By his own admission, Martin St-Louis recognizes that he should have focused more on the defensive aspect of the structure he wants to implement within his team.
A structure which, it has been repeated, must respect the process of relaunching the concession and the development program designed to allow the young hopefuls of the organization to grow… as quickly as possible.
What we saw during the seven-game road streak could not continue. Jeff Gorton, I imagine, didn’t like it.
Kent Hughes, who must ensure that the plan is respected while remaining very informed on the transaction market, had enough to ruminate on the corrective measures to be taken.
And St-Louis had to react. It couldn’t go on like this. Not that we had any doubts about his management, not at all, but we had to find a way to stop this spectacular tumble into mediocrity.
The Canadian is not a top team. We knew very well at the start of the season that you shouldn’t have very high expectations. The important thing is to develop young players in an appropriate atmosphere.
Everything started off on the right foot.
It was even impressive.
This team delighted its supporters with spectacular victories, with performances focused on speed and the commitment of young players, especially the Cole Caufield/Nick Suzuki duo.
Defenders on the heels
Then, at the beginning of December, St-Louis could not avoid the trap.
In this league, you don’t win just by rushing on offense, the defense remains an element that can make all the difference.
Suddenly, in the defensive territory, night after night, it was confusion. The rivals of the Canadian had fun like thieves at the fair. We could walk around the net of Jake Allen or Samuel Montembeault without the slightest worry.
So we had to react.
The defenders were no longer able to relaunch the attack precisely because they had to deal with adversity. And adversity was constantly being on the heels in order to save the furniture.
A situation that slowed Suzuki, which provided fewer opportunities for Caufield.
And, all the while, those who had to support the young players offered St. Louis no option to improve a worrying situation.
St-Louis did not hide, after Saturday’s game, that for the past few days, at each training session, in the context of meetings with the players, the defense is the main topic of conversation. Twenty times on the loom, hand over your work, they say.
Do we really have a choice?
The wrong course
In December, the team took the wrong course. Had to find a GPS to find the place chosen to make this first recovery season a success.
Did she find the right coordinates?
It is still too early to jump to conclusions.
However, on Saturday, Joel Armia, Evgenii Dadonov and Jonathan Drouin, three players identified as skaters whose mission is precisely to help the development of young players, contributed to the victory.
Armia has been solid over the past two games.
Drouin surprises several of them at the fulcrum.
Dadonov also contributed with remarkable efforts both in attack and in defense.
Let’s test the Kraken
The Canadiens and St. Louis will have some idea whether they’ve headed in the right direction tonight as they face one of the toughest teams on offense, yes, yes, the Seattle Kraken.
The Kraken players began a seven-game road streak last Tuesday against the Oilers. They won 5-2 in Edmonton, 5-1 in Toronto and 8-4 in Ottawa. They had won their last home game against the New York Islanders.
Kraken average over 4.3 goals per game away from home. Since the beginning of the trip, in three games, they have scored 18 goals and allowed seven goals. It is the best formation in the league in numerically equal attack.
Isn’t this a formation which is in its second season?
The Kraken represents a great challenge for St-Louis, why? Because this team is fast, they advocate a system where all five skaters have a role to play.
Isn’t that what Martin St-Louis is looking for?
And it doesn’t just stop at offense, it also involves a 200-by-85 foot engagement.
MacKinnon and Makar respond
Whether we like it or not, the duels between the Colorado Avalanche and the Edmonton Oilers always have a special character.
Nathan MacKinnon contre Connor McDavid.
Mikko Rantanen against Leon Draisaitl.
Hold Makar against ???
Saturday night saw another spectacular encounter between the two teams. Last year, the Avalanche eliminated the Oilers in four games in the Western Conference Finals.
The Oilers were leading 2-0, but MacKinnon took charge of his team’s offense. MacKinnon loves competing on the same playing surface as McDavid. He scored a goal by accelerating from his territory.
The Avalanche outrageously dominated in the third period and then found themselves in overtime. The spectacular MacKinnon/Makar duo settled the debate, the Avalanche ending a worrying five-game losing streak.
This time it was Makar who scored another spectacular goal.
Make a difference, we often repeat!
By the way, Makar spent 33 minutes and nine seconds on the ice.
What a game !