Well the doom and gloom is gone this morning as the Habs absolutely pasted the Flyers last night. It was critical that Montreal find a way to not only win, but make a statement after being embarrassed twice in Philadelphia. The statement: we can be just as dominant, and your goaltender is no miracle man. The Habs outworked and outperformed the Flyers in just about every category that matters last night. From well before the first face off the Habs fans had worked the Bell Centre into a frenzy, and by the time Michael Cammalleri (who else?) scored to give the home side a 1-0 lead, you knew they were a factor. Montreal fed off of the home crowd energy and took the game to the Flyers. It was similar to games in previous series that changed the tides, and one can only hope it was as inspirational to the players as it was to us plebes.

Jaro was fantastic, making critical saves early to keep the Canadiens in it, as well as in front. I thought the Canadiens defense did a fantastic job in moving the puck much quicker and more efficiently than in the first two games which made an incredible difference in the Habs ability to gain the zone and control possession of the puck. It was like loose pucks magically found their way onto Habs sticks all night long.. its exactly what happens when you’re moving your feet and playing with purpose.

There really isn’t a player I can say a bad thing about, other than the fact the Bargeron still scares the bejesus out of me every time he tries to play defense. O’B cleared a puck over the glass for a penalty on his first shift, and barely saw another shift. A case of smart management for a team that can’t afford bad penalties? Maybe. But this much is true – you can’t expect a guy to sit for two weeks and then come in and make an immediate impact without any rust. Why didn’t Martin put O’Byrne back on the ice once the game was more in hand? 2 minutes into the third period, Montreal had a 4-0 lead. That is the perfect time to take a couple guys who are struggling and get them on the ice. Brain-cramp penalty aside, Montreal can still desperately use O’Byrne’s physicality – as was displayed in the subsequent 18 minutes where the Flyers abandoned hockey and took up the goonery that they are so well known for. Martin seemingly has no clue how to ‘send messages’ other than to completely shut a guy down. The problem with that is that you can’t expect a guy to prove himself in 1:34 of ice time. I have nothing but respect for Martin’s accomplishments up until this point in the season – but there is a pattern developing here, which could be incredibly detrimental to the progression of all of our young players. We cannot afford to shut our young players down every time they make a mistake. You have to be able to get them minutes in games when they can’t do any damage.

Anyways, that is my one gripe after a game where I really shouldn’t have one. Fantastic win, and the Habs are back in the series. Go Habs Go!!!