Montreal Canadiens: Are the Habs Getting Tougher?

Gritty, rough, hard-hitting, physical, ruthless: Those are not words you would associate with the Montreal Canadiens. 

Well, the Habs are trying to change that. 

With the addition of tough guy Brad Staubitz at the trade deadline, paired the recent play of grinder Ryan White, the Habs are proving they can’t be pushovers anymore.

In a game on March 1 when the Habs hosted the Minnesota Wild, White and Wild forward Stephane Veilleux got into a scrap right after the opening draw. The tussle was nothing more than a wrestling match and Veilleux fell to the ground. 

Now, that doesn’t say much for the Canadiens toughness, other than the fact that they have players willing to fight. But another controversial play later in that game shows that the Habs have changed.

Near the end of the first period, Veilleux slashed Canadiens goalie Carey Price after Price covered the puck. Habs defenseman Chris Campoli took exception and put Veilleux in a headlock. But then in came White, who instantly dropped his gloves and went after Veilleux, while Campoli still had him in a headlock.

White teed up on Veilleux’s face/head and was given a two-minute minor for instigating and a five-minute major for fighting. Veilleux received a double-minor for slashing.

The fact that the Habs are going to stick up for their goalie at any point in time speaks a lot about their toughness of late. Jumping a player while he is already tied up with another player isn’t the best thing to do, but when a player slashes your franchise goalie, it’s free game.

If White wasn’t on the ice at the time of the incident, another player would have stepped up for the Habs. The dressing room mentality has changed. The structure of the team has changed. The toughness level of the team increased with the addition of Rene Bourque in January, as well as with the play of Travis Moen and Mike Blunden at times this year. 

The Canadiens have each other’s backs.Though they might be sitting in last place in the Eastern Conference, they aren’t going to be pushovers.

This is something the team has not been known for during previous seasons. The last time the Canadiens had a true intimidation factor was when Georges Laraque was a member of the team in 2009-10. But even then, the Habs were known for their small, speedy forwards and lack of toughness, with Laraque being the exception.

Times are changing.

The Canadiens are going to miss the playoffs this year, but this style of play is going to keep the locker room mentality up. They still have small, speedy forwards, but now those players are complimented by players like White, Staubitz, Blunden and Bourque.

The Habs can look forward to next year with the players they have. Changes will need to be made, but the core of the group is going to remain the same. And if the mentality carries over, they will be in a much better position at this time next year.

Follow Taylor Shire on Twitter: @TaylorShire