PREVIEW: Blue Jackets look for another win Sunday night in Montreal
Columbus will try to build on Thursday's victory over the Rangers
Patrik Laine said something a bit telling as he answered questions after the Blue Jackets' win Thursday night over the New York Rangers.
"It was a huge, huge win, obviously after last game (a 6-0 loss at home to Calgary), and we just gotta string a bunch of wins together now going forward," he said.
GAMEDAY GUIDE: Jackets ready for a weird atmosphere in Montreal
While Laine certainly was happy for the Jackets to get back in the win column, he also had an eye to the future. If the Blue Jackets are to get back in the playoff race, they do have to string wins together, and even if a postseason berth seems unlikely at the moment, the Blue Jackets do want to see themselves start to play more consistent hockey.
There was a big difference in the team's game Wednesday night and Thursday, and those ups and downs have become commonplace. In fact, the Blue Jackets haven't won consecutive games since capturing three in a row against Buffalo, Winnipeg and Vancouver from Nov. 22-26.
Alternate captain Zach Werenski spoke recently about how the difference between the team's good performances and lesser ones has been too big, as consistency has been something that's been difficult to find for the Jackets in recent months.
"It's a long season, but we spoke about how our lows have been too low and they can't be that far away from our best game," winger Eric Robinson said. "No matter if you're feeling good or the bounces aren't going your way, the one thing you can control is your energy and your work ethic, so making sure we're bringing that every night is something you can control."
From a strategy standpoint, center Sean Kuraly said what he'd like to see is the Blue Jackets keep their game simple and try to build off of their own energy.
"It's really just keeping in our structure ... straighter lines, pucks behind their D," Kuraly said. "I think we need to keep our foundation simple like our coaches are asking and the plan they're putting in place. Our game evolves from there, and we have skill and we have some young talent, we have some guys that can put the puck in the net, but it starts with that foundation of the simple things. That's where we need to start."
Know the Foe
One season after a fairytale run to the Stanley Cup Final, anything that could go wrong has gone wrong for Montreal this season.
Longtime goalie Carey Price stepped away from the team and is yet to play while captain Shea Weber also hasn't seen the ice because of injury, and the Habs have never found their groove, losing their first five games and really not getting much better from there. The team's eight wins and 23 points are worst in the NHL after a 7-2 loss at home to Edmonton last night was the Canadiens' 11th loss in 12 games.
Price has been a fixture in net for the team since making his debut in 2007-08, but he left the team just before the start of the season to enter the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program. Without him in net and with Weber on the shelf, Montreal has used four different goalies and places last in the NHL with 3.86 goals allowed per game.
Things aren't much better offensively as the Canadiens are last in the league as well in scoring with 2.21 tallies per contest. As you might imagine, special teams have been a disaster as well, with the Habs 31st in power play at 13.3 percent and 30th in penalty kill at 72.8 percent.
There is some good news in the offing, though, as Brendan Gallagher is expected to return tonight after being out all of January with a lower-body injury, while fellow veteran forward Paul Byron (hip) is also expected to make his season debut. That will help a Montreal team that has seen just about every major contributor miss at least some time to injury this season.
With everything that has gone wrong, Nick Suzuki is the only player to skate in every game, and he leads the team with 25 points on eight goals and 17 assists. Tyler Toffoli is next with an 8-15-23 line, while Jonathan Drouin is the third player on the team to hit the 20-point mark with a 6-14-20 line. Former CBJ forward Josh Anderson leads the team with nine goals, while David Savard has a 1-8-9 line but will not play after suffering an ankle injury last night.
Jake Allen leads the team with 24 starts in net but is out with a lower-body injury at the moment. Sam Montembeault started vs. Edmonton but was replaced by Cayden Primeau after two periods after giving up six goals. Montembeault is 2-8-4 in 18 games (12 starts) with a 3.95 GAA and .895 save percentage, while Primeau is 1-4-1 with a 4.51 GAA and .879 save percentage in eight games.
