BOSTON — The Montreal Canadiens aren’t used to being dominated at TD Garden, but that’s exactly what happened Wednesday night, as the Boston Bruins scored four unanswered goals in a 4-1 win.
Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty, who provided a screen on Montreal’s only goal of the night, was critical of his team following the loss.
“It was a bad game,” Pacioretty admitted. “We’re not happy about it. It seemed like nobody really wanted the puck, and obviously, you know, (when you) play against a team like that offensive line, probably one of the best in the league, and (give) them opportunities to feel good about their game — they made us pay.”
The result is even more disappointing for the Habs when you consider they scored first — just 31 seconds into the game — and seemed to be carrying over the momentum from previous quality performances.
“We didn’t come out flat,” Pacioretty said. “We were up 1-0 and had a good first couple shifts, and then like I said, it just seemed like people were panicking with the puck and didn’t seem to want it.”
“And that’s the difference between good teams and not is, you know, when everyone wants the puck and everyone wants to make a difference, and we definitely didn’t play like that (Wednesday night). We’ve had a lot of talk about the fact that we’ve been playing pretty well as of lately, and I think in my mind that’s the difference.”
Wednesday’s loss puts the Canadiens 12 points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for third place in the Atlantic Division and nine points in back of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second wild-card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Barring some sort of dramatic turnaround, it would be surprising if the Habs played playoff hockey this spring. The question Montreal management must answer soon is whether the team should become buyers or sellers at the upcoming trade deadline.
Pacioretty was the subject of trade rumors in late December when Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos reported that Montreal was actively shopping the 29-year-old forward.
There’s really no need for the Canadiens to trade Pacioretty before the draft or the offseason. He still has another year on his contract, which carries a very team-friendly $4.5 million salary cap hit. Even though the Habs aren’t likely to make the playoffs, they still could make a run if they choose to be buyers at the trade deadline.
Pacioretty entered Wednesday night with a four-game goal streak and 12 goals overall in 44 games this season. If the Canadiens are going to have any shot of reaching the playoffs, they’ll need Pacioretty’s goal scoring in the lineup. Keeping him for at least the rest of the season makes the most sense for Montreal.
