OUTDOOR GAME: MONTREAL V.S CALGARY FEB.20/11

Yesterday in Chicago, Gary Bettman announced that both Calgary and Pittsburgh will be hosting a outdoor game. Pittsburgh will play outdoors against Washington on January 1st 2011 and Calgary will play a outdoor game against Montreal on February 20th 2011."As an organization with a strong fan base throughout Canada, we welcome this opportunity to do honour to our great game," Habs president Pierre Boivin said. The average temperature in Calgary on Feb.20th is minus-17 to plus-1, according to The Weather Network.

The Canadiens and Penguins will both be in there second outdoor game. Montreal had one against the Oilers in 2003 and the Penguins had one against the Sabres in 2009.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

2010-11 NHL EVENTS
Kraft Hockeyville, Sep. 28, Sabres v. Senators
Compuware NHL Premiere™, Oct. 7-10: Blue Jackets v. Sharks, Stockholm; Hurricanes v. Wild
Helsinki; Bruins v. Coyotes, Prague
NHL Face-Off, Oct. 7, Canadiens v. Maple Leafs, Toronto, ON
NHL Hall of Fame Game, Nov. 6
Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic, Jan. 1: Capitals v. Penguins, Heinz Field, Pittsburgh
NHL All-Star Weekend, Jan. 29-30: Raleigh, NC
Hockey Day In Canada, Feb. 12
Hockey Day in America, Feb. 20
NHL Heritage Classic™, Feb. 20: Canadiens v. Flames, McMahon Stadium, Calgary, AB (pending approval of the Competition Committee)
2011 Stanley Cup® Playoffs, April 13
NHL Awards™, Jun. 22, Las Vegas, NV
NHL Entry Draft, Jun. 24-25, St. Paul, MN

NHL EVENTS FOR THE 2010-2011 SEASON

NHL events 2010-11

Season Launch:

October 7th 2010
MTL VS TOR
Car Vs Min (HELSINKI)

October 8th
Sharks V.s Blue Jackets (Stockholm)

October 9th and 10th 2010

Bruins V.s Coyotes

NHL events 2010-11

Outdoor games:

January 1st 2011

Capitals VS Penguins at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, home of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers.

February 20th 2011

Canadiens VS Flames at McMahon Stadium in Calgary

AHL UPDATE: BULLDOGS COLDER CUP RUN ENDS WITH 4-2 LOSS TO THE STARS IN GAME 7

Last night in Hamilton, the Montreal Canadiens farm team (the Hamilton Bulldogs) Calder Cup run comes to an end with a 4-2 loss to the Stars. The first goal of the game was scored by the Bulldogs by David Desharnais. The Bulldogs weren't done there, As P.k Subban took a shot it was stopped but Max Pacioretty scored on the rebound to make it 2-0. But unfortunately for the Bulldogs, that would be there last goal of the game. As shortly after that the Stars struck back with a goal by Ethan Graham.

So then in the third period the game was still 2-1 until the Texas Stars scored again by Mathieu Beaudoin to tie the game. The Stars would go on to get 2 more goals from Perttu Lindgren and Jamie Benn to make the score be 4-2 and that would be the final as the Bulldogs post season comes to an end. The Calder cup final will be against the Bears and the Stars. Which will start this weekend.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HALAK DOESN'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT CONTRACTS

Just a day after Montreal's playoff run came to an end, the media already started talking about Halak's future as a Canadien. But Jaroslav Halak was not open to the topic as he wants to take some time off to rest."Right now, don't think about it," Halak said Tuesday when asked what his priorities are when it comes to his contract status. "This is not going to happen today or tomorrow, it's going to happen over the summer.It's a good question, but right now I just want to go on vacation and put aside hockey and not think about it." It was a good year for Halak and the Canadiens even though they were knocked out in the Conference Final. But it's not too bad that they lost because this was there first time in a Conference Final since they won the Cup 17 years ago in 1993.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS SEND SUBBAN AND MAXWELL TO THE AHL TO FINISH CALDER CUP RUN

Today in Montreal, the Canadiens decided that since they are out that they might as well send P.k Subban and Ben Maxwell to the AHL to finish off his season with the team that they started with this season the Hamilton Bulldogs. Who are just one win away from the Calder Cup Final against the Hershey Bears. But they are in a game 7 against the Texas Stars. So it's a 50-50 chance that the Bulldogs will go to the Final.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS CUP RUN COMES TO AN END

Last night in Philadelphia, the Canadiens came out battling and got the first goal by Brian Gionta.Thing were looking good for Montreal. But when the Habs went on the powerplay, the Flyers came out on the attack shorthanded and Halak came out to challenge Richards. But Richards got around him and put it in the empty net to tie the game. Then in the Jeff Carter scored in the second period to put the Flyers up a goal. Then shortly after that Asham scored to put the Flyers up 3-1 going into the third. Then 7 minutes into the third, Scott Gomez scored his first goal in 18 games. But it wouldn't matter as the Flyers would add a empty net goal to win the game by the score of 4-2 and the Flyers are off to the cup final for the first time since 1997.

As for the Habs, this was there longest cup run since 1993. So it's not all that bad that they came up short. But thing that bothers me the most is that it's like Dajaview all over again. If you look back to the 07-08 season, the Habs lost to the Flyers in round 2 and in 5 games like this season."This hurts," defenceman Josh Gorges said. "To work this hard to get to where we are and then to come up short is tough to swallow because we know how close we were to where we were going.Yeah, we did a lot of great things and I'm proud of this group.

"We made steps in the right direction to build this team for the future, but it hurts." The Canadiens played well in this game and I think they have a bright future ahead of them. They just need to get a little bit bigger and they will be fine.The Stanley cup Final will start Saturday at 8:00.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS LOSE 3-0 AGAIN TO GO DOWN 2 GAMES IN THE SERIES

Yesterday afternoon in Montreal, the Canadiens came out strong. But collapsed in the second period and only had 1 shot. Which gave the Flyers several chances which lead to a 2-0 Flyer lead going into the third. In the third the Habs found there game, but were unable to score. So the Flyers would score on the empty and garbed a 3-0 win and a 3-1 series lead. In every game Montreal lost in this series they were held goalless. So what do they have do next game you ask. The have to score a goal and win the game or they will be knocked out of the playoffs.But it's not like they haven't been in this situation before. Just ask Mike Cammalleri.

"It's a familiar feeling for us," said Canadiens winger Michael Cammalleri. "We seem to play our best hockey in this situation. And here we go again." In my opinion, this series is far from over. If they can come back against the Capitals and the Penguins they can come back against the Flyers. It's obvious what they have to do next (besides score) is grab a win in Philadelphia. If they do that they will have all the momentum going back to Montreal.

In the win, Giroux had 2 goals and Timonen scored for the Flyers."The trouble was we didn't get the puck in deep," said Montreal coach Jacques Martin. "We turned it over numerous times.We played in dangerous zones -- the blue lines. In this type of game you need to be patient and manage the puck well. We kept the puck in front of their defense instead of behind them."

Game 5 will be Monday at 7:00pm E.t on CBC, Versus and RDS

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

CANADIENS SCORE 5 GOALS!! WHICH LEADS TO VICTORY!!

Last night in Montreal, the Canadiens finally solves Michael Leighton. 5 times mind you in a 5-1 victory to avoid going down 3-0 in the series."When you're down 2-0 you have to find a way," said Montreal centre Scott Gomez. "But we've still got a long way to go.Being down 2-0's tough, but you have to look at the big picture. They won at home, so we want to win at home. That's the way we were taught. And the next game will be tougher because you can bet Flyers coach Peter Laviolette will have that team going. He's a good coach."The Canadiens scored the first goal 7 minutes into the game off of a shot that missed the net and bounced right to Mike Cammalleri who put it in the net. Then with 4 minutes left in the first, Tom Pyatt scored off a rebound to make it 2-0 going into the break.

11:33 into the second, Dominic Moore made it 3-0 off a centering pass that Leighton never saw it due to the traffic in front of him. So going into the third the Habs had a 3-0 lead but they weren't done there.As exactly 2 minutes into the third Brian Gionta scored on a breakaway to make it 4-0. Then the Flyers got on the board with 12 minutes to go with a goal by Gagne. But it wouldn't matter. As the Habs made it 5-1 with a goal on the powerplay by Bergeron with under a minute to go. But that will be the final (5-1). 4 out of the 5 Montreal goals came with traffic in front of Leighton.

But Lapierre was a big key in why Montreal won. As he had a moter mouth last night. He was getting on the Flyers nerves and made them get to frustrated. But Jaroslav Halak was also a huge key to the win as he made 25 saves on 26 shots.The Canadiens out shot the Flyers 38-26. Which made this win be the first win these playoffs when out-shooting a opponent. "Overall, we moved the puck better, we came up the ice together, with support, we entered the zone better," said Montreal forward Brian Gionta. "With that going, it's easier to get to the net and get opportunities."Game 3 of this series will be Saturday afternoon at 3:00pm E.t on CBC,Versus and RDS.

Three star selections
1st:	ROMAN HAMRLIK
2nd:	DOMINIC MOORE
3rd:	TOM PYATT

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

Andrei Markov Had successful knee surgery

Today in Montreal, Canadiens General Manager Pierre Gauthier announced that Andrei Markov had successful knee surgery to repair a torn ligament. In the regular season Markov had 34 points (6 goals 28 assists) in 45 games. Then in the playoffs he played 8 games and had 4 assists. But bad news for him and the Canadiens is that he will be out for 6 months and the rest of these playoffs.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

LEIGHTON SHUTS DOWN MONTREAL AGAIN

Last night in Philadelphia, the Montreal Canadiens dominated the game but once again Leighton gave Philly a 3-0 shutout win and more importantly a 2-0 series lead going back to Montreal."We've got to do something," said Canadiens centre Scott Gomez. "We've got to create more in front, get our shots through.The guy (Leighton) is making some key saves, but we've got to find a way -- get an ugly one and go from there." With the shutout the Flyers have scored 13 unanswered goals (in this game Danny Briere,Simon Gagne and Ville Leino scored) and Leighton has not given up a goal in 165:50. But if your a Hab fan don't panic! The Habs have come back down 2-0 in several games in history. Look back to 1993 in round 1 the Habs were down 2-0 to Quebec but ended up wining 4 straight to win the series.

“Whenever a goalie gets back-to-back shutouts, you know he’s doing something right,” shrugged Cammalleri on behalf of he and his snake-bitten dressing room. “We responded well as a group and the chances were there for us, too. That’s the thing with sports, you can play bad some nights and still get a win just like you can play well like we did tonight and lose.” Game 3 will be Thursday night at 7:00pm E.t in Montreal.

Three star selections
1st:	MICHAEL LEIGHTON
2nd:	SIMON GAGNE
3rd:	KIMMO TIMONEN

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

P.s Halak made 20 saves in the loss.

FLYERS BLOW-OUT CANADIENS TO TAKE A 1-0 SERIES LEAD

Last night in Philadelphia, the Flyers had great goaltending and the Habs had average goaltending. As it seemed to me that Leighton (who made 28 saves) was on his game and Halak was off his game (getting pulled after giving up 4 goals on 14 shots). "We have no concern about our goaltending," said Canadiens forward Michael Cammalleri. "Jaro's had pucks go in on him before and come back and played spectacular. Carey's someone else we have confidence in. I don't think he's let in a goal in practice in two weeks. We love our goaltending.I don't know exactly what it is. This team cares. The guys want to do the right things, but we weren't sharp as we need to be on a lot of different levels. But it's Game 1 . We have to regroup and get ready."

It seemed to me that the Canadiens had to much time to rest after Game 7 and it really showed in this game. Just look at the score (Flyers 6-0 Canadiens). In the victory, van Riemsdyk, Coburn,Briere,Gagne,Hartnell and Giroux all scored for the Flyers."You win 6-0, 13-0 or 1-0, it doesn't matter, it's a win," said Giroux. "We have to be ready for the next game." But some good news for Montreal is, whenever Halak gets pulled in the Playoffs he always came back the next game and has just given up 1 goal.

Game 2 will be Tuesday night at 7:00pm E.t on CBC,Versus and RDS.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

INTERVIEW WITH HALAK FROM GOALIES WORLD MAGAZINE

Interview with Jaroslav Halak:

1. Jaroslav you are listed at 5 foot 11, 185 pounds. By today's standards you are a small goalie. Still, you show impressive stats, much better than bigger goalies? Do you fell your size is a disadvantage at times?

Every one talks about small goalies; they say this and that. But it's not size that matters it's how you play. I try to make myself as big as possible. Maybe it's a disadvantage once in a while and so I have to be faster than bigger goalies. When a big goalie wants to move side to side he doesn't take as long as me. I'm having a good season so people have mentioned it lately, But at first everyone was saying I was small. That's OK; I have no problem with that.I don't know what it's like to be 6 foot 3 . I wish I knew so I can tell you if it's a advantage or not.

2. Stylewise how would you describe yourself?

When I was 19 Melanson would help me a lot with style and positioning. I was playing small and now I play big. I appreciate what he's done for me. My style is a little bit of both stand up and butterfly.

3.What would you say the keys to your game are? What are the things you have to remind yourself of? Things like I MUST DO THIS AND I MUST NOT DO THAT.

I just try to have fun on the ice and help the team during the game.But you can't think out there. You have to focus and just do it.

4. Tell us a little bit about growing up in Slovakia. How did you get interested in hockey and why did you chose to play goalie?

Everyone asked me the same question but I really don't know the answer. I wanted to be a goalie when I was 3 years old, probably because of the equipment but I did not begin playing hockey until I was 8. Before that I played street and pond hockey.

5.Your competition with Carey Price?How would you describe your relationship?

It's teamwork. We are both young goalies wanting to play but we are supportive of each other. We are here for one reason and that's to win.

6. You came close to winning a bronze at the Olympics. Tell us about the experience.

I did not even know if I was the number one or if it would be Budaj or Stana, but things worked out well for me. I played the first game and the coach had confidence in me. We came so close to winning a metal but that's hockey. One goal often makes the difference.

HABS TO FACE FLYERS IN CONFERENCE FINAL

With the Flyers, trailing the series 3 games to 0 against the Bruins everyone and including myself thought the Flyers were done. But they won 3 straight games and forced a game 7.In Game 7, the Flyers were down 3-0 and stormed back just like they did the whole series and won the game 4-3."I saw two centremen out there and I said, 'What's going on,"' said Milan Lucic, who had two goals for Boston. "I knew there was a miscommunication out there and we got caught."As for the Montreal Canadiens, the Habs knocked off the presidents trophy winners and then the Defending cup Champs. Now they are on to the 7th place Flyers."We're a pretty humble group that way, we think we're getting better, we think we're improving, we don't think we're a great hockey team," Cammalleri said."We're working to be as good as we can and that's what has led us to some success."

Game 1 will be Sunday at 7:00pm E.t On CBC and RDS.

Round 3 Playoff schedule

GAME	DATE	OPPONENT	TIME
Game 1	May 16	MTL @ PHI	7 PM
Game 2	May 18	MTL @ PHI	7 PM
Game 3	May 20	PHI @ MTL	7 PM
Game 4	May 22	PHI @ MTL	3 PM
Game 5*	May 24	MTL @ PHI	7 PM
Game 6*	May 26	PHI @ MTL	7 PM
Game 7*	May 28	MTL @ PHI	7 PM
All time ET Games marked in BOLD indicate home games. * If necessary.

I think the Habs will win in 7 games.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

MARKOV MAY BE BACK FOR THE CONFERENCE FINAL

This morning in Montreal, Andrei Markov completed a full practice with the Canadiens and may be back for the conference final."It's something we're going to look at, but at this point in time, I don't have an answer to that question. He would be day-to-day," Martin said."Today was a good opportunity for him to experience a full practice. I haven't had a chance to speak with him to see how he feels or what are his limitations," said head coach Jacques Martin." In 4 playoff games with the Habs this season, Markov has 0 goals and 4 assists. He will be a key part of the Habs line-up once he returns to play.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

PS: the Eastern Conference final between Montreal and Boston or Philadelphia will begin Sunday.

HABS TAKE DOWN DEFENDING CHAMPS WITH A 5-2 VICTORY

Last night in Pittsburgh, Montreal took down the Champions by the score of 5-2 and made Game 7 be the last game in Mellon arena. With the win history has been made. Not only have the Habs gone to the Conference final for the first time since 1993 but they also won the first ever game in the Mellon Arena in 1967 and now they have won the last game in Mellon arena."Who would expect it? Nobody gave us a chance and here we are," Halak said who made 37 saves in the victory. "Right now we are going to the conference final, so we should enjoy it."Brian Gionta scored the first goal of the game just 32 seconds in, then it was Moore giving the Habs a 2 goal lead going into Period 2.

The Habs weren't done yet, as Cammalleri scored a 1 timer like he always does with one knee on the ice. Shortly after that the Penguins had a powerplay, but Moen took control of the puck and scored a short-handed goal (which lead Pittsburgh to change goaltenders).But the Pens didn't give up, as they scored 2 late period Goals from Kunitz and Staal. But early in the third the Habs had a powerplay and it was Gionta scoring to put this game away at a final of 5-2."I don't claim we're this great team, I don't claim we're perfect and I don't claim that everything we do is on purpose," Cammalleri said. "I think we're just finding ways to win."

I think the Habs deserved to win this game, they played well early on and weren't drawn into bad penalties. I could tell right when Montreal got that early goal that they were going to win. Because I looked at the goal and it was a bad one and when Fleury gives up a quick goal he losses confidence. "It's definitely disappointing," Crosby said. "Game 7, anything can happen and, unfortunately, we weren't at our best." Now the Habs will have to wait for the winner of game 7 of the Bruins v.s Flyers series to see who they will play.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HAS THE GHOST OF THE FORUM MOVED TO THE BELL CENTRE?

With the Canadiens game 6 win over the Penguins, the big question has been about the Ghost of the Forum if it had been moved to the Bell Centre. Well I think it will look that way if the Habs will win Game 7 and advance to the Conference Final for the first time since 1993 when the Habs won the Stanley cup. “Anything is possible in the playoffs. I mean I went to the final with the Oilers in 2006 and it was the same thing: no one gave us a chance and we just kept beating teams one by one. You just have to believe in each other and go for it,” recalled Spacek.

But regardless if they do or do not win Game 7, I think the Ghost has returned and will lead the Habs to success in this decade. From the year 2000-2009 the Habs did not win the cup and that set a new record for the first decade in Habs history where they did not win the Cup. So in My opinion, I think the Ghost just took a decade off and I think he has returned to help the Habs. Just look at what the Habs have now. They have set records that were last set in 1993. For Example,Mike Cammalleri being the first Canadian player since 1993 to get 10 or more goals (set by Vincent Damphoose). Another Example is Jaroslav Halak's Save percentage (0.932) which is the closet save percentage (0.929) since 1993 set by Patrick Roy.I think the Ghost of the Forum will start giving the Habs success now by giving the Habs success in Pittsburgh in Game 7.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS FORCE A GAME 7 WITH A 4-3 VICTORY

Last night in Montreal, the Canadiens have once again forced a game 7 with a 4-3 win over Pittsburgh to keep their Stanley Cup Playoff run alive.I don't think it's time to be concerned," said Crosby. "Everything that happened in the first six games means nothing.We'll have to bear down and play our best. It's one game and anything can happen." The Canadiens have made some history last night. As Mike Cammalleri had 2 goals in the win (10th and 11th) which made him the first Canadian player to get more than 10 goals in the playoffs since 1993 when Vicent Damphoose won the Stanley Cup with Montreal.

In the loss, Crosby finally broke his 9 game score-less drought at the Bell Centre when he badded the puck out of mid-air and into the net in the first period. But the only thing that matters is a victory which they didn't get. So who cares if Crosby scored. Anyway, Fleury made 21 saves in the 4-3 loss. As for the Montreal Canadiens, Maxim Lappiere scored a highlight reel goal for the game winning goal in period 3 and the other player who scored for Montreal was Jaroslav Spacek in his first game back from a virus. "I felt better and better through the game," said Spacek. The Habs were the first team to play a playoff series in the Mellon Arena and they won the series and they could be the last if they win in Game 7 on Wednesday.

Three star selections
1st:	MICHAEL CAMMALLERI
2nd:	JAROSLAV SPACEK
3rd:	JAROSLAV HALAK

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

FLEURY MAKES 32 GREAT SAVES TO GET THE PENS A LEAD IN THE SERIES

Last night in Pittsburgh, the Penguins won game 5 by the score of 2-1 due to amazing goaltending by Marc-Andre Fleury."He was huge and we need him to be like this in order to win," Penguins defenceman Sergei Gonchar said of Fleury. This was just the second time this series that the Habs have out shot the Penguins and both times they lost. So that's kinda confusing isn't it? I think it is because every single game that Montreal has won in these playoffs they have been out shot. So it seems in this case that Montreal will have to be out-shot to win."They had the traffic all the time in front of me, and we didn't (in front of Fleury)," Halak said. "We made it easy on their goalie."

Late in the game, the Habs were down 2-0 and it looked like they would be shutout for the second time this series but with 30 seconds to go Cammalleri had something to say about that. As Mike Cammalleri scored to give them a chance. Just 4 seconds later Gomez had a shot and it lead to a big save by Fleury. Then Crosby came back down the other way (with 5 second left) trying to snap his 5 game goalless drought but it hit the side of the net. So now Crosby has not scored in 6 games. But at least his team won. "Obviously, everybody still believes," Montreal goalie Jaroslav Halak said. "It's 3-2, and we are still in it. We've been in this situation before just look at round 1."But some bad news for Montreal is Gill left the game after getting hit in the back of the knee with a skate. Gill will be evaluated today.

Game 6 of this series will be on Monday at 7:00pm E.t on CBC, RDS and Versus.

Three star selections
1st:	MARC-ANDRE FLEURY
2nd:	SERGEI GONCHAR (who scored in the game)
3rd:	KRISTOPHER LETANG (who scored in the game)

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS LOOK TO GRAB A 3-2 SERIES LEAD TONIGHT IN PITTSBURGH

Tonight in Pittsburgh, the Habs are travailing to Pittsburgh for game 5 of the series between the Canadiens and Penguins. The series is tied at 2 games a piece mostly because the Habs have held Crosby to 0 goals in this series."You try to make sure you are doing your part," Crosby said. "I wouldn't change anything. Honestly, I wouldn't change what I am doing out there. All you try to do is try to do the right things and get the results." Lets turn our attention away from Crosby for a moment and on to how the Canadiens came back in the third period of game 4 to get a 3-2 win to tie the series."Third period, wow!" forward Mike Cammalleri said. "The momentum kind of built, and that's where the crowd can help. They were on their toes the whole period and we just fed off it and kept going."

Cammalleri also told the Canadien players in the dressing room: " Let's be honest.We played 2 bad periods and if we want to win this game we will have to step it up." Yes they did step it up. As the Habs were out shot 21 to 9 through 2 periods. But in the third the Habs out shot the Penguins 12-9 which in my opinion lead to the win. The Habs will need to look at what they did in the 3rd period of game 4 and do it again if they are going to win game 5.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

	Playoff Stats
11	GP	10
6	W	6
5	L	4
1	OT	1
0	P	0
0.545	P%	0.600
2.64	G/G	3.50
3.00	GA/G	2.80
19.5	PP%	30.2
85.4	PK%	72.7
26.3	S/G	34.3
37.7	SA/G	26.8
44.8	FO%	48.6

OFFENSE + GOALTENDING = A HABS VICTORY

Last night in Montreal, it was another great night for Halak (who made 33 saves), as he kept the Habs in thought the game and especially in period 1 and 2 when they were out-shot 26 to 9 and even though the Habs scored first they were down 2-1 going into the third. It was a much better period for the Canadiens as they controlled the whole period and out-shot Pittsburgh 16-9 which lead to two unanswered goals by Lapierre and Gionta which got Montreal a 3-2 victory." That was a big turning point in the game," said Darche. But this win didn't come easy. As in the first, when Montreal was up 1-0 P.K Subban was tripped (no call on the play) which lead to a Max Talbot breakaway and Talbot scored."I don't know if I was tripped, maybe I lost an edge, but I went for the puck and the next thing I was on my face," said the rookie Subban. "I made a mistake and it cost our team, but the biggest thing is learning."

That wasn't the only call that was missed by the ref as there was several more. For example, the Pens had a powerplay with the score tied and Crosby tripped Hamirlik and the then the Penguins scored to take the lead. " Now look at this play folks. That's a Penalty. But no call," Don Cherry said about Crosby's trip."Then at the end of the period, this is a penalty (said about Gill's slash) but look at what Crosby does. The ref was not going to call it until Crosby said hey look at me he broke my stick.The ref's are killing the game tonight," Cherry added. Don's right they were killing the game but at least the Habs were able to pull through and win and now the series is tied.

Game 5 of this series will be Saturday at 7:00pm E.t but the puck will be dropped at 7:08pm E.t on CBC, RDS and Versus.

Three star selections
1st:	JAROSLAV HALAK
2nd:	JOSH GORGES
3rd:	MAXIME TALBOT

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

P.s: Tom Pyatt scored the opening goal of the game for Montreal.

FLEURY MAKES KEY SAVES TO GET THE PENS A LEAD IN THE SERIES

Last night in Montreal, the Canadiens battled hard but fell short as Fleury made 18 big saves to grab the Penguins a 2-0 win to get a 2-1 series lead."The guys played well in front of me, clearing rebounds and doing the little things to help out," said Fleury after his fourth career playoff shutout. "It felt good." The pens scored the game winning goal (by Malkin) on a powerplay in the 3rd on a questionable holding call on Hal Gill towards the end of the 2nd period. But after the whistle went to end period 2 Crosby slashed Gorges and there was a lot of pushing and shoving which should have lead to a roughing call on Malkin and Crosby. But it didn't and that's why Montreal lost.

But the story in this game was Fleury. Fleury kept the Pens in the game with amazing saves towards the end of the game and that's another factor as to why the Habs lost."They got a power play goal and we didn't," said Montreal coach Jacques Martin. "It was the kind of game where whoever scored first would win." Game 4 of this series will be on Thursday at 7:00pm E.t on TSN, Versus and RDS.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

SERGEI KOSTITSYN IN TROUBLE WITH CAREY PRICE

After the Canadiens morning skate, Carey Price noticed that Sergei Kostitsyn did not practice after Martin told him he will not play tonight. So Price saw Kostitsyn walk by after practice and Price said :" Why weren't you on the ice?" Then Kostitsyn mumbled something and Price said: "Why too good?." So that raised the question if Sergei Kostitsyn will be re-signed at the end of this season. If you just look at his tracking record for the past season. First, when Martin sent him to the minors Kostitsyn said "No I'm staying in Montreal." But after he talked to Gainey he decided to go to Hamilton. And now this indecent.I know it doesn't seem like a lot but it is because it causes some tension in the room. So if he doesn't get his act together no one will want to sign him.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

MARKOV OUT FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON WITH A TORN ACL

Today in Montreal, the Canadiens announced that Andrei Markov will be out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL on a hit by Matt Cooke which was a very clean hit. I know it was Cooke and everyone wanted it to be a dirty hit but it wasn't. It was a clean hit. So anyway, Markov had 7 assist's in 8 playoff games with the Habs this season.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN

With the series tied at 1 win a piece anything can happen. If Halak stays on his game and the Habs can shut down Crosby and if Michael Cammalleri continues his hot streak the Canadiens will have success even without Markov.“We didn’t have a very good Game 1. They played hard and they capitalized on their opportunities and deserved to win that game,” said Josh Gorges. “I thought we had a better showing last game and we’re happy to come home with a split. You know what you’re going to get when you play Pittsburgh. They’re going to make you work for every inch and that’s why they’ve had that success in the last few years. They haven’t changed; they stick to what works and they know what works in the playoffs."

“We have to counter that with the same kind of attitude – we can’t change what we do,” continued Gorges. “We want to play a little less in our end and force them to play in their own zone to tire them out a little more. We know they’re not going to change and start making fancy plays and they’re going to play hard-nosed playoff-style hockey. We just have to be prepared and ready to really battle.” The Habs will need to make sure that they don't lose 2 games at home like they did against the Capitals, because if they do I can't see Montreal coming back down 3-1 again.

So here are the Keys to Game 3 for the Habs:

1. Kill penalties
2. Score Powerplay goals
3. Stop Crosby and Malkin
4.Block shots
5.Have great goaltending

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

THE HABS TIE UP SERIES WITH A 3-1 WIN

This afternoon, the Penguins were showed that Halak is not a easy goalie to beat. As Jaro Halak Made 38 saves on 39 shots to grab Montreal a 3-1 win. But what I noticed about Halak is that 95 % of his wins come when Montreal is out-shot. I don't know what it is. But he seems cold in net when the Habs control the game. For example, game 1 of this series Montreal controlled the game but Halak gave up 5 goals on just 20 shots. Now lets look at today, Halak only gave up 1 goal on 39 shots. So if I were the Habs, I would just take advantage of a few opportunities and let Halak do the rest."That's what we wanted to do, a series like this, we wanted to get one (in Pittsburgh)," Scott Gomez said. "It's far from over. But we came for one."

But it wasn't only Halak who saved the day for the Habs. As Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta scored the goals for Montreal in the win (2 out of 3 were by Cammalleri). Another positive note for Montreal is that they killed all 3 of the Penguins powerplay opportunities, which lead to some frustration by the Penguins. On one play (when the Habs were up 2-1), Crosby took a shot and his stick broke and he threw the broken part that he had in his hand into the boards. "It's nothing to get frustrated about," Penguins forward Bill Guerin said. "We don't have to go and reinvent the wheel. They're a solid defensive team. They're well coached, they know what they're doing and you don't want to get down to teams like that."

" We played a better game than them," Dan Bylsma said." There goalie kept them in and they took advantage of there opportunities and we didn't." Game 3 of this series will be in Montreal on Tuesday at 7:00pm E.t on CBC,RDS and or Versus.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

Three star selections
1st:	JAROSLAV HALAK
2nd:	MICHAEL CAMMALLERI
3rd:	MATT COOKE

PENGUINS SCORE ON ALL 4 POWERPLAYS TO GET THEMSELVES A 1-0 SERIES LEAD

Last night in Pittsburgh, the Penguins showed why they are defending champs. The Penguins were able to score on not 2 not 3 powerplays but on all 4 powerplays and the Pens also did a good job at killing penalties as Montreal was only able to score 1 powerplay goal on 5 opportunities. But even though Montreal dominated the game they weren't able to score and the Penguins were that was the difference. The Penguins even made Montreal pull out Halak (after the Penguins scored 5 goals on 20 shots) and put Price in (Price just had to make 3 saves)."We talked about getting traffic, we talked about getting pucks through, and we executed -- that's the difference," Crosby said.

"When you do the right things, you give yourself a chance. We got some good areas to get shots away. I still think we can get more shots, still think we can generate more."In the win, Gonchar, Stall (who left the game with a injury),Letang,Adams, Goligoski and Gurein all scored for the Pens and Fleury made 28 saves on 31 shots in the 6-3 victory. As for Montreal, PK Subban, Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta all scored for Montreal in the loss."They beat us in the special teams department," Montreal forward Scott Gomez said. "I mean there's a reason they hoisted the Cup last year. If you make mistakes, they're going to jump on them." But a positive to take note of if you go for Montreal is they finally were not in there own end of the ice as much as they were in the Washington series. If you don't believe me just look at the shots. The shots were 31-24 in favour of Montreal.

But I have some bad news for Montreal fans as well. Andrei Markov was hit in the first period by Matt Cook and was sent flying into the boards and the report on his injury is it's a lower-body injury.Markov is expected to be out for the rest of this series.“That’s a huge loss for us,” said Hal Gill.

Game 2 of this series will be Sunday afternoon at 2:00pm E.t on CBC, NBC and or RDS.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo