Call of the Wilde: Montreal Canadiens dominated 5-2 by Minnesota Wild
Global News
This was always going to be a building year for the Montreal Canadiens, Brian Wilde writes. All that changes now is the building gets more challenging.
The Montreal Canadiens already have seen a big change to their lineup only three games into the season. Kirby Dach has suffered what the club is calling a ‘significant’ injury. Now it’s time to see how the rest of the club adapts.
Test one was the Minnesota Wild coming to the Bell Centre.
Montreal looked demoralized, falling 5-2 with the special teams, once again, atrocious.
It may be a little early to write this script, but it’s the only one available. General Manager Kent Hughes acquired Sean Monahan last season with the hope that he could turn him around at the trading deadline for a high draft pick. Monahan was co-operating beautifully for 20 games until he got injured.
Hughes went back to the well and kept Monahan on the payroll for another season to make another attempt at it. He also added another player who could fetch a high draft pick at the trading deadline, if he gets his health and keeps it: Tanner Pearson.
So far, Pearson has been outstanding in a Habs uniform. He has a wicked shot and plays a dedicated game. Early in the second period, it was Pearson blocking a shot that led to a 2-on-1. He snapped off a beauty that Marc-Andre Fleury waved at.
It was a shot much like his goal on Saturday night against Chicago. It’s difficult to know what level of pick Pearson can fetch, but a big body with a big shot and NHL experience is the type of player that is at a premium in the playoffs.
Hughes has shown a terrific ability so far to recognize talent at the NHL level. He’s made two stellar moves in acquiring Dach, as well as Mike Matheson. The Matheson move is impressive as Jeff Petry was a healthy scratch in Detroit in his last contest while Matheson is playing the best hockey of his career. Dach he recognized as having top-six potential, while also assessing Alexander Romanov as hitting his ceiling as a modest second pair defender.
