SCORING STRUGGLES ARE SINKING CANADIENS
What Montreal Canadiens forward Brandon Prust did and said in Game 2 against the Tampa Bay Lightning isn’t as important as what the Canadiens did not do on the power play.
After going 0-for-3 on the power play in Game 2, the Canadiens are 1-for-26 (3.8%) this postseason going into today’s Game 3.
The Prust drama — he apologized Tuesday and was fined $5,000 for his harsh criticism of referee Brad Watson — has masked the truth that the Canadiens are finally paying a price for the offensive shortcomings they have had all season.
Their scoring struggles didn’t start yesterday. They ranked 23rd on the power play during the regular season and 20th in goals.
Now you appreciate why Mon- treal goalie Carey Price will win the Hart Trophy as league MVP.
But Price’s dominance wasn’t the only reason Montreal had the league’s second-best record. The Canadiens were among the most consistent and effective teams; their effort was Herculean every game. They are quick and work hard. That’s why they ranked fifth in five-on-five scoring.
That efficiency, plus exception- al goaltending, made them a regular-season heavyweight.
But a single weakness can doom you in the playoffs, especially if it is goal scoring. It’s not a fluke that the Tampa Bay Lightning have beaten the Canadiens seven times this season.
We can talk about how the Canadiens became unglued in Game 2 or we can accept that the Lightning ’s offensive superiority is the overriding factor in this series. They averaged a league-best 3.16 goals a game and have outscored the Canadiens 29-11 during their seven meetings.
The Canadiens would benefit if they played with more discipline and their penalty killing were sharper, but it would help more if Steven Stamkos or Tyler Johnson wore a red jersey. The Canadiens have played eight playoff games, and Max Pacioretty and Dale Weise are the only two forwards with more than one goal. No forward has five points.
Meanwhile, Johnson has seven goals in nine games. Tampa Bay boasts five forwards with six or more points.
Defensively the teams are comparable, making the Lightning ’s offense a big advantage.
The Canadiens must play creatively and perfectly to climb back into this series. Staying out of the penalty box is a start. But Price will have to show why he was the NHL’s best goalie, and the P.K. Subban-led blue-line corps will have to find a way to bottle up the Lightning.
The Canadiens will have to get more traffic in front of Lightning goalie Ben Bishop, and that could cause more tension. Montreal players have been in Bishop’s kitchen often, and he has been jostled on occasion.
The issue for Montreal is that this is not the same Tampa Bay team the Canadiens swept last year. Coach Jon Cooper is more experienced, and the Lightning learned from last season. They are more poised and have added veterans such as Brian Boyle and Anton Stralman, who went to the Stanley Cup Final last season with the New York Rangers.
“We are going to try to stay disciplined and protect our goalie as we see fit,” Boyle said. “Sometimes it’s OK to take a punch in the face if you are going to go on the power play.”
He definitely sounds like a man who understands what’s important in this series.
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