Montreal Canadiens: Locked on the Playoffs?

At the halfway mark of the season, most GM’s can see if their teams have what it takes to make the playoffs, while others know there needs to be some tweaking.

After Bob Gainey’s remarks at the start of 2008, the Canadiens have continued to surge through a part of the season that has been trouble for past Montreal squads.

So is Pierre McGuire right when he says that Montreal is a sure lock for a playoff spot? Are the critics' predictions of a Montreal finish in 13th place going to ring true?

Already through 48 games, the Habs are 25-15-8 with 58 points, tied with Pittsburgh, with one more game on Thursday before the All-Star game in New Jersey, a place where they have had troubles winning.

Montreal’s success during the final few weeks of December has surprised many critics due to their struggles through that stretch. Past squads would subsequently stumble through the rest of January before making a mad dash to the playoffs in March.

Last season, after a December 23rd loss to Boston, the Canadiens struggled to win nine of the next fifteen games after getting at least a point in 10 of their previous 11 games. Only two February 2007 wins and a subsequent early March slump was overshadowed by a mad dash that ended with a 6-5 loss to Toronto on April 7th.

The year before, the Habs struggled through December as well, winning only 2 of 6 contests. Only a subsequent mad dash of an eight game winning streak in last March/early April helped Montreal make the playoffs.

With only seven points separating the second place Devils and the ninth place Rangers, the Eastern Conference is up in the air for any kind of playoff talk as of yet. However, the Canadiens have made a strong case for a playoff spot with their dominant play through this stretch of the season.

Through nine games in January, Montreal has lost only three times. Coupled with a dominant road trip through Florida, this part of season has been easier on the Canadiens this year.

With a resurgent Alexei Kovalev playing top hockey with 21 goals so far, as well as goaltender Cristobal Huet playing a consistent role as the starter, the Canadiens have the firepower and the defense to make a strong case to make the playoffs and go far.

There are six players on the Montreal roster with 10 or more goals. Montreal’s most potent line of Kovalev-Tomas Plekanec-Andre Kostitsyn is on fire and creating a buzz in the Bell Centre while role players such as freshly returned Steve Begin and Maxim Lapierre are making a difference in the energy level of any game.

Defense is also stronger with the departure of Sheldon Souray and the acquisition of Roman Hamrlik, who has played solid this season with a +4 rating. As well, for the first time in a while, most of Montreal’s scorers are not in the minus category. This means the Canadiens are a much more well-rounded squad.

Not only do they have the top powerplay and powerplay scorer Kovalev, they also have been able to score five-on-five.

The race is on after Atlanta, and the Canadiens are in the midst of the tight Eastern Conference race.