Ann 2Game 1 Review: Sabres Top Canadiens In Shootout (Highlights Video Included)
October 11th 2008 15:21
It was obvious that last night's game was the first of the season. Jittery plays and off-sequences on both sides were only amplified by the bad quality of the ice which made the puck bounce all over the place. At 1-1, the game could have gone either way, so I think the Canadiens are okay with skating out of Buffalo with a point. I only managed to catch the third period of the game, and here are some observations.
The goaltending was great on both sides. Miller kept his team alive in the final minutes of the game when the Habs finally started to fire on all cylinders. He also stoned Lang in the shootout while Koivu simply lost control of the puck on his attempt. Carey Price was superb at the other end, stopping 35 out of 36 shots. On the shootout, he was beaten by both Kotalik and Stafford who used the exact same move.
In front, Lang's line, composed of Sergei Kostitsyn and Tom Kostopoulos was the best for the Habs. Tanguay and Koivu were unable to find Latendresse all night long while Plekanec's line (with Kovalev and Andrei Kostitsyn) didn't get enough shots on goal to really make an impact. All the Canadiens' forwards were great on the penalty-kill, including shutting out the Sabres on a four-minute penalty in the third period. I wasn't very happy with Steve Begin last night. The guy has heart, but he takes the dumbest penalties in the worst of times. That four-minute penalty was the result of Begin picking up two penalties on the same shift, ten seconds apart in the offensive zone. At that point the Habs were starting to get momentum, and he just brought it all down with his play.
Defensively, Markov was Markov, the same cool, collected defenseman who knows just when to stay back and when to attack (he was also the most-used player of both teams with 28:55 as his time-on-ice). He even scored in the third period, but the goal was disallowed due to Latendresse picking up a penalty on the same play. I don't really having the Russian defenseman as a shooter during powerplays because the success of the Habs' PP in the last two years rested on the Markov-Kovalev connection. Now, Tanguay becomes the playmaker at the point, and I'm not sure that he'll have the same synchronicity with Kovalev as Markov did. Brisebois was on the PP's second wave, and although he showed that he still has it offensively, he was all messed up in his own zone, getting tangled up with his partner, Josh Gorges.
With just one point under their belt, the Habs will face the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight, a team that surprised the Red Wings Thursday night by defeating them 3-2.
My 3 Stars:
3. Andrei Markov
2. Carey Price
1. Ryan Miller
The goaltending was great on both sides. Miller kept his team alive in the final minutes of the game when the Habs finally started to fire on all cylinders. He also stoned Lang in the shootout while Koivu simply lost control of the puck on his attempt. Carey Price was superb at the other end, stopping 35 out of 36 shots. On the shootout, he was beaten by both Kotalik and Stafford who used the exact same move.
In front, Lang's line, composed of Sergei Kostitsyn and Tom Kostopoulos was the best for the Habs. Tanguay and Koivu were unable to find Latendresse all night long while Plekanec's line (with Kovalev and Andrei Kostitsyn) didn't get enough shots on goal to really make an impact. All the Canadiens' forwards were great on the penalty-kill, including shutting out the Sabres on a four-minute penalty in the third period. I wasn't very happy with Steve Begin last night. The guy has heart, but he takes the dumbest penalties in the worst of times. That four-minute penalty was the result of Begin picking up two penalties on the same shift, ten seconds apart in the offensive zone. At that point the Habs were starting to get momentum, and he just brought it all down with his play.
Defensively, Markov was Markov, the same cool, collected defenseman who knows just when to stay back and when to attack (he was also the most-used player of both teams with 28:55 as his time-on-ice). He even scored in the third period, but the goal was disallowed due to Latendresse picking up a penalty on the same play. I don't really having the Russian defenseman as a shooter during powerplays because the success of the Habs' PP in the last two years rested on the Markov-Kovalev connection. Now, Tanguay becomes the playmaker at the point, and I'm not sure that he'll have the same synchronicity with Kovalev as Markov did. Brisebois was on the PP's second wave, and although he showed that he still has it offensively, he was all messed up in his own zone, getting tangled up with his partner, Josh Gorges.
With just one point under their belt, the Habs will face the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight, a team that surprised the Red Wings Thursday night by defeating them 3-2.
My 3 Stars:
3. Andrei Markov
2. Carey Price
1. Ryan Miller
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