With their backs against the wall, the Montreal Canadiens will look to one another to raise the bar tonight instead of hitting it.
After falling behind 3-1 in their series against the Flyers, the Habs have to rally and win the next three games if they want to stay in the hunt for Lord Stanley's Cup.
Frustrated by their lack of scoring and the stonewalling of another hot French- Canadian goalie, the Canadiens have to find new ways to put the puck in the net, hopefully early in the game.
Coach Guy Carbonneau has decided to go back to the lineup that proved victorious in Game 7 against Boston. After giving backup goalie Jaroslav Halak the nod for Game Four, Carbonneau has decided to go back to Carey Price for tonight's start.
Price will try and duplicate the performance of New York's Henrik Lundqvist, who helped his Rangers bounce back from the brink of elimination.
When asked about the importance of tonight's game, Price responded with, "I think we all need to play our best, or else we'll be playing golf".
Alex Kovalev, who has been kept off the score sheet since the first game of this series, hopes to rekindle the magic with his old linemates and kick-start a power play that's been crippled since the playoffs began.
Kovalev and the rest of the Habs' offense now realize that the time for pretty plays is over. They have to crowd Martin Biron's net and jump on rebounds because at the end of the day, a garbage goal is still a goal.
Today, Guy Carbonneau came out of the closet with his lucky tie, which he'll be sporting once again for tonight's crucial game. I wouldn't be surprised if some of his players even stuff rabbit feet, horse shoes or prayer beads down their pants, because they can always use a little help from "Lady Luck."
And although the Philadelphia fans will be hoping for the ghost of Kate Smith to sing the "Swan Song" tonight, the Canadiens will do their damndest to stifle the fat lady.
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5 months ago
Good article. I'm hoping the Habs can pull it off tonight. One thing's for sure it will be a good game.
5 months ago
It'll be a nail biter....actually, if they win tonight, the remaining games will all be nail biters!!!
5 months ago
I like the title ! And it's a good article. The Habs have not lost more than 3 games in a row if I'm correct, and should bounce back The key to this game is to score first, which they have done (at the time of writing this). Good move to go back with Price in front of the home crowd, and return to the lineup they had for Game 7 against Boston.
5 months ago
agreed philippe
I think they've figured out that they need bodies in front of Biron and shots, shots, shots
5 months ago
The ghost of Kate Smith has entered the room: 4-3 Flyers on on the 2nd weak goal in a row allowed by Price in the 2nd period.
Do I hear a distant calling of 'Fore!' ???
5 months ago
Loved the article. I'm not a Montreal fan and I'm not a Philly fan, but I am a Sabres fan which makes me biased against Danny Briere and the Flyers. I can't help but root for the Habs.
Montreal nearly threw the season away by giving up that 3-1 lead. If they can get it to 3-2, they'll be in a much more favorable situation (obviously.)
The Canadiens are also the last Canadian team left in the playoffs. I'd like to see a Canadian team make it to the Cup finals again. That Edmonton-Carolina series was an awesome battle between a traditional Northern team against a warm-climate American city that probably doesn't belong having an ice hockey team.
5 months ago
Fantastic stop by Price on Briere himself on a looong breakaway.
5 months ago
Wow, three minutes left and Upshall makes a perfect deflection. Let's see if the Canadiens have it in them to make a play with their season on the line.
5 months ago
Well Carl...would've been nice to see the Habs go the distance but in the end, their effort came up short.
I hope for their future they fix the problems regarding strength and grit...they have too many small and soft players and come playoffs, these guys are the 1st to shut down, they just get bounced around by more aggressive teams. Their special teams were also ineffective except for a few times tonight.
It'll be interesting to see if in fact they rebuild next year and can go for the whole enchillada.
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