Game time. Round Two: Canadiens vs. Penguins

Well, now that the after party of our stunning game seven victory is nearing it's end, it's time to face a sobering reality. Tonight the Canadiens take on the Pittsburgh Penguins, the defending Stanley Cup champions led by Sidney Crosby who had 14 points in only six games against the Senators.

Buzz kill,

I know.

So how can we take this team down? They are more disciplined than the Capitals, have proven goaltending and their best players have been their best players. If this team wants to hold up against the Penguins they need to keep doing what they are doing, but improve greatly in other areas. For example, the shut down tandem of Gill and Gorges will need to continue to frustrate the opponent's top lines by getting their sticks in traffic and muscling them off the puck. Although, only 15 shots are not going to be enough to outscore this team. Marc Andre Fleury is a far more mature, consistent and talented Goalie than Semyon Varlamov. He wasn't the first overall pick in 2003 for nothing. One player for the Canadiens who has to step it up is another 2003 draftee, the 10th overall pick Andrei Kostitsyn. Since scoring a hat-trick in game two, he has looked incredibly flakey and has trouble hitting the nets on his shots. Something that goes without saying is that Jaroslav Halak needs to be Jaroslav Halak. His first round performance will go down as one of the best series performance by a goalie of all time, if he does not put the same effort into this series, it will not be remembered for long.

As we've seen from the Capitals series, the Canadiens can play with the NHL's elite, the team needs to continue to be inspired and the fans need to keep supporting this club. Because, who knows? This could be a team of destiny.

Enjoy the game.

Peace true believers,

E