On Tuesday night, the Montreal Canadiens were back at the Bell Centre after a three-game road trip where they took three of six points. They were hosting the Minnesota Wild and the result was a 4-3 win.
Here are some things worth noting.
Phil Danault played his best game since his return.
His goal broke a 51-game goalless drought, and his screen helped secure the game-winning goal off Caufield’s stick. There have been games since the acquisition that left us wondering where the Danault we knew went. This wasn’t one of them.
I’ll confess that I’m not confident that a line comprised of Danault between Anderson and Gallagher is built for the playoffs in 2026. But on this night it really worked, and we’ll see if the trio can sustain it.
The tide has turned for Carrier.
He might have had a rough start to the season, but Alexandre Carrier has settled in and is currently on fire in the offensive zone. They were on the ice for two goals against, but I like the potential of the Guhle-Carrier pair.
When Carrier was acquired last season, there was a period where he really helped settle Guhle’s game. Here’s hoping he can do the same now.
Here’s what I think. The Canadiens will genuinely be a force when they find a right-shot D-man who can be a legitimate complement to Lane Hutson. Perhaps they wait until Reinbacher is ready, or perhaps they make a deal in the coming days.
Whether HuGo chooses pouncing or patience, my hope is that they will not try to force a Hutson-Guhle duo. Guhle is no more a suitable partner for Hutson than Struble or Xhekaj.
Bill Guerin got a good look at his rejects.
Hutson is right – these executives have an impossible job to select a limited group from incredibly talented players to represent Team USA. But surely that won’t stop Guerin from second guessing himself, having seen Hutson and Caufield score two beautiful goals.
Dach’s return was a success.
It wasn’t earth shattering, but it was solid. If Kirby Dach can become some version of the player HuGo hoped they traded for, he could solidify that top six forward group. I particularly liked that he wasn’t shy to go net-front and create some chaos for Suzuki and Caufield.
I thought Evan’s looked better as well. So far the guys returning from injury have transitioned into the line-up without too much drama. Let’s hope that continues.
Hab At Her 