The Canadiens don’t need to hit the panic button on their power play just yet, but it’s getting harder to pretend there isn’t a problem.
Even with a win in the books, the man advantage was quiet again, going 0-for-3. That extends Montreal’s drought to four straight games without a power-play goal, and the bigger picture is even rougher: the Canadiens have only four power-play goals all season.
That’s not a typo. It adds up to an 11.4% success rate.
Two of those goals have come from Zachary Bolduc, while the third belongs to injured Nick Suzuki. Through the early part of the season, Montreal’s power play has been one of the NHL’s worst.
The real question isn’t whether the concern is valid. It is. The question is how serious it has to get before the Canadiens treat it like a full-blown alarm.
For now, the answer is not yet. It’s still early enough that there’s no reason to smash the panic button immediately, especially if you believe the power play will be a deciding factor in where this team ends up.
There is reason for unease, though. Among the bottom 10 teams in power-play scoring, only three are currently sitting above the playoff line. Montreal is one of them, along with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Colorado Avalanche.
Those two clubs have also managed to win with middle-of-the-pack penalty kills. Or, just as likely, they’re simply two of the NHL’s best teams year after year.
The Canadiens don’t have that kind of cushion in the bank yet.
What they do have is enough success at 5-on-5 and a penalty kill that has held up well this season. That matters. It’s a big part of why they’re above the playoff line right now.
Their ability to match the Blues and hold them to 0-for-3 on the power play was part of the equation in a shutout effort. That’s the kind of thing that can cover up one glaring issue for the time being.
But covering it up and fixing it are not the same thing.
So where does the panic meter sit? At 6.5 out of 10.
It’s leaning toward panic, even if there’s still room to breathe. If Bolduc ever goes cold, that number can climb in a hurry.
In Other News...
Cole Caufield Sees Something Building Canadiens Fans Will Love
Cole Caufield has been around long enough now to know the difference between playing in a hockey market and playing in Montreal. The Canadiens winger talked about what it means to perform in front of the Bell Centre crowd, where the energy rises quickly and the expectation rises with it, and he pointed back to the lessons from the clubs recent playoff run as part of the learning curve for a young group trying to move from promise to results.
Caufields optimism comes from more than just what happened last spring. He sees a core that is in place and a room that keeps challenging itself every day, which is exactly the kind of internal push the Canadiens have been searching for as they try to build something lasting. For a fan base that has stayed loud through the lean years, the appeal is obvious: Caufield believes the motivation is there, and the goal is to turn all that noise into a team worth cheering for deep into the spring. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Just Sparked A Trade Question Fans Wont Ignore
Adam Engstrom is back in the Canadiens lineup for the game in St. Louis, a wrinkle that immediately caught attention around the rink because Montreal is always watched closely when young defensemen start drawing extra eyes. The timing is notable, too, with Arber Xhekaj sitting as a healthy scratch, a reminder that roster decisions at this stage of the season can say as much about organizational priorities as they do about one nights matchup.
The added intrigue comes from the seats rather than the bench, where Red Wings executive Kris Draper was in attendance and helped stir up the usual trade chatter that follows a prospect with a growing profile. There has been no confirmation of any talks or of what Detroit was specifically there to evaluate, but with Engstrom back in the mix and outside interest hovering, this is the kind of situation Canadiens fans will keep watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Just Did Something Impressive Without Suzuki And Demidov
The Canadiens kept rolling on the road with a 2-0 win over the St. Louis Blues, extending their streak away from home even while missing injured regulars Nick Suzuki and Ivan Demidov. Montreal got the kind of composed, structured effort teams usually need to survive a gap in the lineup, with rookie goaltending and timely finishing carrying the night in a game that looked anything but ordinary.
Zachary Bolduc scored against his former team, giving the Canadiens a goal with a little extra edge, and the result only sharpened the sense that this group is finding ways to win in different forms. The larger question now is whether Montreal can keep that same standard if the injury picture doesn't clear up soon, because the latest victory came with one more reminder that the margin for error remains thin. [Read more 🡒]