Preseason starts with loss to Bruins
Alex Galchenyuk stood out for all the wrong reasons Monday night as the Canadiens lost 3-2 in their NHL exhibition opener against a collection of impostors masquerading as the Boston Bruins.
Montreal was on the power play midway through the second period when Galchenyuk made two mistakes. The first was when he turned the puck over to Tim Schaller, one of a handful of only five Bruins who could claim to be an NHL player.
The second was when he failed to backcheck, making it easier for Schaller to beat Zach Fucale at 10:48. It was the first shot on Fucale, who had replaced Al Montoya 18 seconds earlier. The goal gave the Bruins their first lead at 3-2.
The Canadiens were outshot 30-25 and Galchenyuk, a 30-goal scorer two seasons back, failed to get a shot on goal.
Galchenyuk seemed unconcerned over what could only be described as a lacklustre performance.
“It’s a first exhibition game,” he said repeatedly. He noted this was the first time he’s played with centre Philip Danault and there’s work to done on the chemistry of the line, which also includes Brendan Gallagher.
Defenceman Karl Alzner, who was signed as a free agent on July 1, said the Canadiens have some work to do integrating the veterans and newcomers into a system that has been tweaked since last season, but he gave the young Bruins credit.
“When you’re not sure what you’re doing, you can get by if you work a little harder,” Alzner said.
Schaller’s goal capped a comeback that saw the Bruins score three goals in less than four minutes.
Jesse Gabrielle, who played junior hockey in Prince George last season, beat Montoya at 6:54 and Anders Bjork, who is coming off an excellent collegiate career at Notre Dame, tied the score at 9:56 while the Bruins were enjoying a twoman advantage.
The Canadiens came out strong in the second period and took a 2-0 lead on early goals from Brendan Gallagher and Jéremie Grégoire.
Gallagher, who was snakebit for large parts of last season, had the bounce going his way when he scored on a backhander through traffic in front at the 50-second mark. Noel Acciari came out of the penalty box two seconds before Gallagher scored.
Grégoire was credited with the goal after he deflected a shot by Michael McCarron at 2:18. Boston goaltender Malcolm Subban argued in vain for a goaltender interference call.
Coach Claude Julien said he was pleased with the play of rookie defenceman Noah Juulsen.
“We like the way he skates and his transition game,” said Julien. “He’s going to get a chance to make this team and if he doesn’t he’s not going to be too far away.”
There were no goals in the first period but the young Bruins outworked the Canadiens and had an 11-7 edge on the shot clock. Montreal had one good scoring chance midway through the period when offensive defenceman Joe Morrow joined the rush and rang a shot off the crossbar.
The Canadiens went 0-for-7 on the power play. In the third period, they had a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:31 and failed to get a shot on goal. The Bruins’ power play went 1-for-6.
Someone must have tipped the fans off that the Bruins were coming to town with their scrubs because the announced attendance was 9,248, the lowest turnout for an NHL game since the arena opened two years ago.
The fans in Quebec City have been using the exhibition games here to show that this is an NHL market, but the small crowd may reflect a resignation that the city has fallen off the NHL radar or that fans are hoping for a better show when the Canadiens face the Maple Leafs here next Wednesday.