight wins to start a season set by the 1993-1994
Toronto Maple Leafs and the 2006-2007 Buffalo Sabres.
Let’s try to analyse how Le Bleu, Blanc et Rouge have been able
to remain undefeated through 7 games.
Carey
Price:
The most obvious answer is
Price’s out of this world goaltending. He was amazing last season and many
people doubted Price’s ability to replicate his performance. Up to this point,
he looks better than he did last year. He has been so good that the Canadiens
have allowed a league low of seven goals through seven games and an NHL best
penalty kill at 91.7%.
Four
great lines:
The Canadiens greatest problem
last season was scoring goals. They scored 214 goals, which ranked them at 20th
in the league and the lowest amongst teams who made the playoffs. This season,
Michel Therrien’s team has already scored 23 goals, good enough for number one
in the NHL.
Depth:
The team is very deep. Meaning,
they have many players who are skilled enough to play many different situations
and who can compete with the other team’s superstars. The defensive core is
also much better as Jeff Petry has fit in perfectly into the team. His
tremendous play has relieved some stress from Alexei Emelin, who can now go
back to playing the style he is best at: hard hitting hockey. The emergence of
Nathan Beaulieu as a reliable number six defenceman allows coach Michel
Therrien to play three very good defensive pairs. Furthermore, former first
round third overall pick, Alex Galchenyuk has begun playing like a true number
one center, as his defensive play has his improved defensive play with his
incredible raw skill make him an offensive threat.
Keep
the foot on the gas pedal:
The Habs aren’t giving up on
plays and on games anymore. They play the full 60 minutes and do not rely as
much on Carey Price as they used too. All three forwards back check and help
out their defencemen while the defencemen also move up the ice with the forwards
in order to give offensive support.
Carey
Price:
He is just so good and just such
a x-factor that I had to mention him twice! We can’t expect our Habs to keep
playing on this pace, it’s only a matter of time before they lose a game. Let’s
just hope this keeps going as long as possible. If the Montreal Canadiens keep
performing at this level, the Stanley Cup is a real possibility!
GO HABS GO!!!!
Haris is a first-year Pure and Applied Sciences student who obviously loves the Habs.
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