The Montreal Canadiens received bad news Monday as they learned they'll be without their top two defenseman for the next three weeks. Andrei Markov, the team's leading scorer with 64 points will be out three weeks with an injury to his left knee. Mathieu Schneider, acquired at the trade deadline from Atlanta, will be out for the remainder of the season and will undergo surgery to his shoulder.
The team could receive a boost at some point in the first round of the playoffs with the return of Markov, but first they have to clinch a playoff berth and that might be a challenge. The Canadiens fell to the Senators 3-2 on Monday night, blowing a third period lead in a matter of 38 seconds. Dany Heatley scored both third period goals for Ottawa to erase the deficit and then move ahead. Goaltender Jan Halak could not be faulted with the loss, but the team's defense sure didn't get the job done in what could've been considered a must-win game for the recently surging Canadiens.
The Canadiens were coming off a three-game winning streak and starting to turn it around after what many have considered to be a disastrous season that has included underachieving play from key players (Alex Kovalev/Carey Price), off-ice scandals (the Kostitsyn brothers + Roman Hamrlik), the firing of their head coach (Guy Carboneau), and off-ice shenanigans that weren't appreciated by the fans, media and management.
Now, with 3 games to play (all against playoff-bound or playoff hopeful teams) they need to avoid a collapse and figure out the best way to replace their two offensively gifted defensemen.
Alex Kovalev will move to the point on the power play, but between the 6 defensemen, there will be no easy substitution available. Markov averaged 24:37 minutes of ice time per game, while Schneider averaged over 21 minutes. Head coach Bob Gainey now must allocate some of that time to players like Ryan O'Byrne (yikes, remember this goal?) and Doug Janik (double yikes).
Beyond using those two inexperienced defensemen, the domino effect will take quite a toll on some other key defensemen as ice time will spike for Mike Komisarek, Josh Georges, Roman Hamrlik and Patrice Brisebois. The increased ice time won't negatively impact the Canadiens in the short term, but after a long season you can bet it will have a tremendous affect throughout a grueling playoff series where coaching staffs step up their pre-game scouting.
The Habs were already struggling with the man advantage this season after having the NHL's top power play during the previous two seasons. The loss of free agent defensemen Mark Streit in the offseason played a big role in the decline this year. The Canadiens tried to rectify the situation by acquiring Schneider from Atlanta, but now that move has been completely null and void. Schneider scored more than half of his points on the power play this season (17 of 31). Even worse, Markov scored an overwhelming 39 of his team-leading 64 points a man up.
Most playoff-bound teams could alter their style with a more defensive approach and hope their goaltending bails them out in tight games. Unfortunately, the Habs goaltending doesn't seem capable of that yet. I fully expect the Habs to claim a playoff spot, even though the schedule this week will truly test them, but at this point I can't see them advancing past the first round potentially making a long summer even longer in this hockey hotbed.
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