Brossard, QUEBEC—The Montreal Canadiens have a clear direction for their power play this season, and the hope is that a change in strategy is going to pay dividends.
For three consecutive seasons, the Canadiens have fumbled, sputtered and flat-out failed with the man-advantage. Their best finish over that period was 21st overall, operating at 16.5 per cent efficiency.
It’s almost inexplicable that a team regularly deploying offensive weapons like P.K. Subban, Andrei Markov, Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, Brendan Gallagher and Alex Galchenyuk could fall so short on the power play, but as Canadiens coach Michel Therrien pointed out on Monday, chemistry doesn’t form automatically.
“You can put the five best players on the ice, but if the chemistry is not there, it’s not going to work,” he said.
Strategy is just as fundamental as chemistry is when it comes to running a successful power play, and it’s been a major shortcoming for Montreal in recent years. Whether or not it was by design, the Canadiens often fell into the predictable pattern of setting the play up for Subban to unload what has to be considered as one of the NHL’s best one-timers.
With defenceman Shea Weber—who arguably has the best point-shot in the game—now in place, the concern has to be about that same pattern re-emerging.
“If everyone is involved, it works better,” said Pacioretty. “That’s what the teams who have the most success with the power play do. Look at San Jose or Washington. Yes, Alexander Ovechkin’s set up to shoot, but [Nicklas] Backstrom and [T.J. Oshie] are making plays before it gets to there.
“It really is a selfless mindset that leads to a successful power play. Everybody needs to get their looks and their puck touches for everyone to feel good on the unit.”
Kirk Muller, who was brought in as an associate coach in June, has been preaching exactly what Pacioretty is outlining. Muller comes to Montreal with a penchant for running successful power plays—his last stint as an assistant coach with the Canadiens should serve as Exhibit A.
From 2006-2011, Montreal’s worst finish in the category was 15th overall, at 19 per cent efficiency. They finished with the league’s best numbers in consecutive seasons and had second and seventh-place finishes in the other two seasons.
“Kirk definitely knows what he’s talking about,” said Canadiens defenceman Jeff Petry. “You can see things being implemented quickly. The first power play of the first exhibition game, we scored. Things have been going well, so you can see some things taking shape.
“We know his philosophies have worked in the past, and I don’t see why they wouldn’t work here.”
Power-play functions were bungled by assistant coaches Dan Lacroix and Jean-Jacques Daigneault over the last three seasons, and Craig Ramsay, who was brought in as a consultant last year, didn’t have the answer. Therrien seems optimistic that Muller does.
“[Muller] brings different ideas,” said Therrien. “I think the players like his approach. He’s close to the players and he fits the role and the need we were looking for.”
Newcomers Alexander Radulov and Andrew Shaw, in addition to Weber, could also be big factors in reviving Montreal’s power play.
“I think it really helps to have a guy like Radulov,” said Petry. “He’s got great patience, and he can pass the puck as well as he shoots it. When you have that dual-threat you’re forcing the opposition to make decisions, and that tends to open up things you’re looking for.”
Shaw was a mainstay on Chicago’s power play over the last four seasons, digging pucks out of the corners and making life miserable for opposing goaltenders by crowding their creases. He’s also shown in exhibition with Montreal that he’s got an unheralded shot and the ability to make finesse plays.
When Weber joins practice Tuesday for the first time since returning from the World Cup of Hockey, Muller will finally have a chance to start implementing strategy with all of his pieces in place.
“We’ve talked about what we want our identity to be,” said Gallagher. “I think the whole thing with the power play is that you have an extra guy on the ice, but it’s only an advantage if you use all five guys and you’re working as one big unit. I don’t think we’ve been as in sync as we should’ve been the last couple of years.”
The Canadiens have two more pre-season games to iron out the kinks: Tuesday night in Boston against the Bruins, and Thursday’s home game versus the Maple Leafs.
