Carolina Hurricanes: 3 Keys to win in Montreal

Carolina travel to Montreal today for a grudge match with the Habs. It’s going to be a fun game regardless given some of the stuff that has happened off the ice. We will get to see them meet for the first time this season and in very different situations on the ice. One team is struggling and the other one is flying high.

Coming into this game, last season’s Stanley Cup finalists are struggling. Montreal comes into this game on the back of a 5-0 defeat to the San Jose Sharks in Montreal. While the Habs currently sit at a 0-4-0 record having only scored 3 goals on the season. To be quite honest, the Habs are in a bit of a crisis and the Canes need to be heartless as they travel into the French province.

This comes after the Hurricanes had the first successful NHL offer sheet in forever when they got one of the Canadiens big playoff performers to sign an offer sheet that the Montreal Canadiens elected not to match, and don’t you worry, we’ll get to talking about that player in this too. But since then, the Canadiens have tried to retaliate by getting the Canes punished by the league, to no avail.

Carolina only played 4 preseason games and in the collective bargaining agreement, it says teams need to play six. Carolina was granted amnesty by the league for reasons of COVID and the fact that there’s a new team on the west coast that we will get to talking about the Seattle Kraken soon when the Canes play them. But for now, it’s the Hurricanes and Canadiens we get to dive into.

For those that remember the 2019 off-season, and what set off the offer sheet that was submitted this summer by the Carolina Hurricanes, we will also get to talking about that one. We’re going to be talking about a lot of things that could impact this game and the ties between the teams.

Also, it’s been reported that former Carolina Hurricane and current Montreal Canadien Joel Edmundson has had some family issues away from the team, and we would like to send nothing but our best wishes to him and his family. With the news that his father has lung cancer, we would like to ask you to keep Edmundson’s family in your thoughts as they go through this tough time.

Seabass repaying his team

Kotkaniemi’s offer sheet was only set off because of an offer sheet Montreal handed out a few years prior. That recipient was the Carolina Hurricanes best player Sebastian Aho and the drama around Aho and his future that is caused still burdens the face of this organization regarding the speculation it created in Quebec.

When Aho signed the offer sheet the Montreal Canadiens tendered to him, there was a mixed reaction among the fan base. Some felt hurt that Aho would sign anywhere outside of Raleigh, some were grateful that the Canadiens offer sheet was so bad that it was a simple decision to match it. It raised questions that didn’t need to be there.

Traveling to Montreal just serves as a reminder of what happened with Aho, and it always raises these questions that Canes fans are trying so hard to push to the back of their mind while Aho still has three years left on his deal. It’s not fun when these distractions come up when playing an opponent with prestigious history as the Montreal Canadiens organization. It’s a difficult task to ignore them.

It’s why Aho deciding to blast the Montreal Canadiens into space tonight would be greatly appreciated. While Aho does have 2 assists on the year, we’re really yet to see the Aho domination we see where he takes games over completely and makes it clear that the Carolina Hurricanes are just not going to lose.

If Aho can put the puck in the net tonight to end his October blues and his traditional early-season struggles (yes, struggles for someone who is currently a point per game player) then Carolina should come south of the border with six points in the standings in their preparations for the game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, but that’s not for a while yet.

Defensive stability

Carolina’s defense has been solid so far this season. While the team has been relatively solid all the way around, we saw the defense play really well in the home opener against the Islanders and struggle a little during the game in Smashville. With the knowledge that the Canes can shut down teams, it’s going to be very important to continue Montreal’s offensive struggles.

Montreal is still yet to score more than one goal in a game and was shut out in their last game. It’s an issue they have, converting chances is something they have struggled with so far this season. Their top point producer has a lowly 2 points. Carolina has 8 members of the team with that total, and two with more. Carolina’s top producer has double that amount through half the number of games.

With that said, we know the Canadiens are coming into this game with new lines and a new philosophy with their offensive system. Keeping the Canadiens restricted is going to be important. If the Canes can keep the Habs off the board, then they will automatically walk away with one point, even if the offense does nothing. It’s important for the team to suppress Montreal’s issues.

Montreal has issues, specifically down the middle, when it comes to its production. It’s not their strength. What is, is that the wingers are incredibly talented, they’re very deep. It’s why it’s important to stress that all three defensive units will need to be in full force for the team to succeed. It’s not going to be able to be done by just one person or player.

Tonight, the Canes will face one of their toughest tests of the month of October. With last season’s Stanley Cup finalists being the opponent, the Carolina Hurricanes will need a great defensive performance for tonight’s game at the Bell Center in Montreal. A 7 PM EST puck drop, and above all else, LET’S GO CANES!