The Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs are both injury-ridden. Most recently, forward Kirby Dach suffered a broken foot against the Boston Bruins on Nov. 15 and is not expected to return until late December at the earliest. That is in addition to long-term injuries to Alex Newhook (out until March), Kaiden Guhle (until January), and Patrik Laine (until February).
Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs are without Auston Matthews, Matthew Knies, Anthony Stolarz, Brandon Carlo, Chris Tanev, and Nicolas Roy. The difference between the Habs and the Maple Leafs, however, is that no one knows when the injured Maple Leafs will return to the lineup – that information is being kept from everyone.
The Canadiens beat the Maple Leafs at the Bell Centre 5-2 on Saturday, showing that even though they’re also missing key pieces, the team still has heart and is willing to play hard.
Canadiens’ Past Struggles
This season, the Canadiens suffered one injury after another, and everything fell apart. In the last ten games, they have gone 3-5-2, falling from a top-three spot in the Atlantic to out of the playoffs altogether. Fans started to call for head coach Martin St. Louis to make changes, but nothing happened; he just kept rolling out the same lines. It was frustrating, and their voices were heard.
Related: Canadiens Need Head Coach Martin St. Louis to Step Up
The most shocking downhill spiral has been the goaltending tandem of Sam Montembeault and Jakub Dobes. While Montembeault has struggled all season, Dobes was a leading Calder Trophy candidate at one point and was considered one of the league’s best after a 6-0-0 start. Even if Montreal had a bad game, Dobes was there to pick up the scraps and help his team win.
After St. Louis wouldn’t commit to a starting goalie, everything that duo had going for them went down the drain. During this tough 10-game stretch, the opposition has scored five goals or more four times.
Win Against Maple Leafs was an Encouraging Sign
Despite all the injuries and recent goaltending hiccups, the win against the Maple Leafs was a positive sign. Yes, the Maple Leafs are battered, maybe even more battered than the Canadiens, but still, a good win is a good win no matter where it comes from. In this case, all of the team’s stars stepped up, with Lane Hutson, Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Ivan Demidov, and more all earning points on Saturday.
St. Louis and general manager Kent Hughes clearly believe in their team since they haven’t made any trades or any real transactions yet, despite the mounting injuries. So, the Canadiens will have to keep being that red-headed team that fights hard every single night to keep getting points.
By the trade deadline, their only job should be to be in or very close to a playoff spot. Their record is 11-7-3, and they’re one point out of the playoffs with 25 points, but tied with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Right now, every point counts, and that decisive win over the Maple Leafs, with Dobes in net, showed signs of life despite little outside help, and with a difficult week ahead.
Tonight, the Habs visit the Utah Mammoth, a team that they beat 6-2 on Nov. 8, even after their roster thinned out. With upcoming road games against the Vegas Golden Knights and league-leading Colorado Avalanche, a win against Toronto to start the week was crucial.
