DeSmith receives a gift from CH

In the great history of the Canadian, Casey DeSmith holds an unusual mark. He is possibly the only player in the organization who participated in the CH golf tournament without ever putting on the uniform for a match. He didn’t even have time to experience a day at the team’s camp.

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“I enjoyed my thirty days in Montreal,” said DeSmith with a smile on his face in the opposing team’s small locker room at the Bell Centre. I grew up as a Canadiens fan. I was happy to meet Carey Price at the golf tournament, he was one of my role models growing up. I remember my visit to the locker room and the training center. I didn’t play there, but I will always remember it. »

“I didn’t keep anything as a souvenir from the Canadian, but they gave me a team jersey before the game,” he continued. My father will be very happy. I have my number 29 on my back. But I know that I would never have worn this number with the CH since it was Ken Dryden’s. But then again, I find it special since I chose the 29 in my youth because of Dryden. »

Acquired along with Jeff Petry in a three-team mega-deal with the Penguins and Sharks, which included Erik Karlsson as the main piece, DeSmith headed to Vancouver on September 19, just before the start of camp.

Kent Hughes, who didn’t want to be in a merry-go-round with four NHL goalies in Jake Allen, Samuel Montembeault, Cayden Primeau and DeSmith, traded him to the Canucks for Tanner Pearson and a 2025 third-round pick.

32 stops

For this only visit of the Canucks this season to Montreal, Rick Tocchet played the emotional card by offering DeSmith the start! There was no tribute video to retrace his thirty-day stay with the organization, but the masked man from New Hampshire emerged with a 5-2 victory.

DeSmith, a 32-year-old veteran, has played his role as an assistant with the Canucks very well since the start of the season with a 4-0-1 record.

He blocked 32 shots against CH, making his best saves in the third period.

Mike Matheson and Arber Xhekaj scored both goals in the third.

A question of consistency

Martin St-Louis repeats that consistency remains a key for his young team. From one game to the next, he would like to see the same level of execution, commitment and emotion.

After an emotional 3-2 victory in overtime against the Bruins in a charged atmosphere, the Habs did not reproduce the same recipe against the Canucks.

The CH did not have as much energy and combativeness as the day before. The excuse of fatigue is inadmissible since the Canucks were also playing a second game in two nights after a visit against the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Saturday.

A dispute

In this game, Jake Allen gave up three or more goals in a third straight start (there were two empty-net goals). But we won’t blame him for this setback against the best offense on the circuit at the start of the year.

In terms of attack, Juraj Slafkovsky knocked on the door a few times with 10 shots attempted, including six on target. This is an encouraging sign. But the Slovak will have to learn to land his shots more quickly. There is always this tiny fraction of a second where he hesitates.

On the left wing of Christian Dvorak and Slafkovsky for a third game in a row, Cole Caufield got two shots. In three games at this new position, number 22 has only made three shots at five-on-five.

In the second period, Tocchet and the Canucks won an offside challenge after a goal by Christian Dvorak. Caufield was well ahead of Slafkovsky entering the territory. It was the third time this season that Caufield found himself at the heart of a contest lost for offside after a goal.