New Canadiens Connection: Defensive Brand

In just his fourth NHL start, Jacob Fowler earned his first career shutout as the Montreal Canadiens beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-0 at the Bell Centre. Fowler becomes the third youngest goalie in Canadiens franchise history to record a shutout behind only Patrick Roy and Carey Price. But the 21-year-old goaltender was not the only young Canadiens player establishing a milestone on Saturday night.

Forward Owen Beck scored his first goal in the NHL breaking down the wing and beating Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner. The 21-year-old center has come close twice in the past week but on this night, Beck wouldn’t be denied. Lane Hutson assisted on the goal becoming the fastest defenseman and in Montreal history to reach 100 career points.

This past week, the Canadiens have demonstrated a renewed commitment to defensive play all over the ice and to solidify their defensive identity.

When fans hear the word ‘defense’ in hockey, many immediately jump to think about defensemen — gap control, blocked shots, clearing the crease. But defense isn’t owned by one position. It’s a chain, and when one link breaks, the system gets exposed.

This Week’s Show

In this week’s episode of the Canadiens Connection podcast, we explored the club’s team defense from four different perspectives: defense through the emergence of Jakub Dobes and Jacob Fowler, defense from the growth of Adam Engström, and defense from up front with recent addition of Phil Danault from the Kings. If this team is going to stabilize, climb the standings, and build a real identity, it’s not going to come from one fix — it’s going to come from how those layers work together.

NEW PODCAST: Habs Defending As a Team: Canadiens Evolving Defensive Identity | Canadiens Connection ep 379

On this week’s episode of the podcast, we also discussed these topics:

Canadiens reacquire defensive forward Phil Danault from the Kings.
How did goaltender Sam Montembeault look in the AHL with Laval?
Canadiens place two players on long-term injured reserve. What does it mean?

CC Question of the Week: Where should Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes look to upgrade the Canadiens defensive game next: forwards, defense, goaltending, or coaching?

It is our eighth season, with a new episode of the podcast dropping every Saturday afternoon. Be sure to subscribe using your favorite podcast app! Or watch our episodes on YouTube!