It was a difficult night for Montreal Canadiens to keep the winning streak alive. The New York Rangers visited the Bell Center on Saturday, but it wasn't a big deal as the club suffered three injuries against the Nashville Predators.
Kayden Guhle will miss four to six weeks with a lower-body injury. Patrik Laine and Kirby Duck are also out with lower-body injuries but are listed as day-to-day. Joe Veleno replaced Duch and Owen Beck was the emergency call-up for Lane.
The subs were good, but the Canadiens goaltender struggled in a 4-3 win over the Rangers.
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The striker's injuries forced head coach Martin St. Louis to change the balance of power. The first unit remained mostly the same, but the loss of Dach and Laine meant that someone had to help the second unit. It was a stroke of genius when the head coach simply put his best player in both lineups.
Nick Suzuki and Ivan Demidov finally got the opportunity to play together, and the results were immediate. In the first shift, Demidov, as usual, was on the right side and struck with his left hand. He also found Suzuki offside for a one-timer and scored an easy goal.
Just 93 seconds into the game, Cole Caufield was in a one-on-one fight with Juraj Slafkowski. Caufield is a scorer, so he received so much attention that the pass to Slafkovskiy was wide open. We must give credit to Slafkovsky, who made a one-time pass. Any goalscorer worth his salt knows that a one-goal goal is a must.
The goal over the past three seasons for Slafkowski has been faster, faster, faster. There is no time to slide and think. The goal is to ride and react. When we see Slafkowski process the game at higher speeds, that's when his size will make him unstoppable.
The Canadiens built an early two-goal lead in the most open game of the week. Veleno looked strong in his first game. He has the influence the Canadiens head coach wants. He skates fast and makes decisions at top speed. Once all the forwards are healthy, it will be difficult to determine who to take over for Veleno, but this appearance makes him deserve a spot.
Demidov was another player who showed outstanding results. While everyone admired the great moments, there were also times when it was clear that he wasn't sure which decision was the right one. He's figuring it out. His timing gets better every period.
Demidov has all the skills, but everything will come together for him when his choices become more instinctive. There is some hesitation in the learning curve now, but it is clear that he is turning the corner in just his sixth game of the season.
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It's also quite normal for a beginner to put the game down all the time; feel like the veteran has to get the puck or make a shot. He put off much less in this competition, realizing that he was a player with the necessary skills to get things done.
It looks like Demidov and Matthew Schaefer will have a serious battle for the Calder Trophy. Both are off to amazing starts.
The Canadiens had some issues defensively, but it was a winnable game with some saves. Montreal got its first goal from Noah Dobson since becoming the Canadiens defenseman. He scored with a point shot that went through Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson, who played well.
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Samuel Montembeault's performance this season is still not very good. The .900 goaltender entered the game with an .870 save percentage on the season. He was the Canadiens' regular goaltender for many years.
He is the Canadiens' second-best goalie this season behind Jakub Dobes. The score was 2-2 in the third period and Montembeault couldn't be blamed for any of the goals, but then Matthew Robertson's 50-55 goal, which wasn't shown and had nothing in it, beat Montembeault.
A couple of minutes later, another Artemiy Panarin goal, not howitzer, but considered successful, flew past the post and beat Montembeault. Not great goals against. In fact, the third goal against the goal was a complete failure.
That was four goals on just 18 shots. His save percentage that night was .778 after his fourth goal. It’s too early to say anything definitely, but the club may have problems with the goalkeeper. The numbers don't lie. Montembault is experiencing difficulties.
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There will likely be a lot more consternation among fans about Kaiden Guhle being out for four to six weeks, but the real issue is that Kirby Duck is out day-to-day with a lower-body injury. The organization will not disclose the exact nature of the injuries as they are resolved.
Let's hope it's his toe, because if his knee flares up again, it won't bode well for Dach's longevity.
He's been doing great this season. Dah does exactly what is required of the center. He's the best player of the season, averaging 15 minutes a night. He only has a goal and an assist, but Dach's job isn't offensively. This is protection.
Last season, when Dach played his last game, he had the worst plus/minus in the entire league with a minus-29. He was a liability to the club's fortunes. He defended himself poorly. This season, after a second major ACL reconstruction, he has performed outstandingly.
Daha has 53 percent Corsi and 55 percent Fenwick. He is the fifth-best forward on the team, behind only the Suzuki line and Zach Bolduc. In contrast, the team's worst is Oliver Kapanen with just 29 percent. Dach appeared to be excellent on defense.
The offense should come to Dach as he becomes more comfortable fighting for pucks, but for now he's learning from the St. Louis coach how to get into a better position as a center to make good plays. It's like the Hippocratic Oath for Dach: “Above all, do no harm.”
Everyone's heart should be turned to Dach. Imagine the work it took to get back to this point. They won't tell us if it was his knee that swollen again and caused the injury. Occam's razor says that if it was always his knee, then most likely it is his knee now.
Dach has proven that he can be a useful third-line center. Take away the responsibility of facing another club's top line and he'll be comfortable, but not if his knee hurts. No one can rise above this.
Let's hope the organization is more forthcoming on Monday, but history says that won't happen.
Brian Wild, Montreal-based sportswriter, brings you Wilde's Call at globalnews.ca after every Canadiens game.
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