How much lower can the Montreal Canadiens go?
NHL scores 2016: Canadiens lead teams entering the All-Star break with a thud
The Montreal Canadiens may have hit rock bottom.
Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
They seem to be determined to answer that question. The Habs’ descent from the top of the NHL standings to draft lottery contention has been well-documented, but they still managed to find a way to make things look worse before the All-Star Game.
Breaking out of the funk would be easy. The situation couldn't have played more to their favor: two games, back-to-back, against the NHL-worst Columbus Blue Jackets. On paper, that's two easy wins and two incredibly important points that would leave them one win out of a playoff spot when the schedule resumes.
And they blew it. Oh, how they blew it.
On Monday, Cam Atkinson lit the Habs up for three goals on seven shots. Brandon Saad added two more. Montreal actually stood a chance until the third period, when it all fell apart for a 5-2 loss.
And then Tuesday, they had a chance to rebound, lock down a win on home ice and salvage what they could of this dismal stretch. Instead, the same thing happened. Atkinson torched them again with two points, and the Canadiens let the game slip away down the stretch yet again.
To the worst team in the league. It was the nadir of one of the worst stretches in franchise history for the Canadiens, and it has left everyone asking the same question: What the heck do they do about it?
Scores
3 things we learned
1. Tons of teams are entering the All-Star Break with no momentum
Six teams (Arizona, Toronto, Montreal, Chicago, Boston, Colorado) gave up at least five goals on Tuesday. That's a lot of players and coaches who will spend more time over the next week stewing about what went wrong instead of relaxing and enjoying time off. And making sure those losses don't become streaks will be important for all of them as the playoff race begins to tighten.
2. The Crying Jordan meme has reached hockey’s shores
And the first landing was in Carolina.
Hawks fans be like #Redvolution pic.twitter.com/Crcqu7WHYO
— Carolina Hurricanes (@NHLCanes) January 27, 2016
3. Nikolaj Ehlers has arrived
There's no doubt Ehlers is incredibly skilled. There's a good chance the Winnipeg Jets winger will turn out to be a special player. But his rookie season has been inconsistent at best as he tries to learn the ropes on a sinking team. He finally broke out Tuesday, notching a hat trick.
Impact Moment
At least one adorable Canadiens fan was happy!
At least, until Brendan Gallagher spooked her and ruined everything.
Stat of the Night
Jagr has more career points than all 12 Leaf forwards dressed on Saturday combined. pic.twitter.com/CZf00znekU
— J.P. Nikota (@JPNikota) January 27, 2016
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