Montreal Canadiens versus Ottawa Senators
December 8, 2009, by Homme De Sept-Iles
Musings and In-Game Scribbles
My English is as good as yours, I just write these in a stream-of-consciousness mode that I insist excuses me from small things like rules of grammar or general etiquette. Let’s call it conversational English, hopped up on beans. You know what kind of beans (no, Carl Mellesmoen, not the magic ones)
Montreal Canadiens (14-14-2) visit Ottawa Senators (14-10-4)
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Game Thirty-One (score posted following scribbles)
Musings and In-Game Scribbles are a “live blogging” of the game that are compiled (typed, actually) during the game and edited and posted shortly after the game.
First Period
Action is in the Montreal end early. But no shooting
Halak makes a great second save on a shot by Mike Foligno. First shot was by Kovalev and the puck blipped out for one of those pad-out flat on the ice kick saves.
Two on one. Sergei leads it but he can’t get the pass across.
Gomez carries it alone. Pyatt is on with Gomez and Laraque. Gomez has to leave for Lapierre to join the action.
With seven minutes left in the first period the Canadiens make another entry. Sticks are stinging pucks and nobody can breach the forest.
Six minutes in the first. Canadiens fans are noisy when L’Artiste touches the puck.
The skating is slower for both teams than on other nights but it seems more a product of an evangelical puck protection sentiment and a care for turnovers.
It’s Montreal’s second game in two nights and they may be sluggish. Ottawa has no such excuse. Their last game was a 4-3 shootout win over Saku Koivu’s Anaheim Ducks on Sunday. In my world it’s “Saku Koivu’s Ducks”, yes.
Peter Regin is stopped by a small Slovakian miracle. Jaroslav Halak falls, turns, elbow lands and Regin’s shot goes right into the goalie’s glove on the corner of the crease. Should have raised it.
Just under two minutes in the first period.
Andrei Kostitsyn sends a long pass which is intercepted. It followed a long pass from Hamrlik.
Moments later, Plekanec steals the puck, jumps it, goes, right side. Over the line. Waits, waits, waits. Passes. Cammalleri nets it. What else?
Montreal 1, Ottawa 0.
Period ends with more Montreal activity deep.
Jaroslav Spacek falls behind the net at the horn. Accidental contact from Kovalev.
Replay shows that it was the shot he blocked moments earlier.
Every time Kovalev touches the puck the huge number of Montreal fans in the Ottawa arena boos. Well, I guess the feel-good farewell is over.
Not for me.
Second Period
Montreal 1, Ottawa 0
Line two starts. Nebulous result from Plekanec and Fisher. Ottawa comes up with it on their blue line and they get a dangerous shot moments later from the slot.
Kostitsyn allows the puck to go directly to a Senator. He’s late in his shift and he thinks it’s ok. It’s not ok.
Thirty seconds later Halak is joined by Fisher unexpectedly in the crease. Pass from the Ottawa captain to Fisher results in a backhand old-fashioned raiser for the tie. Half the arena is silent.
Ottawa 1, Montreal 1.
Slowly, Ottawa has become one of my favourite NHL teams. I just like the way they do things. Elegant, professional, and a working ethic that is consistent. That’s what I see from the eight Sens games watch every year. Guess which eight.
Montreal takes a penalty and Plekanec and Moen are the first pairing. This week has been a good one for recognition. I realise I am now consistently recognizing several offseason additions from the way they skate or hold their sticks. As I used to with our dearly departed.
It makes it easier to think and to type. Less hesitation.
Canadiens play a decent box with Plekanec and Moen staying on for the entire two minutes and the penalty (to Georges Laraque), expires.
Thirteen minutes left in the second period.
Moen works as hard as Kostopoulos did. He backchecks to pick up the trailing third Ottawa forward on this sequence. If he doesn’t do it, maybe Ottawa gets a scoring chance. If he does, nobody notices.
Habs incur another penalty.
Ottawa defenceman Filip Kuba’s shot hits teammate Milan Michalek in front of the net. Ottawa retains possession.
Kuba is alone on the blue line briefly. Handles it quickly. Has to. He’s the only man back. Resembles Toronto’s early-decade power-play.
Gomez intercepts the best set-up pass of the power-play. But the Canadiens can’t clear. Finally, Gill interrupts it. Houde says the work from Sergei, Gill and Plekanec in the penalty’s second wave was outstanding.
Suddenly Moen is moving alone with two Sens close behind. One catches up and knocks him over (yes, I don’t always memorize the roster; I was at an SIHR meeting tonight). Great chance but the puck is frozen.
Kovalev is harried by O’Byrne. I’ve never seen anyone handle Kovalev like that. L’Artiste (which was a derisively-used term by members of the French press in Kovalev’s time in Montreal) is pinned and pushed off-balance. It’s saying a lot as the Russian weighs 224 pounds. O’Byrne is six-foot five and 234 pounds. Good to see him succeed with his size.
Canadiens move the puck well on a power-play of their own. Long shot. Deflects twice. Goal. Bergeron’s shot.
Montreal 2, Ottawa 1
Brunet says that the Canadiens are playing better in the second period and that Bergeron is on fire on the power-play.
Marc-Andre Bergeron. Number 47. Defensive deficiencies, sure. Goals, goals, goals, though. We’ll take ‘em for now.
Seven minutes left in the second period.
Nothing occurs in the next four minutes that RDS considers worth re-showing.
We resume with three minutes left in the second. Backhand chance gives Ottawa trouble.
Senators make it seem like a power-play. They have deep thimble control. Long shot from the point. Whistle. Montreal penalty.
Third Ottawa power-play in the period. Plekanec is getting Koivu-like time on the PK. It’s deserved daddy-o. He secures the puck and clears it.
Ottawa re-enters. One minute in the man-advantage. Alfredsson is controlling. Pass to the point. Back to Alfredsson in the phone-booth area (hashes), now to Fisher.
Bungled and cleared.
Period ends.
Third Period
Montreal 2, Ottawa 1
Plekanec takes the faceoff and the team has just over twenty seconds to kill.
Karlsson has the puck twice. He gets about three shots in the movement and sequencing. Last one is held by Halak. First two are blocked or muffled before they reach Halak.
Habs kill another one. Houde reminds us that the team is 7-0 when leading coming into the third period.
Jonathan Cheechoo tries a long shot on Halak. Biscuit save. Eventually Moen gets it over to Bergeron behind the net and the Canadiens make a brief exit.
Bergeron takes a penalty. His stick broke while hassling a corner Sen.
Kovie. From his office. The phone booth hash, again. Shot. Smothered.
Ottawa wins the faceoff. Alfredsson controls behind the net. To Fisher. Now Gomez forces it out, nearly gets it for himself. Keeps chasing after the puck squirts away.
And another clear follows. Brunet says that the Canadiens are winning the one-on-one battles and that this is the key for playing short-handed. Canadiens kill this, the fifth Ottawa power-play of the night.
Just under twelve minutes left in the game.
Kostitsyn raises his stick like a sword. Loses his battle. Hamrlik misses the same man. Finally, the Canadiens clear it.
Lapierre is on with Sergei and Gomez. New line? Or late line-change? Seems like a new line. White, Metropolit and Moen are also a new group.
Michalek leads a sure-goal, three Sen charge to the crease and somehow the puck doesn’t go in. But the Canadiens take a sixth penalty. Hal Gill.
Ottawa’s first wave is Alfredsson and Fisher against Moen and Plekanec. Somehow Bergeron is on the second wave. Martin likes using him on the penalty-kill and his hard work over the past few weeks is being rewarded, I’ll venture.
Halak and his crew. More small miracles. Bags of luck. And Kovalev is called for slashing with under twenty seconds.
What saves. Ottawa should have scored.
We go to four-on-four for a short blip and then Montreal has a minute and a half man-advantage with about seven and a half minutes left in the game.
Early pressure results in a pass up from Cammalleri to Plekanec for a bad-angle shot from the off-wing.
Second entry is by AK46, Cammalleri and Gomez. Puck escapes when Cammalleri and Gomez can’t decide who should go after the puck on the upper boards.
Canadiens reset for a final try with fifteen seconds left in the penalty.
Gill pinches. Kostitsyn is beside him. They lose the puck. And Halak handles it on the other end as the penalty ends.
Spezza looks for visiting defenceman Anton Volchenkov in the mid-slot and the Ottawa defender is downed. It’s called.
Seventh power-play.
Five minutes left.
Ottawa gets early possession. Two shots. Distance and harmless. Halak holds it.
Ottawa wins the faceoff. Three passes and Sergei intercepts the fourth. Clears.
Just under a minute in the penalty.
The pace is almost sludge but both teams are committed.
Kovalev is on the second wave. Sure goal for Kovalev. But the pass is intercepted in the slot. Penalty ends.
Just over three minutes.
Ottawa’s spirit wavers. But they control it deep.
Whistle. Gorges hits the ice. Blap. Too many men. Ottawa.
Just under three minutes. Alfredsson kills some time. Then he decides to make a rush of it. Gets close enough for a back-hander that Halak has to freeze.
Bergeron goes down the right side to start the team. He moves is on pad and crease. Whack. Goes out. Andrei. Raises his hands like Superman. Smiles like a vacationer.
Montreal 3, Ottawa 1.
Slot-shot, garbage rebound. They’re all worth one.
Minute and a half. Pacioretty is on and the Ottawa net is empty.
Ottawa has to reset. Gomez steals it. Backhands. It’s just a poke. And it hits the post. Then he moves forwards to ensure. Shovels it in. The empty, empty net. Is full of one puck.
Montreal 4, Ottawa 1.
Strange game to evaluate. Montreal scored goals but didn’t dominate. Ottawa slowly withered.
Twenty-one seconds left. Faceoff. To the left of Halak. Ottawa wins. But they are forced back down. Nothing much happens.
Jacques Martin has a blue, coal suit on and he shakes hands with assistant coach Kirk Muller. The players congratulate Halak.
Montreal 4
Ottawa 1
HDS Stars: Jaroslav Halak, Tomas Plekanec, Marc-Andre Bergeron
RDS Stars: I watched Canadiens Express so I can’t tell ya.
First Period
Action is in the Montreal end early. But no shooting
Halak makes a great second save on a shot by Mike Foligno. First shot was by Kovalev and the puck blipped out for one of those pad-out flat on the ice kick saves.
Two on one. Sergei leads it but he can’t get the pass across.
Gomez carries it alone. Pyatt is on with Gomez and Laraque. Gomez has to leave for Lapierre to join the action.
With seven minutes left in the first period the Canadiens make another entry. Sticks are stinging pucks and nobody can breach the forest.
Six minutes in the first. Canadiens fans are noisy when L’Artiste touches the puck.
The skating is slower for both teams than on other nights but it seems more a product of an evangelical puck protection sentiment and a care for turnovers.
It’s Montreal’s second game in two nights and they may be sluggish. Ottawa has no such excuse. Their last game was a 4-3 shootout win over Saku Koivu’s Anaheim Ducks on Sunday. In my world it’s “Saku Koivu’s Ducks”, yes.
Peter Regin is stopped by a small Slovakian miracle. Jaroslav Halak falls, turns, elbow lands and Regin’s shot goes right into the goalie’s glove on the corner of the crease. Should have raised it.
Just under two minutes in the first period.
Andrei Kostitsyn sends a long pass which is intercepted. It followed a long pass from Hamrlik.
Moments later, Plekanec steals the puck, jumps it, goes, right side. Over the line. Waits, waits, waits. Passes. Cammalleri nets it. What else?
Montreal 1, Ottawa 0.
Period ends with more Montreal activity deep.
Jaroslav Spacek falls behind the net at the horn. Accidental contact from Kovalev.
Replay shows that it was the shot he blocked moments earlier.
Every time Kovalev touches the puck the huge number of Montreal fans in the Ottawa arena boos. Well, I guess the feel-good farewell is over.
Not for me.
Second Period
Montreal 1, Ottawa 0
Line two starts. Nebulous result from Plekanec and Fisher. Ottawa comes up with it on their blue line and they get a dangerous shot moments later from the slot.
Kostitsyn allows the puck to go directly to a Senator. He’s late in his shift and he thinks it’s ok. It’s not ok.
Thirty seconds later Halak is joined by Fisher unexpectedly in the crease. Pass from the Ottawa captain to Fisher results in a backhand old-fashioned raiser for the tie. Half the arena is silent.
Ottawa 1, Montreal 1.
Slowly, Ottawa has become one of my favourite NHL teams. I just like the way they do things. Elegant, professional, and a working ethic that is consistent. That’s what I see from the eight Sens games watch every year. Guess which eight.
Montreal takes a penalty and Plekanec and Moen are the first pairing. This week has been a good one for recognition. I realise I am now consistently recognizing several offseason additions from the way they skate or hold their sticks. As I used to with our dearly departed.
It makes it easier to think and to type. Less hesitation.
Canadiens play a decent box with Plekanec and Moen staying on for the entire two minutes and the penalty (to Georges Laraque), expires.
Thirteen minutes left in the second period.
Moen works as hard as Kostopoulos did. He backchecks to pick up the trailing third Ottawa forward on this sequence. If he doesn’t do it, maybe Ottawa gets a scoring chance. If he does, nobody notices.
Habs incur another penalty.
Ottawa defenceman Filip Kuba’s shot hits teammate Milan Michalek in front of the net. Ottawa retains possession.
Kuba is alone on the blue line briefly. Handles it quickly. Has to. He’s the only man back. Resembles Toronto’s early-decade power-play.
Gomez intercepts the best set-up pass of the power-play. But the Canadiens can’t clear. Finally, Gill interrupts it. Houde says the work from Sergei, Gill and Plekanec in the penalty’s second wave was outstanding.
Suddenly Moen is moving alone with two Sens close behind. One catches up and knocks him over (yes, I don’t always memorize the roster; I was at an SIHR meeting tonight). Great chance but the puck is frozen.
Kovalev is harried by O’Byrne. I’ve never seen anyone handle Kovalev like that. L’Artiste (which was a derisively-used term by members of the French press in Kovalev’s time in Montreal) is pinned and pushed off-balance. It’s saying a lot as the Russian weighs 224 pounds. O’Byrne is six-foot five and 234 pounds. Good to see him succeed with his size.
Canadiens move the puck well on a power-play of their own. Long shot. Deflects twice. Goal. Bergeron’s shot.
Montreal 2, Ottawa 1
Brunet says that the Canadiens are playing better in the second period and that Bergeron is on fire on the power-play.
Marc-Andre Bergeron. Number 47. Defensive deficiencies, sure. Goals, goals, goals, though. We’ll take ‘em for now.
Seven minutes left in the second period.
Nothing occurs in the next four minutes that RDS considers worth re-showing.
We resume with three minutes left in the second. Backhand chance gives Ottawa trouble.
Senators make it seem like a power-play. They have deep thimble control. Long shot from the point. Whistle. Montreal penalty.
Third Ottawa power-play in the period. Plekanec is getting Koivu-like time on the PK. It’s deserved daddy-o. He secures the puck and clears it.
Ottawa re-enters. One minute in the man-advantage. Alfredsson is controlling. Pass to the point. Back to Alfredsson in the phone-booth area (hashes), now to Fisher.
Bungled and cleared.
Period ends.
Third Period
Montreal 2, Ottawa 1
Plekanec takes the faceoff and the team has just over twenty seconds to kill.
Karlsson has the puck twice. He gets about three shots in the movement and sequencing. Last one is held by Halak. First two are blocked or muffled before they reach Halak.
Habs kill another one. Houde reminds us that the team is 7-0 when leading coming into the third period.
Jonathan Cheechoo tries a long shot on Halak. Biscuit save. Eventually Moen gets it over to Bergeron behind the net and the Canadiens make a brief exit.
Bergeron takes a penalty. His stick broke while hassling a corner Sen.
Kovie. From his office. The phone booth hash, again. Shot. Smothered.
Ottawa wins the faceoff. Alfredsson controls behind the net. To Fisher. Now Gomez forces it out, nearly gets it for himself. Keeps chasing after the puck squirts away.
And another clear follows. Brunet says that the Canadiens are winning the one-on-one battles and that this is the key for playing short-handed. Canadiens kill this, the fifth Ottawa power-play of the night.
Just under twelve minutes left in the game.
Kostitsyn raises his stick like a sword. Loses his battle. Hamrlik misses the same man. Finally, the Canadiens clear it.
Lapierre is on with Sergei and Gomez. New line? Or late line-change? Seems like a new line. White, Metropolit and Moen are also a new group.
Michalek leads a sure-goal, three Sen charge to the crease and somehow the puck doesn’t go in. But the Canadiens take a sixth penalty. Hal Gill.
Ottawa’s first wave is Alfredsson and Fisher against Moen and Plekanec. Somehow Bergeron is on the second wave. Martin likes using him on the penalty-kill and his hard work over the past few weeks is being rewarded, I’ll venture.
Halak and his crew. More small miracles. Bags of luck. And Kovalev is called for slashing with under twenty seconds.
What saves. Ottawa should have scored.
We go to four-on-four for a short blip and then Montreal has a minute and a half man-advantage with about seven and a half minutes left in the game.
Early pressure results in a pass up from Cammalleri to Plekanec for a bad-angle shot from the off-wing.
Second entry is by AK46, Cammalleri and Gomez. Puck escapes when Cammalleri and Gomez can’t decide who should go after the puck on the upper boards.
Canadiens reset for a final try with fifteen seconds left in the penalty.
Gill pinches. Kostitsyn is beside him. They lose the puck. And Halak handles it on the other end as the penalty ends.
Spezza looks for visiting defenceman Anton Volchenkov in the mid-slot and the Ottawa defender is downed. It’s called.
Seventh power-play.
Five minutes left.
Ottawa gets early possession. Two shots. Distance and harmless. Halak holds it.
Ottawa wins the faceoff. Three passes and Sergei intercepts the fourth. Clears.
Just under a minute in the penalty.
The pace is almost sludge but both teams are committed.
Kovalev is on the second wave. Sure goal for Kovalev. But the pass is intercepted in the slot. Penalty ends.
Just over three minutes.
Ottawa’s spirit wavers. But they control it deep.
Whistle. Gorges hits the ice. Blap. Too many men. Ottawa.
Just under three minutes. Alfredsson kills some time. Then he decides to make a rush of it. Gets close enough for a back-hander that Halak has to freeze.
Bergeron goes down the right side to start the team. He moves is on pad and crease. Whack. Goes out. Andrei. Raises his hands like Superman. Smiles like a vacationer.
Montreal 3, Ottawa 1.
Slot-shot, garbage rebound. They’re all worth one.
Minute and a half. Pacioretty is on and the Ottawa net is empty.
Ottawa has to reset. Gomez steals it. Backhands. It’s just a poke. And it hits the post. Then he moves forwards to ensure. Shovels it in. The empty, empty net. Is full of one puck.
Montreal 4, Ottawa 1.
Strange game to evaluate. Montreal scored goals but didn’t dominate. Ottawa slowly withered.
Twenty-one seconds left. Faceoff. To the left of Halak. Ottawa wins. But they are forced back down. Nothing much happens.
Jacques Martin has a blue, coal suit on and he shakes hands with assistant coach Kirk Muller. The players congratulate Halak.
HDS Stars: Jaroslav Halak, Tomas Plekanec, Marc-Andre Bergeron
RDS Stars: I watched Canadiens Express so I can’t tell ya.
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