Welcome to the newest edition of Montreal Canadiens weekly news, notes, and game recaps. The Canadiens played three games this week going 0-3-0.
First we will cover the news.
News and Notes
- On January 26th, Sami Niku was placed on waivers, and Corey Schueneman was re-assigned to Laval Rocket
- On January 27th, Sami Niku, after clearing waivers, was assigned to the taxi squad
- On January 28th, the Canadiens announced that Jonathan Drouin, Christian Dvorak, Joel Edmundson, and Mathieu Perreault are all out of action.
- Jonathan Drouin has a right wrist injury and is out indefinitely
- Christian Dvorak has an upper body injury but does not have a concussion. He will be out of action until at least the conclusion of the All-Star Break
- Joel Edmundson has a lower back injury and is out indefinitely
- Mathieu Perreault has a lower body injury and is out of action for at least three weeks.
- Joel Armia and Cole Caufield have completed quarantines from COVID-19 protocols and have returned to team action
- On January 29th, it was announced that Paul Byron and Brendan Gallagher are close to returning to the ice
Game Recaps
Monday, January 24th, 2022: Montreal Canadiens at Minnesota Wild
TXHT Game Recap: In the State of Hockey, the Canadiens make the lone trip to Minnesota to face off against the Wild. In the first period, Mike Hoffman nets his seventh of the year to give Montreal the 1-0 lead. Jared Spurgeon then ties the game for the Wild with his fourth of the year and then Minnesota takes the lead when Marcus Foligno nets his 17th of the year. In the second, the Wild make it a two goal lead with Connor Dewar’s first of the year and then the lead grows to three when Nico Sturm scores his seventh of the year. Then with 31 seconds left in the period, Mats Zuccarello strikes with his 12th of the year to give the Wild the 5-1 lead. In the third, Rem Pitlick scores his eighth of the year to cut the Wild lead by three but then Matt Boldy nets his third to give Minnesota the four goal lead once more. Jordie Benn then nets his first of the year to make it a 7-2 Wild lead and then Kevin Fiala nets his 11th to give Minnesota the 8-2 win over the Habs.
Period by Period Summary:
1st Period:
MTL Goal: Mike Hoffman (7) – Assisted by Laurent Dauphin (4) and Jeff Petry (4) – 01:23
MIN Goal: Jared Spurgeon (4) – Assisted by Alex Goligoski (22) and Jordan Greenway (8) – 03:04
MIN Goal: Marcus Foligno (17) – Assisted by Jordan Greenway (9) and Jon Merrill (10) – 09:22
MTL Penalty: David Savard for Elbowing – 2 min minor – 12:32
MIN Penalty: Alex Goligoski for Interference – 2 min minor – 14:28
MTL Penalty: Rem Pitlick for Hooking – 2 min minor – 15:28
MIN Penalty: Matt Dumba for Roughing (served by Mats Zuccarello) – 2 min minor – 18:56
MTL Penalty: Laurent Dauphin for Embellishment – 2 min minor – 2 min minor – 18:56
MIN Penalty: Matt Dumba for Roughing – 2 min minor – 18:56
2nd Period:
MIN Goal: Connor Dewar (1) – Assisted by Nico Sturm (7) and Alex Goligoski (23) – 04:01
MIN Goal: Nico Sturm (7) – Assisted by Connor Dewar (2) and Jared Spurgeon (11) – 04:23
MTL Penalty: Josh Anderson for Roughing – 2 min minor – 05:05
MIN Goal: Mats Zuccarello (12) – Assisted by Kirill Kaprizov (12) – 19:29
MTL Penalty: Josh Anderson for Slashing – 2 min minor – 19:55
MIN Penalty: Ryan Hartman for Fighting – 5 min major – 19:55
MTL Penalty: Josh Anderson for Fighting – 5 min major – 19:55
MIN Penalty: Ryan Hartman for Interference – 2 min minor – 19:55
3rd Period:
MTL Goal: Rem Pitlick (8) – Assisted by Cedric Paquette (2) and Jake Evans (4) – 04:24
MTL Penalty: Cedric Paquette for Interference – 2 min minor – 05:25
MIN PP Goal: Matt Boldy (3) – Assisted by Kirill Kaprizov (32) and Mats Zuccarello (26) – 06:04
MIN Goal: Jordie Benn (1) – Assisted by Nico Sturm (8) and Kevin Fiala (18) – 09:58
MIN Penalty: Chris Wideman for Interference – 2 min minor – 11:52
MIN Goal: Kevin Fiala (11) – Assisted by Frederick Gaudreau (10) and Matt Boldy (3) – 15:12
MIN Penalty: Marcus Foligno for Misconduct – 10 min – 19:49
MTL Penalty: Michael Pezzetta for Misconduct – 10 min – 19:49
MTL Penalty: Michael Pezzetta for Roughing – 2 min minor – 19:49
MTL Penalty: Michael Pezzetta for Roughing – 2 min minor – 19:49
MIN Penalty: Marcus Foligno for Roughing – 2 min minor – 19:49
MIN Penalty: Marcus Foligno for Roughing – 2 min minor – 19:49
MTL Penalty: Jake Evans for Roughing- 2 min minor – 19:54
MIN Penalty: Connor Dewar for Roughing – 2 min minor – 19:54
Period by Period Statistical Summary:
1st Period
| Montreal – 1 | Minnesota – 2 | |
| Faceoffs | 6 | 19 |
| Power Play | 0/1* :56 left in PP | 0/1 |
| Shots | 8 | 21 |
| Hits | 9 | 7 |
2nd Period
| Montreal – 1 | Minnesota – 5 | |
| Faceoffs | 13 | 26 |
| Power Play | 0/2* 1:55 left in PP | 0/2 |
| Shots | 15 | 32 |
| Hits | 24 | 16 |
3rd Period
| Montreal – 2 | Minnesota – 8 | |
| Faceoffs | 22 | 34 |
| Power Play | 0/2 | 1/5 |
| Shots | 21 | 39 |
| Hits | 33 | 27 |
Area of Focus into Next Game: Study the game tape and stop taking so many penalties.
Next Contest: Thursday, January 27th, 2022 vs. Dallas Stars
Thursday, January 27th, 2022: Anaheim Ducks at Montreal Canadiens
TXHT Game Recap: In Montreal the Canadiens would play host to the Anaheim Ducks, and in the first period Sam Carrick, Cam Fowler, and Troy Terry would score to give the Ducks the 3-0 lead. In the second period Jake Evans and Artturi Lehkonen would strike for the Habs, but a pair of goals by Trevor Zegras would keep the Ducks ahead by three. Then in the third period Evans would net his second of the game and Laurent Dauphin would score for the Habs, but the Ducks would hold on for the 5-4 victory over the Canadiens.
Period by Period Summary:
1st Period:
ANA Goal: Sam Carrick (9) – Assisted by Sam Steel (8) and Buddy Robinson (3) – 08:14
ANA Penalty: Ryan Getzlaf for Tripping – 2 min minor – 10:55
MTL Penalty: Laurent Dauphin for Hi-sticking – 4 min double minor – 13:17
ANA PP Goal: Cam Fowler (6) – Assisted by Troy Terry (15) and Kevin Shattenkirk (18) – 15:12
ANA PP Goal: Troy Terry (24) – Assisted by Cam Fowler (17) and Kevin Shattenkirk (19) – 17:06
2nd Period:
MTL Goal: Jake Evans (5) – Assisted by Rem Pitlick (7) and Josh Anderson (7) – 01:15
ANA Goal: Trevor Zegras (11) – Assisted by Jakob Silfverberg (12) and Simon Benoit (2) – 01:25
ANA Penalty: Sam Carrick for Tripping – 2 min minor – 09:26
MTL PP Goal: Artturi Lehkonen (6) – Assisted by Mike Hoffman (6) and Tyler Toffoli (15) – 09:54
ANA Goal: Trevor Zegras (12) – Assisted by Troy Terry (16) and Jamie Drysdale (16) – 14:04
3rd Period:
MTL Goal: Jake Evans (6) – Assisted by Rem Pitlick (8) – 01:24
MTL Penalty: Rem Pitlick for Tripping – 2 min minor – 03:14
MTL Penalty: Chris Wideman for Tripping – 2 min minor – 08:14
ANA Penalty: Hampus Lindholm for Hooking on Breakaway – MTL Penalty Shot Attempt – 14:02
MTL Penalty Shot: Laurent Dauphin (2) – 14:02
Period by Period Statistical Summary:
1st Period
| Anaheim – 1 | Montreal – 2 | |
| Faceoffs | 8 | 14 |
| Power Play | 2/2 | 0/1 |
| Shots | 9 | 16 |
| Hits | 5 | 7 |
2nd Period
| Anaheim – 2 | Montreal – 4 | |
| Faceoffs | 19 | 23 |
| Power Play | 2/2 | 1/2 |
| Shots | 14 | 28 |
| Hits | 10 | 18 |
3rd Period
| Anaheim – 2 | Montreal – 8 | |
| Faceoffs | 25 | 33 |
| Power Play | 2/4 | 1/2 |
| Shots | 24 | 40 |
| Hits | 14 | 21 |
Area of Focus into Next Game: Don’t fall behind early and stay out of the box. Penalties have been killing the Habs all season and this game was no different.
Next Contest: Saturday, January 29th, 2022 vs. Edmonton Oilers
Saturday, January 29th, 2022: Edmonton Oilers at Montreal Canadiens
TXHT Game Recap: In Edmonton, the Canadiens host the Oilers for the lone time this season. In the first, Evander Kane scores his first goal of the year to give Edmonton the 1-0 lead. Then, Zach Hyman nets his 12th of the year and then Leon Draisaitl nets his 30th of the year to give the Oilers the 3-0 lead. In the second, Josh Anderson nets his ninth of the year to get the Habs on the board but the Oilers respond with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins fourth of the year to re-gain the three goal lead. Zach Hyman goes on to net his second goal of the night to give the Oilers the 5-1 lead but then Tyler Toffoli scores a power play goal, his eighth of the year to make it a 5-2 Edmonton lead. Leon Draisaitl goes on to respond with his second of the night to increase the Oilers lead to four. In the third, Edmonton secures the win after Derek Ryan scores his third of the year as the Oilers breeze by the Canadiens with the 7-2 win.
Period by Period Summary:
1st Period:
EDM Goal: Evander Kane (1) – Assisted by Evan Bouchard (14) and Kailer Yamamoto (7) – 11:21
EDM Goal: Zach Hyman (12) – Assisted by Kris Russell (4) and William Lagesson (3) – 12:48
EDM Goal: Leon Draisaitl (30) – Assisted by Warren Foegele (9) – 13:08
2nd Period:
MTL Goal: Josh Anderson (9) – Assisted by Ben Chiarot (4) and Jake Evans (5) – 03:58
EDM Goal: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (4) – Assisted by Zach Hyman (11) and Zack Kassian (9) – 06:29
EDM Goal: Zach Hyman (13) – Assisted by Darnell Nurse (15) and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (26) – 14:30
EDM Penalty: Zack Kassian for Roughing – 2 min minor – 15:06
MTL PP Goal: Tyler Toffoli (8) – Assisted by Mike Hoffman (7) and Nick Suzuki (17) – 15:09
EDM Goal: Leon Draisaitl (31) – Assisted by Warren Foegele (10) and Duncan Keith (10) – 15:33
3rd Period:
EDM Penalty: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for Tripping – 2 min minor – 02:29
MTL Penalty: Michael Pezzetta for Instigator – 2 min minor – 14:05
MTL Penalty: Michael Pezzetta for Fighting – 5 min major – 14:05
MTL Penalty: Michael Pezzetta for Misconduct – 10 min – 14:05
EDM Penalty: Zack Kassian for Fighting – 5 min major – 14:05
EDM Goal: Derek Ryan (3) – Assisted by Devin Shore (3) and Duncan Keith (11) – 19:26
Period by Period Statistical Summary:
1st Period
| Edmonton – 3 | Montreal – 0 | |
| Faceoffs | 6 | 18 |
| Power Play | 0/0 | 0/0 |
| Shots | 10 | 5 |
| Hits | 6 | 7 |
2nd Period
| Edmonton – 6 | Montreal – 2 | |
| Faceoffs | 16 | 22 |
| Power Play | 0/0 | 1/1 |
| Shots | 16 | 20 |
| Hits | 13 | 12 |
3rd Period
| Edmonton – 7 | Montreal – 2 | |
| Faceoffs | 27 | 27 |
| Power Play | 0/1 | 1/2 |
| Shots | 24 | 23 |
| Hits | 19 | 19 |
Area of Focus into Next Game: At this point, just play your heart out.
Next Contest: Sunday, January 30th, 2022 vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Upcoming Contests
Sunday, January 30th, 2022: Columbus Blue Jackets at Montreal Canadiens
February 3rd-February 6th: All-Star Weekend and Break
Tuesday, February 8th, 2022: New Jersey Devils at Montreal Canadiens
Thursday, February 10th, 2022: Washington Capitals at Montreal Canadiens
Saturday, February 12th, 2022: Columbus Blue Jackets at Montreal Canadiens
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