Better Effort, Same Result

The Canadiens' road woes continued last night, falling 4-3 to the Caps in a shootout. Unlike other recent defeats though, the team actually looked motivated and controlled the play for large portions of the game against a solid Washington squad. Unfortunately, a late goal by David Steckel forced extra time, where Tomas Plekanec had an amazing chance to beat Jose Theodore but was robbed by the inside of the post. Things were equally bad in the shootout, with goals by Alex Semin and Nicklas Backstrom sealing the victory and ruining what was otherwise a solid team effort from the Habs.

On the bright side, the powerplay found new life and scored 3 times (with goals by the beleaguered trio of Higgins, Plekanec and Kostitsyn Sr.), and Carey Price showed signs that he may be back to the form that we remember from earlier in the year. Mathieu Schnedier also looked to be at home back in the "bleu, blanc et rouge," playing a solid game and recording an assist in just over 27 minutes of ice time.

Montreal travels to Pittsburgh tonight, where they'll face a reeling Penguins team. If the work effort from last night carries over, expect this one to be an equally well-contested affair.