Penguins

Canadiens opened the Igloo in 1967

They closed it in 2010

What a teaM!

Take a bow, Mr. Gainey ... wherever you are.

You have the gratitude of Montreal hockey fans – even those who doubted you – for:

• Scott Gomez instead of Saku Koivu

• Mike Cammalleri instead of Alex Tanguay

• Brian Gionta instead of L'Artiste

• Tom Pyatt instead of Christopher Higgins

• Jaro Spacek, Hal Gill and Paul Mara instead of Mike Komisarek, Francis Bouillon and Mathieu Dandenault

• Marc-André Bergeron instead of Mathieu Schneider

Thank you, also, for Jacques "I don't have a problem with calmness" Martin.

Thanks for letting P.K. Subban learn pro hockey away from the spotlight until he was ready.

And for kicking BGL out of a tight, proud, hard-working room.

We'll also credit Gainey, at least in part, for Travis Moen and Dominic Moore – BIG upgrades on Tom Kostopoulos and Steve Bégin.

The sun is shining in Montreal and everyone is smiling.

Bob Gainey has no influence on the weather, but what a playoff team he put together.

Four elimination games.

Four wins.

The Ol' Blogger does not know what to make of this.

And it's not like your Montreal Canadiens are playing the Little Sisters of the Poor.

Down 3-1 to the number one seed in the East, they rallied to force a Game 7 and win it in Washington.

Down 3-2 to the Stanley Cup champions, who were determined not to repeat the run-and-gun mistakes of the Capitals, the Canadiens force ANOTHER Game 7 with a come-from-behind W that had fans roaring the roof off the Bell Centre.

Something is happening here, and I don't know what it is.

The Commenter known as dicktracy (which betrays his age) captured the spirit: 

Maybe I'm getting old but as far back as I remember cheering the Habs...1966...all those great teams, players, cups,...I never ever remember being so emotional!

CBC had a great game intro:

And it's nasty!

It's snowing on Mother's Day in Montreal.

The Canadiens are back from Pittsburgh and will hold a team meeting at their Brossard training facility this morning at 11.

• Habs at the brink again – Stubbs

• In the room

• Penguins in the driver's seat – David Shoalts

• Malkin, Rupp were the keys – Scott Burnside

• The curious case of Tomas Plekanec – Arpon Basu

• Bulldogs take series lead

Fearless prediction I: The Bell Centre will be VERY LOUD on Monday night.

Fearless prediction II: If the Canadiens outshoot the Penguins 33-25 in Game 6, this series is going to Game 7.

Too much optimism after a loss in which the Canadiens were shut out for 58 minutes, 31 seconds?

Maybe so, but this team gave the Stanley Cup champions all they could handle in their own barn.

A bounce here, a white shirt on a rebound there and the Canadiens are coming home with a chance to clinch.

As it was, however, Marc-André Fleury was very good on first shots ... and there were precious few second ones.

Hal Gill is the latest Dman to go down, victim of a Chris Kunitz skate stomp that sliced him behind his left knee

But it ain't over.

But this ain't over

• Red Fisher on the playoff odyssey

• Just call them the Cinderellas – Stubbs

• Pyatt blossoms – Hickey

• Conspiracy? What conspiracy? – Boone

• Jean-François Bégin on P.K. Subban

• Is Jaro in their heads? – David Shoalts

• The emergence of team spirit – Sean Gordon

• Scott Burnside on Dan Bylsma

•  •  •

Quote of the Day: "I think right now (Roberto Luongo) is the second best goaltender on the ice." – Alain Vigneault

Thanks for that vote of confidence, coach.

• Jaro carries Habs through slow start: Red Fisher

• Inside the Room

• "We fed off crowd": Darche

• Sergei on the skids: Dave Stubbs

• Habs find a way: Michael Farber

• Getting to Fleury: Roy MacGregor

• Keeping Big Three in check: Scott Burnside

• Place blame on Penguins' stars

• Penguins fans like hockey in Montreal

This is why they don't schedule Stick Night.

It was a great win for your Montreal Canadiens, and maybe dwelling on the officiating is a mug's game.

But man, that was brutal – and one can only hope that Paul Devorski and Eric Furlatt bumbled their way out of consideration for working the Conference finals.

Shall we enumerate the screw-ups?

• Ruslan Fedotenko tackles P.K. Subban at the Pittsburgh blueline to set up Maxime Talbot's breakaway goal. No call.

• Sidney Crosby, the most hated man in Montreal, trips Roman Hamrlik during a Pittsburgh power play that was to produce Chris Kunitz's goal. No call.

• In a replay of the Kyle McClaren hit that KOed Richard Zednik in 2002, Mark Eaton tried to take off Andrei Kostitsyn's head. No call.

• At the end of the second period, Crosby's styrofoam stick breaks on a harmless Hal Gill tap. The best hockey player in the world looks beseechingly at the officials, Gill is called and the Canadiens, trailing 2-1, begin the third period on the PK.

GARBAGE!

Even Don Cherry called the refs out.

Talk about the seventh man, the Canadiens had to cope with Pittsburgh's seventh and eighth men – an ungainly clone of a Penguin in zebra stripes.

Bring back Kerry Fraser!

Even Chris Lee isn't this bad.

I mean, seriously ... lace up Stevie Wonder and give him a whistle.

(Shout-out to Habber 86 for the Gary Bettman and Crosby Photo Shop)

• A bargain at $1,500 a pair for Game 4

• Uh-oh! Jordan Staal is ready: Dave Stubbs

• Crosby is a big whiner: Pat Hickey

• Roy MacGregor on Hal Gill

• Réjean Tremblay on how the refs treat Crosby

• Habs fans in TO

Against the Stanley Cup champs ... and the referees!

After the game, everyone talked about patience.

Both teams played carefully, as evidenced by no goals and 26 shots, 16 by Pittsburgh, through the first 40 minutes.

The Canadiens don't have much choice in playing a conservative style.

Missing their best defenceman, matched against an explosive opponent and, let's not forget, coached by a man one might charitably describe as risk-averse, the Canadiens were not about to play run-and-gun against the Stanley Cup champs.

But while hermetic defence frustrated the mighty Washington Capitals in the opening series, it was the not-so-mighty Canadiens who were stifled by Pittsburgh's mastery of the kind of mistake-free style that wins more often than not in the playoffs.

What loses, more often than not, is 18 shots on goal – 11 over the final two periods of a tight game.

Tough to beat them with 18 shots.

The Canadiens wasted a dominant first period.

• Dave Stubbs probes the enigma that is AK46

• The system focuses on D

• James Mirtle on Gorges and Gill

• Robert L and Chris Boyle on the impact of losing Markov

• Robert and Chris break down Game 2 goals

• Jean-François Bégin on the shot bombardment

• The influence of the Bell Centre's Seventh Man

• Roy MacGregor on Kris Letang

• Jarred Friedman finds a pretty cool Habs mash-up

Video scout Jarred Friedman dedicates this Neil Young classic to Jaro Halak.

Take that, NBC!

How does the CH feel wedged up your sun belt strategy, Gary?

Despite a TV-dictated schedule that had them playing the well-rested Stanley Cup champions twice in less than 48 hours, your Montreal Canadiens are coming home with a split.

In his post-game remarks, Jacques Martin repeated his usual mantra on goaltending and special teams.

He praised the Canadiens' "poise and puck management", the leadership of veterans such as Scott Gomez, Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta, the inspired play of the third line: Dominic Moore centring Max Lapierre and Tom Pyatt.

What JM failed to mention – low-key, modest fellow that he is – was coaching.

Through seven games of the opening series and two in Pittsburgh, Martin has done a masterful job of manipulating a roster depleted of the Canadiens' best player.

No Markov?

No problem.

What a heroic effort!

And guess what?

Jaro is in their heads.

Not necessarily.

The rest of the Pittsburgh series need not be a rerun of the Canadiens' early-season western road trip. And even if it is ...

Having been deprived of their best player in the season opener at the ACC Death Valley, the Canadiens scored an OT win in Buffalo (where Paul Mara played 24:27), lost on a late goal in Calgary, got killed in Vancouver (arguably their worst game of the season) and battled back from 3-0 to make it a one-goal L in Edmonton.

Regular-season stats offer little reason for optimism. The Canadiens were 14-20-3 after Markov's injury. After his Dec. 19 return, they went 24-13-7.

Markov led the team at plus-11 this season. He averaged a team-high 23:48 per game.

Markov quarterbacks the power play – albeit in a somewhat diminished role this season, as the PP tends to funnel everything toward Marc-André Bergeron's booming shot from the right point.

Markov and whoever his partner happens to be play against the opposition's most dangerous forwards. He is adept at clearing the zone with tape-to-tape passes or lugging the puck out.

Like Nick Lidstrom and the league's other great Dmen, Markov controls the tempo of the game when he's on the ice. Unlike Lidstrom, Markov is falling victim to some hard hits – a legal one by Matt Cooke last night, a cheap shot by Mikhail Grabovski that sealed the Canadiens' playoff fate a year ago.

But you know what?

I though Markov was a bit off-form in the Washington series. The Canadiens best defencemen against the Capitals were Josh Gorges and Hal Gill. The opening round was also a coming-out party for Ryan O'Byrne and P.K. Subban.

When Markov fell victim to that freak skate cut in Toronto, the Canadiens were still in the chemistry experiment stage of their evolution.

Against Washington, they were a team.

They still are, and the team is facing a tough challenge: 0-1 against the Stanley Cup Champions, with Game 2 starting less than 48 hours after the loss of a key player.

Has Probably Not become No F. Way?

We'll see tomorrow.

•  •  •

I agree with learned members of the Commentariat who suggest Carey Price start Game 2.

Jaro looked out of sorts last night, and fatigue may have been a factor.

If Price stands on his head in Game 2, the Canadiens are back in the series and riding a hot goalie.

If he plays OK and the team scratches out a win, Jacques Martin has a decision for Game 3.

If the Canadiens lose, Martin comes back with Halak at the rockin' and rollin' Bell Centre on Tuesday night.

•  •  •

Fearless prediction for my second-favourite NHL team:

No Staal = No Cup.

If Andrei Markov is out – and he left the rink on crutches – well ...

In seven games, the Caps scored one power-play goal.

Pittsburgh had four in 34 minutes

• Canadiens had little time to celebrate: Stubbs

• Red Fisher on Jaro

• Habs fans of the world unite!

• Jean-François Bégin on the Canadiens leaders

• Sean Gordon on the Pittsburgh series

• Robert L previews the Penguins

• Sid vs. Ovie ... and guess who's winning?

• Eastern Conference predictions

• Brooks Laich is a good guy

• Hank for the Hart

And the official Jaro History Will be Made video

The kids are alright.

"Who dat?" will be the rallying cry of Saints fans during the Super Bowl tomorrow night.

This afternoon, at the Bell Centre, Canadiens fans were wondering "Who dey?"

Three emergency call-ups from Hamilton – Ryan White, Brock Trotter and David Desharnais – formed the best fourth line the Canadiens have had this season.

I know: That isn't saying much.

But suffice it to say the youngsters did a lot more skating and hitting than we'd seen from Georges Laraque in two years.

Did anyone see this coming?

That's why they play the games.

No cigars for 41 shots against

Surprised?

C'mon.

Crosby, Malkin, Staal and – despite the absence of Chris Kunitz and Tyler Kennedy – a supporting cast of big, hard-hitting forwards against an undermanned team with an undersized defence.

The stat that caught my eye: 45 hits by the Penguins. That's a high against the Canadiens this season. Michael Rupp had nine.

Earlier this season, in a game the Penguins won 6-1, they had 16 hits.

This time around, the Pittsburgh pro scouts told Dan Bylsma what works aganst the Canadiens:

Hit them, hard and often. Don't give them the time and space to get their skating game going. Wear down the Montreal Bulldogs, playing their second game in as many nights.

So the game unfolded the way Bylsma drew it up:

When Bill Guerin goes into the corner with Josh Gorges, Pittsburgh gets the puck.

When Rupp hits Roman Hamrlik, the pillar of the Canadiens' D feels it, and gets sorer as the game wears on.

And thanks to Max Pacioretty, they weren't shut out in what was probably their last visit to Mellon Arena.

Shots were 30-19.

As bad as Vancouver?

The Canadiens had 28 shots against the Canucks but only 24 in Pittsburgh.

Henrik Sedin had two goals, his brother three assists.

Sidney Crosby had a hat trick and might have had five. His brothers-in-arms, Bill Guerin and Chris Kunitz, each had three assists ... and Kunitz added a late goal.

Not to put too fine a point on it, the Canadiens came up empty against quality opposition in both games.

With the exception of an OT win against the Rangers – who may be in the process of plummeting back to earth – the Canadiens haven't taken a point against an upper-bracket team this season.

Ominous?

Well, it's still early. 

And does any person not watching the game at the Douglas Hospital think the Canadiens are as good as Pittsburgh?

Jaroslav Halak starts his fifth in a row tonight at the Igloo.

Pat Hickey also reports Scott Gomez did not participate in morning skate.

He's at the team's hotel with flu-like symptoms.

Uh-oh.

The lines at morning skate:

Cammalleri-Plekanec-Gionta
Latendresse-Metropolit-D'Agostini
Kostitsyn-Lapierre-Stewart
Pacioretty-Chipchura-Moen 

AUDIO: Jacques Martin | Hal Gill | Marc-André Fleury | Kris Letang

After playing five pre-season games in five nights, the Canadiens get a well-deserved day off on Tuesday before the serious work begins.

The scrubeenies have been cut out of the herd. 

Tomorrow morning, they're off to Scotland, where the Hamilton Bulldogs – including late cuts Shawn Belle and Eric Neilson – will train and play.

Then it's two practices and two more pre-season games, against Boston at the Bell Centre on Thursday and Buffalo on Saturday.

"We'll work on systems and habits," said Jacques Martin, after the Canadiens played a spectacular third period, scoring three times to beat the Stanley Cup champions 4-3.

"Sometimes," Martin added, "it takes time to change things."

The big change last night was an accident.

After Max Pacioretty sustained an "upper-body injury" at the end of the second period, Martin juggled his lines.

Mike Cammalleri took Max-Pac's place on a line with Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta.

Gomez scored shorthanded early in the period. Gionta cashed a pass from Cammalleri.

It was magic ... and the crowd loved the combination of three fast, skilled forwards.

AUDIO: Mike Cammalleri  Carey Price  Scott Gomez  Jacques Martin