There is always a player you can take over. Mike Matheson did not play at the start of the third period due to a lower body injury. But there was another defense attorney occupying that chair.
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Kaiden Guhle played like a future NHL No. 1 defenseman in the Canadiens’ 4-3 shootout victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday at the Bell Centre.
In his first game since October 17, Guhle quickly shook off the rust. He didn’t look at all like a player recovering from an (upper body) injury. CH’s first-round pick in 2020 (16th overall) led his team with 25:08 playing time, shooting four shots and blocking three rival shots. He spent 10 minutes and 37 seconds on the ice in the third period alone.
He was also able to impress on offense with two assists. It was he who scored the decisive goal with Joel Armia’s equalizer at the start of the third period.
At the very end of a penalty against Arber
At a press conference, Martin St-Louis dissected this key game from Guhle.
“The game goes with his feet, he separated himself from a wave of Jets players and he took advantage of the time and space. He remained very patient. He could go left, but he saw a player cheating on the left side too. He let the game develop. He had the opportunity to pass the puck to Jackie (Jack Evans), who was standing to his left. It would have been a good game. But he found another, even better option. He did that. It was a very nice game.”
“Guhle makes plays sometimes and I tell myself I didn’t know he had that in him. He is still very young. He didn’t play 500 games in the NHL. A young player could have felt the pressure in this game. Good players find the best opportunities on the ice. »
No rust
St-Louis had a smile on his face as he described his young defender’s return to the game.
“I guess he was rested,” the head coach replied. He was all over the ice. I like the way he acts, it seems like he’s always in the right place at the right time. Sometimes you think he’s a little inferior, but that’s not the case because he plays good hockey. He has good detail in his game and is an excellent skater. He played a whole match. When a player returns to the game, you don’t have high expectations. But we know what he can do. He didn’t need two or three games to find his rhythm. It looks like he didn’t miss a thing. »
In the CH locker room after the game, Guhle remained calm as ever. You have to understand that he is not the type of player who gets upset. It’s not for nothing that he’s often accused of targeting Shea Weber because of his attitude.
“You never want to see a player like Mike go down in battle, but in his absence we had to step up our game,” noted the 21-year-old defender. I’ve always wanted to bring offense to my game, but I’m not going to cheat to get there. I had a few chances tonight. I had fun at the ice rink. »
“Before the game I knew I was ready to come back,” he continued. Sometimes it’s good to be thrown into the wolf’s den when you go back to play.”
In Matheson’s case, the CH spoke of a minor injury to his lower body. He will travel to Vegas with his teammates on Sunday.
The tree that hides the forest
Nick Suzuki scored the only goal in the shootout, Jake Allen had another good outing with 42 saves, Armia scored in his first NHL game of the season and Sean Monahan scored his fourth goal of the season.
There were positive elements in this fifth win in eight games for the Habs (5-2-1).
But this other prize also had the appearance of the tree that hides the forest. CH had a difficult game defensively. The Jets scored two quick goals early in the second period to take a 3-1 lead.
On the blue line, Arber Xhekaj and Jordan Harris spent far too much time in their own territory. Harris recovered a bit from the third period, but the same cannot be said for Xhekaj.
Photo Martin Chevalier
Up front, Juraj Slafkovsky played like a 19-year-old who no longer has any self-confidence. In the third period, he received a pass from Johnathan Kovacevic in the slot. At that moment his back was to the net. He had the opportunity to turn around to take a shot, but he immediately passed the puck to Alex Newhook.
An interpretation of the game that betrayed his state of mind.
In Newhook’s case, it was also a night to forget. He played just 11 minutes and 51 seconds and won just one of his 11 faceoffs (9%).
If Slafkovsky’s performance is concerning, Newhook has had a pretty normal first game since his CH debut.