Even though he didn’t put on his skates for the game, PK Subban deserves a star in the Canadiens’ victory over the Nashville Predators.
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His speech and his celebration (triple low five) with Carey Price gave a good dose of energy to the men of Martin St-Louis. They had an inspired start to the game, one of the team’s shortcomings in recent weeks.
“He did his job,” said Martin St-Louis with a smile after the game. He brought energy. PK was not only honored for what he did on the ice, but also off it.
“We gave up the first goal of the game, but we had a good first half anyway. We continued to fight. I’m happy for the guys to be rewarded.
“It’s not just the victory that’s important, but also how we got it.”
Paid strategy
St. Louis has changed its ways by using 11 forwards and seven defensemen. It was the right decision.
Jonathan Drouin, who was still pivoting the fourth unit, had his best game of the season with three assists. He orchestrated the power play as he staged both of Cole Caufield’s goals.
Despite his excellent performance, the Quebecer was not available to answer questions from journalists. That’s a shame.
The connection between Drouin and Caufield seems well established. St-Louis has to cross its fingers so that it continues to function during the next games.
In defense, when Arber Xhekaj dropped the gloves against Tanner Jeannot, St-Louis could count on the presence of Justin Barron to replace him in the rotation. He had some good times.
Encore Montembeault
The Preds put a lot of pressure on the defense in the final five minutes of the game. They even used Mikael Granlund on defense to give themselves more punch on offense.
On the other hand, they came up against a Samuel Montembeault in great shape. The Quebecer, who was playing a second straight game, saved 39 pucks. That total would have been higher if not for his teammates’ 24 blocked shots.
His defenders also delivered a good performance. Among them, Xhekaj was at his best as he distributed several good checks. He was like a duck to water in a tough game.