Canadiens Lineup

Tyler Toffoli – Nick Suzuki – Brendan Gallagher

Mike Hoffman – Jonathan Drouin – Josh Anderson

Artturi Lehkonen – Christian Dvorak – Joel Armia

Michael Pezzetta – Jake Evans – Alex Belzile

Ben Chiarot – Jeff Petry

Brett Kulak – David Savard

Sami Niku – Chris Wideman

Jake Allen – Sam Montembeault

Adam Brooks, Alexander Romanov

Cedric Paquette

Mathieu Perreault (eye), Joel Edmundson (undisclosed), Carey Price (player assistance program), Paul Byron (hip), Mattias Norlinder (lower-body), Shea Weber (multiple injuries)

Game Report

The Montreal Canadiens wanted desperately to sidestep the typical sluggish game following a western road trip. And to do that, a quick start was essential.

Two strong shifts set the tone from the drop of the puck with the Habs pressuring the visitors in the offensive zone. The Canadiens took the first seven shots on goal in the game. For the third shift, it was Jeff Petry who knocked down a clearing attempt by  Robby Fabbri, with Tyler Toffoli setting up Nick Suzuki for his first goal of the season.

The Canadiens continued the quick pace, taking a two goal lead midway through the first as Josh Anderson fired a perfect shot past Alex Nedeljkovic. Anderson was a man on a mission all game long. Montreal finished the first period with 16 shots on goal, just two less than their 60-minute total in Anaheim.

From that point on, Detroit was a lifeless team. Without Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi in the lineup, the Red Wings managed just one high-danger scoring chance for the final 40 minutes of the game. The Canadiens cruised to their third win of the season.

Looking ahead for hope

Credit to Montreal’s great start for the victory. When the Canadiens applied pressure, there was little to no push-back from the Wings. The Habs were able to dominate much of the opening period.

While their record doesn’t show it, Montreal should be grateful to the NHL schedule maker for delivering the easy part of their calendar up front. As they move into the last half of the month that will start to change. Perhaps, by then, the Habs will get some key players into their lineup.

That’s not to say that the returnees will be a magic elixir for all that ails the team. There are significant issues that will keep this team from having consistent success. But hopefully, they will help to give fans more opportunities to celebrate wins like tonight.

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