The Montreal Canadiens have had a very successful first 32 games. The obvious culprits are to blame. Improved defensive play and a fantastic start from young goalie Carey Price are the two biggest factors in this early season surge.
The Canadien's offense on the other hand has been mediocre. Eighty-five goals-for has them tied for 16th in league scoring with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Tomas Plekanec is the teams leading scorer with almost a point a game. His 27 points leave him tied for 34th in league scoring. Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta lead the team with 11 goals scored. Andrei Kostitsyn who currently has scored nine goals looks like the only other Canadien likely to score more than 20 this year.
Jeff Halpern has proven to be an able third-line checker. His success in the faceoff circle has been a boost for a team that has struggled. Halpern has also provided some much needed secondary scoring from the checking line with six goals and 16 points in 32 games.
Recently rookie Lars Eller was teamed with another second line reject Benoit Pouliot and Mathieu Darche to form a consistent fourth line in Montreal. They h ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Scott Weldon
C Lars Eller, RW Mathieu Darche, LW Benoit Pouliot: Best Fourth Line In Hockey?
December 18th, 2010 by Scott Weldon Leave a reply »
Advertisement