Game preview: Canadiens vs. Avalanche – Oct. 15, 2009

October 15, 10:11 AMMontreal Canadiens ExaminerHeather Engel

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Guillaume Latendresse has one goal through the Habs' first five
games so far. (Getty Images)

The Canadiens drop the puck on the home portion of their 2009-10 schedule as they welcome the Colorado Avalanche to town. The Habs will be aiming to snap a three-game slide while the Avalanche arrive winners of two straight and sitting atop the Northwest Division, as well as the Western Conference.

Montreal has taken the last two meetings between the two clubs: a 4-2 decision last season in Colorado and a wild 8-5 finish in their October 2006 matchup.

Who’s hot: Skill, solid work ethic and leadership: all attributes that Brian Gionta brings to the Canadiens’ lineup. He’s displayed all three so far, most importantly scoring goals. After potting four in the preseason, Gionta has lit the lamp a team-best three times through the first five games. He’s also been a favorite of head coach Jacques Martin, who has tapped No. 21 for an average of 20:48 of ice time per game, tops among Habs forwards; linemate Scott Gomez trails by 16 seconds.

Who’s not: Guillaume Latendresse endured slow starts in his first two years in the NHL; in 2008-09, he benefitted from an early season injury to Christopher Higgins to get things going. Now in his fourth NHL campaign, Latendresse has scored just once so far, his only point on the scoresheet. With secondary scoring key in ultimate team success, the Canadiens need the 2005 second round draftee to make the most of his hands and his size in front of the net.

Who to watch: With recent free agent signee Marc-André Bergeron not yet in game shape and Yannick Weber returned to Hamilton after a three-game stint, the Habs needed another body on the blue line. In comes Shawn Belle, acquired from the Minnesota Wild in the summer of 2008 in exchange for forward Corey Locke. A defensive defenseman by nature, Belle enjoyed a solid 2008-09 campaign with the Bulldogs, recording 13 points and a plus-19 differential in 60 games. He’ll have a familiar face stopping pucks behind him; he and Carey Price were teammates with the WHL’s Tri-City Americans.

What to watch: A full 60-minute effort and getting on the board first. Inconsistency in games has been the Canadiens’ Achilles heel so far in this young season. Not helping matters is the fact that they’ve been second on the scoresheet in every contest so far, minus the season opener. Playing before a sure-to-be raucous Bell Centre crowd, the Habs will need to get off to a quick start to keep themselves and the fans in the game.

Unsung/under the radar player: Josh Gorges isn’t so much under the radar anymore but give him any assignment and the 25-year-old is up to the task. He filled in for Mike Komisarek alongside Andrei Markov last season and has been eating up a few more minutes per night now that Markov is out. That increase has come not only at even strength but on the power play as well. Gorges is averaging 1:43 with the extra attacker, compared to 1:10 in 2008-09.

Expected line combos & defensive pairings
Travis Moen-Scott Gomez- Brian Gionta
Mike Cammalleri-Tomas Plekanec-Andrei Kostitsyn
Max Pacioretty-Maxim Lapierre-Guillaume Latendresse
Matt D’Agostini-Kyle Chipchura-Georges Laraque

Roman Hamrlik-Jaroslav Spacek
Hal Gill-Josh Gorges
Paul Mara-Shawn Belle

Carey Price
Jaroslav Halak

Injuries: Beyond the long-term injuries to Markov (lacerated tendon, four months) and Ryan O’Byrne (lower body, six weeks), center Glen Metropolit will also sit out the home opener as he continues to recover from bruised ribs.

Avalanche preview courtesy of Brian Thompson, Colorado Avalanche Examiner

Who’s hot:  Since his return from injury forward David Jones has been an indispensable part of the last two victories for the Avalanche. In each of the last two games against Toronto and Boston, Jones scored the game-winning goal. Jones has been borderline spectacular at times and has shown flashes of brilliance, adding an extra dimension of depth to the Avs forward line. If Jones can continue to stay healthy he will bring a physical game to the table and take some of the scoring pressure off the top forward line of Paul Stastny, Milan Hejduk, and Wojtek Wolski.

Rookie Matt Duchene makes his Bell Centre return after being
selected third overall back in June. (AP Photo/Bill Boyce)

With power play goals in each of the first six games and a penalty kill that is ranked fifth in the NHL the Avs’ special-teams this year have been unbelievable. With a success rate of 38% , the Avs’ power play is the second-ranked unit in the NHL and has been scary good. With Kyle Quincey and John Michael Liles quarterbacking, the PP has looked downright dominant this year, pouring in goals against some pretty stingy competition.

Goalie Craig Anderson continues his phenomenal play in net. With a GAA of just under 2.00 and a save percentage hovering around .940, Anderson is off to one of the quickest starts of any goalie in the league.

Who’s not:  One of the few guys not playing real well for the Avs right now is Chris Stewart. A healthy scratch the last two games, Stewart has yet to find his niche in this new collection of talent and may find himself on the outside looking in as the season progresses. Stewart has enviable size and speed and had two points in the first four games. At times, though, he looks lost on the ice and has not nearly been the physical presence the Avs need him to be. Stewart has the ability and the size to be a special player but he must round out his offense again if he wants to stick with the Avalanche and avoid reassignment to Lake Erie.

What to watch for:  One of the biggest changes for this team from last year is the level of sustained intensity that the Avs will exhibit each night. If you go back and look at the goals scored by the Avalanche, you will find that most have been manufactured through hard work in the corners, feisty play that draws penalties, and guys creating traffic in front of the net. This newfound sense of urgency has been a breath of fresh air from the lackluster and zombie-like play last year. Evidently head coach Joe Sacco has been able to instill a nice work ethic amongst his players, which is translating into scoring opportunities and goals. If the Avs can keep up this intensity against Montreal look for them to get several more opportunities on the power play, a time in which this team has been deadly…Another development that bears watching is how the power play and overall quality of the blue line will be affected if Liles cannot play Thursday night.  If Liles is out, Quincey by default becomes the bell cow of the defensive corps and the No.1 PP quarterback.  A guy like Kyle Cumiskey could also be relied upon more to pick up the slack in Liles’ absence, especially on the man advantage.

Who to watch for:  Potentially the biggest weakness for the Canadiens is the play of their blue line. So watch for guys like David Jones, T.J. Galiardi, Wolski, and Cody McLeod to really get the forecheck cranked up. Of these guys the one who could give the Canadiens fits in their own end and one of the biggest surprises has been Galiardi. He had a wonderful game against Boston, arguably the best player on the ice for either team. His ability win pucks in the scrum has freed up scoring opportunities for guys like Jones, Matt Duchene, and Paul Stastny. TJ looks like he's getting more confident with every game and has been the best pit fighter on the Avalanche roster. One memorable instance against Boston, Galiardi was fighting along the boards with three different Bruins players and somehow manage to free the puck and dished to a streaking Jones, who summarily deposited his first goal of the season. If TJ and his forechecking game are clicking, he could cause a lot of problems for the Canadiens’ defensive unit.

Unsung/under the radar:  Did you know that 12 different players have scored goals for the Avs this year? What this speaks to is the fact that nearly every role player on the roster is doing their job with startling effectiveness. Guys like Cody McLeod, Ryan O'Reilly, Darcy Tucker, TJ Galiardi, and a handful of other players have exceeded expectations.

Line combos:
Wojtek Wolski-Paul Stastny-Milan Hejduk
Darcy Tucker-Matt Duchene-Marek Svatos
Cody McLeod-T.J. Galiardi-David Jones
David Koci-Ryan O’Reilly-Matt Hendricks

Defensemen
Foote-Quincey
Hannan-Wilson
Cumiskey-Clark

Goalie
Craig Anderson
Peter Budaj

Injuries:  D John Michael Liles sustained a shoulder injury in the second period Tuesday against Toronto and did not return.  He was reevaluated on Wednesday…Tom Preissing is out until November with a knee injury…Ruslan Salei is on IR with a bad back and is out indefinitely.