October 25, 2025
Sometimes you don’t have to wait long to eat your own words. After Game 8, I wrote that the Montreal Canadiens had won some games they didn’t necessarily deserve and that they were guilty of not playing a full 60 minutes. On Thursday night in Edmonton, the opposite happened. The Habs outplayed the Oilers, but the result was a 6-5 loss.
Here’s what caught my attention.
Are we liking Alex Newhook yet?
This feels like a breakout season for Newhook. With seven points in nine games, Newhook is playing with two rookies, Demidov and Kapanen, and the trio is delivering some much needed secondary scoring.
The Newfoundlander has also filled a role on the penalty kill, gets ice time in overtime, and is using his speed to play a 200-foot game. Not too shabby.
Juraj Slafkovsky is another guy who is stepping up his game.
I find it baffling when I hear fans and pundits express frustration with Slaf’s game. Are they watching games or box scores? Slaf has picked up where he left off last year and is having a strong start. He’s physical, strong in the corners, consistently heads to the front of the net, and is creating space for Suzuki and Caufield. His line is performing, and while he doesn’t rack up the points like the other two, he is implicated in every goal.
He’s delivering what HuGo expected when they selected him first overall/
Is it bad reffing or lack of discipline?
On Thursday night, it was maybe a little of both. The calls against both Slafkovsky and Anderson were weak, for sure. But they did come undone a little with each call. A timeout to try and settle things down may have prevented them from needing one to try and set up a play to make a comeback.
Let’s hope they have put it behind them before tonight’s game in Vancouver.
Hab At Her 