{"id":385472,"date":"2025-11-17T15:24:20","date_gmt":"2025-11-17T15:24:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/385472\/"},"modified":"2025-11-17T15:24:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-17T15:24:20","slug":"canadiens-weekly-notebook-montreals-disastrous-week-doesnt-tell-the-whole-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/385472\/","title":{"rendered":"Canadiens weekly notebook: Montreal\u2019s disastrous week doesn\u2019t tell the whole story"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Montreal Canadiens had a rough week at the office. There is no sugarcoating that.<\/p>\n

Losing three straight on home ice, having their power play completely disappear out of nowhere, being unable to complete a pass or handle the puck with any degree of expertise, losing Alex Newhook for four months with a broken ankle, Kaiden Guhle for another eight to 10 weeks with an adductor muscle tear and Kirby Dach for four to six weeks with a fractured foot, none of it looked very good.<\/p>\n

\n

L’attaquant Kirby Dach (fracture du pied) sera \u00e0 l’\u00e9cart du jeu pour une p\u00e9riode de 4 \u00e0 6 semaines.<\/p>\n

Forward Kirby Dach (fractured foot) will be out for 4 to 6 weeks. pic.twitter.com\/jyL6NApzE5<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Canadiens Montr\u00e9al (@CanadiensMTL) November 16, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

But after 18 games, the Canadiens are still 10-6-2. And just as their 10-3-2 start did not tell the entire story, their 0-3-0 week at home does not tell the entire story, either.<\/p>\n

The NHL has a way of evening out, and while it was a rather drastic way of doing it, that\u2019s what the Canadiens just experienced.<\/p>\n

Take, for instance, a question coach Martin St. Louis fielded after practice last Monday about the Canadiens\u2019 unsustainably high shooting percentage, which was a league-high 15.28 percent in all situations at the time. He was asked if there\u2019s any way for him to prepare for the inevitable drop in that percentage. It was a fair question.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll cross that bridge when I get to it, you know?\u201d he responded. \u201cI\u2019m not going to start planning around it, like, we need to change because, boys, we\u2019re going to start scoring less soon. We have good shooters. For sure, the percentage is high, but the way we behave on the ice, the way we compete, makes it so I\u2019m not worried about our shot volume. We have too big of a sample right now \u2014 going back to last season, we\u2019ve never been a big shot volume team. Could we shoot more? Yes. But it\u2019s not a priority.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Canadiens\u2019 shooting percentage in all situations this past week? A league-worst 4.05 percent. Regression can be nasty at times.<\/p>\n

But despite the horrid shooting week, the Canadiens still lead the league in shooting percentage in all situations at 13.42 percent.<\/p>\n

And really, as awful as the 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings and the 7-0 loss to the Dallas Stars were, the Canadiens\u2019 game at five-on-five appeared to somehow take a step forward in those games, as well as the 3-2 loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday night where an 0-for-7 performance on the power play really sunk the Canadiens.<\/p>\n

Score effects likely had a lot to do with the improved numbers for the Canadiens, but at five-on-five, this was actually one of their better weeks of the season, according to Natural Stat Trick.<\/p>\n

Canadiens at 5v5 before and after<\/p>\nDatesCF%SF%XGF%HDCF%<\/tr>\n\n\n

Up until Nov. 10<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

47.7<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

48.46<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

49.55<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

47.52<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n\n

Nov. 10-17<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

53.01<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

54.64<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

51.25<\/p>\n<\/td>\n\n

50<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

The one big difference? Goals for and goals against, of course. The Canadiens had a 37-28 edge in five-on-five goals heading into the week and were then outscored 10-1 in three games.<\/p>\n

It was a market correction, in a way, and though St. Louis could not walk into his dressing room and warn his players they would start scoring far less, this was somewhat foreseeable.<\/p>\n

Another question St. Louis was asked after practice Monday, prior to the bloodbath he didn\u2019t know was coming, was about how the NHL\u2019s young stars are starting to take over the scoring race \u2014 how Connor Bedard and Macklin Celebrini and Leo Carlsson are imposing their will on the league.<\/p>\n

His response, in retrospect, is quite relevant.<\/p>\n

\u201cA changing of the guard doesn\u2019t happen every year, so is that where we are?\u201d St. Louis said. \u201cWith the small sample we have so far, it seems like it. Will that be the case? We don\u2019t know yet. We\u2019ll have a bigger sample, and that will give us a better idea. You don\u2019t know when it\u2019s going to happen, but you know it\u2019s going to happen. Will that be this year? I don\u2019t know. We\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n

In many ways, this applies to the Canadiens. They had a small sample of success, but an NHL season is long, and roadblocks and adversity and tough times will get in the way.<\/p>\n

The Canadiens have hit their first rough patch. They began their week with St. Louis talking about how he was struggling to manage ice time<\/a> for his forwards because of the unprecedented depth of his team, something complicated by how healthy they were up front.<\/p>\n

A lot has changed in a week.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re about to find out if the Canadiens are indeed taking part in a changing of the guard in the NHL, or if they were simply a small-sample blip on the radar.<\/p>\n

Battle between size and skill<\/p>\n

Quinton Byfield chuckled as soon as he heard it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a really good question, honestly,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Kings centre is listed at 6 feet, 5 inches and 225 pounds. He is a supremely skilled forward with hands to die for. But that frame suggests he is obligated to use more than his skill, more than his speed. He needs to take full advantage of that size.<\/p>\n

Sound familiar?<\/p>\n

The question we were asking Byfield was how he managed the pressure to use his size and be more physical, when he defines himself more by his skill. Amd the reason we were asking it was because it is the same internal battle Juraj Slafkovsk\u00fd has had to wage over his NHL career. Byfield was the No. 2 pick in the 2020 draft. Slafkovsk\u00fd went No. 1 in 2022. They were drafted that high because of their combination of size and skill.<\/p>\n

That combination is what makes them rare. But it requires a bit of a re-definition of their identity as a player.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a bit of both,\u201d Byfield said. \u201cI find, once you\u2019re a big guy, it\u2019s just go to the net, all this stuff. But for myself, I can do a lot more than that. It\u2019s hard. Obviously you\u2019ve got to do a bit of both. Working down low, be a little bit tougher, but when you\u2019re in open ice, use your skill a little bit more. I feel like it\u2019s a tough battle. I\u2019ll just leave it at that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The analogy presented to Byfield was of a young basketball player who is tall and is automatically slated to play centre. Byfield responded that he played point guard as a kid in basketball, but he\u2019s not really allowed to play the hockey equivalent of point guard in the NHL.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor myself, I try to use a lot more of my speed and skill than my physicality,\u201d Byfield said. \u201cSo it\u2019s probably more of finding the consistency of using my size, my reach, physicality. There are games where I use it more than others, and it\u2019s something I want to make more consistent with my game. I just want to use everything and get everything involved and try to be more consistent with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is the same process Slafkovsk\u00fd is trying to go through: to add an element to his game that he doesn\u2019t feel defines his game. That balance is difficult to find, and it is exemplified in that one line from Byfield that explains the battle perfectly:<\/p>\n

\u201cBut for myself, I can do a lot more than that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slafkovsk\u00fd\u2019s speed<\/p>\n

In the Canadiens\u2019 home game against the Utah Mammoth on Nov. 8, Slafkovsk\u00fd hit not only his top skating speed of the season, but of his NHL career, when he reached 37.07 km\/h (23.03 mph) while forechecking Clayton Keller in the Mammoth zone. That speed forced a turnover and allowed the Canadiens to spend some additional time in the offensive zone.<\/p>\n

By the time we brought this up to Slafkovsk\u00fd last Monday morning, he had already heard about it from Canadiens director of hockey development Adam Nicholas.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, Big Cat sent me that,\u201d he said. \u201cI was asking if they got me in the car on the way home. I wasn\u2019t sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

And then Slafkovsk\u00fd wanted to know where he stood.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the fastest? 24?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

The fastest speed hit by a skater this season, according to NHL EDGE data, is Connor McDavid at 39.61 km\/h, or 24.61 mph.<\/p>\n

Slafkovsk\u00fd seemed pleased he at least approached it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was actually surprised, too,\u201d he said. \u201cI felt like we were pushing the pace like we spoke about, we needed to play faster, and I wanted to be part of that. It\u2019s good that I had it. I\u2019m sure it was without the puck, so now I want to do it with the puck.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slafkovsk\u00fd worked very hard over the offseason to be sure he would be at his best this season and avoid the slow starts that have defined his NHL career to date. Hitting the highest speed of his career is, in one way, a validation of that work.<\/p>\n

In another way, it\u2019s not enough.<\/p>\n

Slafkovsk\u00fd wants to stop defining his game by goals and assists. He\u2019s trying to realize there is more to his game than points and that he can contribute to wins in other ways.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a work in progress.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel way better playing,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m just looking for those extra bounces so I can get on the board a little more. Obviously, I\u2019m trying to do everything I can defensively and offensively to help the team, and as long as we keep winning, it\u2019s fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, getting on the board is still important to him?<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d he said with a smile, \u201cI mean, it\u2019s nice to have some cookies.\u201d<\/p>\n

From speeding up to slowing down<\/p>\n

When we talked with Zack Bolduc on Tuesday morning, he had not registered a shot on goal in two straight games. Two nights later, that streak had grown to four straight games \u2014 the longest such streak of his NHL career.<\/p>\n

When you have a shot like Bolduc\u2019s, that is not ideal. But finding space to let go of a shot like his, when you are trying to integrate yourself onto a new team, is not necessarily easy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are the best players in the world,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

One thing St. Louis appears to be emphasizing is the concept of controlling your speed. For some players, such as Cole Caufield, it works. Caufield has said that his comprehension of controlling his speed has been one of his most significant improvements under St. Louis. For others, such as Josh Anderson, that has come with a bit more difficulty.<\/p>\n

When speed is an important part of your identity, actively reducing your speed can be counterintuitive.<\/p>\n

Bolduc admits he is still working on that.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, that\u2019s something I\u2019ve already talked about, whether it was with the Blues, or even in junior with guys like Simon Gagn\u00e9, Patrick Roy, those are guys I talked to about that,\u201d he said. \u201cIn St. Louis, I talked about it with Claude Julien, that I didn\u2019t always have to be going 100 miles an hour. I have a certain amount of experience, but there are still things I need to learn in this league.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou learn things every day. Every time you get on the ice, you might see a situation you\u2019ve never seen before. For me, it still happens regularly that I see situations I haven\u2019t seen a lot. So, it\u2019s about learning, learning and executing. The important thing in this league is to be able to learn and apply it quickly, not need months to adapt to things. It\u2019s something I\u2019ve done well in the past, but it\u2019s something I still need to learn, and I\u2019m learning a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

St. Louis has spoken at length about this concept \u2014 how controlling speed is about spacing, about keeping yourself away from a teammate or about recognizing space the opposing team is giving you. It is something that allows you to read the game, and it is something that is hard because you are playing the game on ice.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s easy on blades to just keep going,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to control your speed. And deceleration is as important as acceleration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bolduc knows he needs to improve at this. He is in his second full season in the NHL, and finding ways to unleash his elite shot remains somewhat elusive, even if he snapped his streak Saturday night with three shots on goal against the Bruins.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are games where the timing is really good; you feel like everything\u2019s going great. And there are games where the timing is really not good and you feel like you\u2019re playing the game backwards,\u201d Bolduc said Tuesday. \u201cThere are nights like that. You just need to approach those nights being conscious of how the puck is rolling for you or how the team is playing, and those are things I\u2019m still learning. We communicate on that, I do video, and they are things I can improve and I\u2019m going to keep improving on.\u201d<\/p>\n