Ann 2Game 9 Review: Special Teams Give Canadiens 2-1 Win Over Wild (Highlights Video Included)
November 1st 2008 03:25
In a confrontation pitting captain Saku Koivu against his brother Mikko Koivu (also captain – for the month anyway), it was the older brother who came out on top when the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Minnesota Wild 2-1.
It didn't start too well for the Habs who conceded the first goal after just one minute and a half of play on the Wild's second shot. They responded quick however, scoring the equalizer just three minutes later when defenseman Francis Bouillon's shot made its way past Harding whose view was blocked from the traffic in front of him. The first period ended with Saku Koivu taking his first penalty of the season... for holding his brother.
Unfortunately for the home team, they took two penalties early in the second period, leading to a 5-on-3 on which the Canadiens didn't fail to capitalize with defenseman Andrei Markov scoring his first of the season. And that's when everything went to hell. After that goal, the visitors took EIGHT consecutive penalties including three 5-on-3s (though one of those only lasted nine seconds), spending the majority of the second period and the beginning of the third period on the penalty-kill. There were also a couple of 4-on-4s in the third but nothing could excuse the soft, indisciplined penalty the Habs were taking, and the worst part is that it was their penalty-killers taking on penalty after penalty. Defensemen Mike Komisarek and Roman Harmlik both took a turn in the box, while forwards Tom Kostopoulos, Mathieu Dandenault, Christoper Higgins, and Robert Lang were all penalized. Honestly, I don't know what's worse: the Canadiens taking all those penalties against what was the third best powerplay of the league, or the Wild failing to score on ten powerplay opportunities. Yes, TEN. To tell you how bad it was, the home crowd booed the Wild every time a PP went by. By the third period, it was evident that both teams were just exhausted – the Wild had played the night before against Dallas, while Montreal spent most of a period killing penalties. In the end, Montreal got the two points (I was actually expecting it to go into overtime with all those penalties getting dished out), and the best thing is that it was a win against a Western team which are reportedly one of the Habs' weaknesses.
Next up is the New York Islanders where the Canadiens will face two ex-Habs – defenseman Mark Streit, and goaltender Yann Danis who's replacing Rick DiPietro for now. The Islanders aren't a great team, but with a French-Canadien goalie on their side, anything can happen.
My 3 Stars:
3. Antti Miettinen
2. Andrei Markov
1. Carey Price
It didn't start too well for the Habs who conceded the first goal after just one minute and a half of play on the Wild's second shot. They responded quick however, scoring the equalizer just three minutes later when defenseman Francis Bouillon's shot made its way past Harding whose view was blocked from the traffic in front of him. The first period ended with Saku Koivu taking his first penalty of the season... for holding his brother.
Unfortunately for the home team, they took two penalties early in the second period, leading to a 5-on-3 on which the Canadiens didn't fail to capitalize with defenseman Andrei Markov scoring his first of the season. And that's when everything went to hell. After that goal, the visitors took EIGHT consecutive penalties including three 5-on-3s (though one of those only lasted nine seconds), spending the majority of the second period and the beginning of the third period on the penalty-kill. There were also a couple of 4-on-4s in the third but nothing could excuse the soft, indisciplined penalty the Habs were taking, and the worst part is that it was their penalty-killers taking on penalty after penalty. Defensemen Mike Komisarek and Roman Harmlik both took a turn in the box, while forwards Tom Kostopoulos, Mathieu Dandenault, Christoper Higgins, and Robert Lang were all penalized. Honestly, I don't know what's worse: the Canadiens taking all those penalties against what was the third best powerplay of the league, or the Wild failing to score on ten powerplay opportunities. Yes, TEN. To tell you how bad it was, the home crowd booed the Wild every time a PP went by. By the third period, it was evident that both teams were just exhausted – the Wild had played the night before against Dallas, while Montreal spent most of a period killing penalties. In the end, Montreal got the two points (I was actually expecting it to go into overtime with all those penalties getting dished out), and the best thing is that it was a win against a Western team which are reportedly one of the Habs' weaknesses.
Next up is the New York Islanders where the Canadiens will face two ex-Habs – defenseman Mark Streit, and goaltender Yann Danis who's replacing Rick DiPietro for now. The Islanders aren't a great team, but with a French-Canadien goalie on their side, anything can happen.
My 3 Stars:
3. Antti Miettinen
2. Andrei Markov
1. Carey Price
| 32 |
| Vote |
Shared on
Add To: 
Subscribe to this blog
