With five straight wins, the Montreal Canadiens entered their contest in Edmonton as the only team that has not lost since the end of the Four Nations break. The Oilers were a good bet to end that satisfying run for the Canadiens.
However, Edmonton didn’t accomplish the feat without a heck of an effort from the Canadiens taking the Oilers to overtime before losing 3-2 on an Evan Bouchard goal with seven seconds left.
Wilde Horses
Lane Hutson hit a wall before the Four Nations break. He counted only two points in the last nine games before the break. He needed a rest desperately because the season was getting too gruelling for a player who had only known a short college schedule in his career.
Hutson got the rest he needed and has come back as one of the hottest defencemen in the entire league. In six games since the break, Hutson has eight points. He has moved to sixth in scoring among defenders with 49 points.
His assist was outstanding in the second period. Hutson led the rush, then veered to the boards where he dragged enough Oilers to him to allow Joel Armia to be alone in the slot for a one-timer on yet another perfect feathery pass.
It does not appear as if Hutson will win the Calder Trophy with Macklin Celebrini still a big favourite with oddsmakers. That’s a hard pill to swallow considering Hutson leads the scoring race for rookies by four points as a rearguard. How do you not win the Calder when win the scoring title from the back-end? Ridiculous.
Hutson is also on pace to beat Chris Chelios as the highest scoring defenceman among rookies in franchise history. It’s a remarkable season for Hutson. Not only is he piling up the points, he is also learning how to play better in his own end.
Cole Caufield is also on pace to be the first 40-goal scorer on the Canadiens since Vincent Damphousse in 1994. Caufield opened the scoring for the Canadiens with his fifth goal in his last six games. Caufield has also taken off after a much needed two weeks of rest.
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Caufield opened the scoring for Montreal scoring on his own rebound on a gorgeous unassisted goal. Caufield has 31 goals in 62 games. That is a pace of 41 goals this season.
Wilde Goats
For the Canadiens to have a 5-on-3 power play against them with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on the ice, and have that end with Montreal scoring the only goal, then to take the Oilers to overtime, there are no goats again.
The Canadiens are getting results, and the push for a playoff spot continues with a well earned point in the standings when all of their opposition for the wild card spot lost. It was another good night for the Canadiens.
Wilde Cards
While the trading deadline has seen some moves, a new trend seems to be starting. General Managers are becoming more interested in signing their own free agents, rather than trading them. This is happening because the return for UFAs is getting poor.
An example of this is found in Montreal where Jake Evans was so sure that he was moving to another team that he started speaking in the past tense about how much he loved the city and playing for the Canadiens.
Three weeks later, Evans can finally get his own place, instead of renting furnished apartments. Evans has signed a four-year deal with a team friendly average salary under $3 million.
His teammates must have helped with the decision by management as Montreal’s five-game winning streak left an immediate need for Evans to keep performing for the Canadiens.
The Canadiens are close to a playoff spot, so a hole killing penalties and on the fourth line would not have been acceptable after the injury ending the season of centre Kirby Dach.
Management said often this season that the players would decide how the trading deadline was approached. The players made an emphatic point coming out of the Four Nations event.
Next up is Joel Armia, Christian Dvorak and David Savard on future-watch. Kent Hughes says that he has set the market and won’t budge off his ask. It is likely then that all the UFA stay in Montreal.
The big uncertainty is whether Hughes will use a powerfully high amount of draft capital to immediately strengthen his roster. The big hole is at the second-line centre position. If he can find a 200-foot centre to solidify the second line, the playoff hopes would improve significantly.
Acquiring a centre to turn the second line from liability to strength would make the final quarter of the season extremely exciting. It is more likely the Canadiens make a move to strengthen the roster immediately for a stretch run than weaken it for the time being.
The trading deadline is 3 PM Friday.
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