Hard Work Pays Off

Kerry Fraser was on top form tonight. Not that I'm saying we didn't deserve them, but 9 penalties in one period? Take it easy, Kerry. Anyway, the fact that we managed to kill off those long 5 on 3s is something of an achievement, with most of the credit going to Plekanec. Sure enough, this was nothing but a boost for the Habs as we managed to take the lead in the second. Solid play in the third, and a bank goal from Higgins put away the game from Dallas' reach. Hard work in the 2nd and 3rd period is what led to the win tonight.

Let's look back at Stewart's part in this. I consider him Bégin's cheaper and younger replacement. Not only that, he's much faster, stronger, and knows how/what to do when you drop the gloves. What he did to Ott is something that we rarely see in Montreal. Brunet on RDS even said that he had absolutely no problem with the fight. Obviously being the instigator, he got a few penalties. But he sent a message to the team as well as Ott. This is the problem with Georges Laraque. Because of his code, you will never, EVER see him chase after a guy like that. Kudos to Stewie because he played a huge part in this win.

Carey Price has now had back-to-back solid games. Halak's got to be feeling so awful because of this. As a result of this solid 'tending, Carbo's most likely going to give Price the start on Tuesday. It's too bad for Jaro who's had this flu come and go for the past while. However, I look at it this way: it's better to have two goalies who are hot rather then two who are cold.

This was a big win for Montreal. Had we not won this game, we would be in 8th place. That's not to say we're safe though, the Habs are still 2 points from 9th and Buffalo isn't much furthur behind. Looking forward, I'm feeling good about the schedule. 9 of the next 10 are at the Bell Centre. With a record of 20-6-4 at home, how can you not be optimistic?

Photo: Yahoo! Sports