The Montreal Canadiens are a bad hockey team in the midst of a miserable stretch right now. Try not to smile too wide, Bruins fans.
The hapless Habs dropped their fifth straight game Tuesday night, losing at home to the San Jose Sharks 4-1. Montreal’s only goal came on a 5-on-3 power play, as offensive woes continue to dog a Canadiens team that’s now not only lost five in a row but nine of its last 12.
The Canadiens haven’t scored more than one goal in the five-game losing streak, and Montreal’s opponents have outscored the bleu, blanc et rouge 16-4 over that stretch.
The Canadiens, who entered the season with high expectations under Claude Julien in his first full season since returning to Montreal after the Bruins fired him last year, are very much in jeopardy of missing the Stanley Cup playoffs. Only the lowly Senators and Sabres sit below the Canadiens in the Eastern Conference standings, and the Habs are now eight points out of the East’s second wild-card spot and 10 points behind Toronto for third in the Atlantic Division.
Fans, unsurprisingly, are getting a little perturbed with the lack of success.
“There was one fan who showed up just to yell obscenities at (Max) Pacioretty throughout the night,” wrote Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. “There was another who jokingly belted out odes to former Canadiens, starting a ‘Saku Koivu’ chant, then an ‘Oleg Petrov’ chant, and then a ‘We want (P.K.) Subban’ chant.”
Oh, and speaking of Pacioretty, the American forward’s days in Montreal might be numbered. Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos reported over the weekend on “Hockey Night In Canada” that Montreal is “actively shopping” its captain.
“While an eventual trade may include draft picks and prospects, it’s been clear to other teams that Bergevin’s top priority is moving (Pacioretty) for a top goal-scorer,” Kypreos said, per SB Nation.
Yikes.
It’s been nearly 25 years since the Canadiens, long considered the NHL’s most successful franchise, reached the Stanley Cup Final. Looks like that won’t be changing anytime soon.
