Canadiens' will, collective play pushing them forward even as losses pile up

MONTREAL—Alex Belzile saw Kaiden Guhle gain possession of the puck and flew out of the Canadiens’ end and down the right wing on a mission.

He crossed centre ice, cut the middle, took advantage of an odd bounce off the boards to pounce on the puck and take a 3-on-1 rush. Then Belzile looked off Anthony Richard on the back door and Michael Pezzetta in the slot and froze New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba before roofing a shot on superstar goaltender Igor Shesterkin.

That was Belzile, a 31-year-old AHL lifer who’s finally being given a chance in the NHL and fully taking advantage it, scoring in a third consecutive game. It was Richard, who was playing in just his eighth NHL game since 2020 after being recalled to the Canadiens because Christian Dvorak showed up the rink Thursday morning feeling too hurt to play in the game, driving the net to open up space. And it was Pezzetta, who was scratched from the first 12 of 13 games the Canadiens played this season, forcing his way down the gut to make Shesterkin face yet another threat.

They’re three grinders who all stood out in a game the Canadiens should’ve won but ultimately lost 4-3 in a shootout to a Rangers team many would consider the most talented in the league. Their efforts typified how their whole team played.

“Five-on-five, I think we outworked them, to be honest with you,” said Josh Anderson.

That was undebatable.

It’s also become thematic for the Canadiens, who lost a fourth straight game but could stand tall and proud in their locker room knowing they put in a performance that should’ve been rewarded. After all, this season is about exactly that, with results secondary to the development of the individuals as well as the culture.

There’s also no debate about how healthy all of that appears right now. Considering 12 players, making close to a combined $48 million, are sidelined by injury, you can’t help but marvel at how this team is competing with some of the best teams in the league and growing in the process.

Against a veritable all-star team, the Canadiens pushed the pace all night. It was Belzile, Richard and Pezzetta outshining Filip Chytil, Alexis Lafreniere and Kappo Kakko.

Nick Suzuki was playing with Jesse Ylonen and Rafael Harvey-Pinard, who have both played at least a dozen more games for the AHL’s Laval Rocket than they have for the Canadiens season, and they stood out more than a line featuring Mika Zibanejad, Vladimir Tarasenko and Chris Kreider.

Anderson, who had a shorthanded goal and chances to score one two other breakaways, played with Jonathan Drouin and Mike Hoffman. Together they collected twice as many shot attempts then the start-studded line of Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trochek and Patrick Kane when they were matched up.

The Canadiens’ defence played a hard game, too, blocking eight of 14 Rangers shots that were stopped before reaching goaltender Samuel Montembeault. They also directed 13 shots toward Shesterkin. And they did it without Jordan Harris, a solid regular who missed the game with a lower-body injury.

All in all, it was a complete effort. The type that Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said exemplified the growth the team has experienced since the start of the season.

“I was really happy with the way we played,” he said. “The collective play is stronger than any individual, and that’s what I love. We have a lot of injuries. This morning, we found out Dvorak wouldn’t play, Harris wouldn’t play, and guys come in and we just keep going…The train kept advancing. What we’re in the process of building is so encouraging…”

You can sense that speaking with the players, even after another tough loss.

“The mood’s actually pretty good right now,” said Anderson. “I know that we’re not winning games, but we’re doing a lot of good things and we know that, pretty much, we’re going into every game right now pretty confident in our team, and we know that we’re right there and it’s going to come around pretty soon.”

Pretty soon might not be immediate, considering the quality of opposition the Canadiens will face from here to the end of the season. With 17 games left, they’ll be in tough twice against a Boston Bruins team trending towards posting the most successful season in the NHL’s 106-year history, and they’ll play another six games against top-10 teams in the league.

But the Canadiens have shown they’ll compete, and that’ll help them keep establishing the baseline of who they’re aiming to become as their team gets built. And these games which mean little in this season’s standings will end up meaning a lot in the end.