25/09/11: Boston 7, Montreal 3; Habs fall to meaningless 1-4-0

Again, preseason losses aren't something to panic about. In fact, they should be looked at as learning opportunities to fix problems with parts of a team's game or address certain weakensses. But certainly no one would have set out the script for the Montreal Canadiens' exhibition calendar to begin with a 1-4-0 record.

What went wrong last night in a 7-3 loss to the Boston Bruins? What didn't? The score was not reflective of the play, with Peter Budaj - who played the full 60 minutes in goal - admittedly not having his best outing.

But that's not to blame him entirely for the loss. The Canadiens took a few too many chances, including young defenseman Nathan Beaulieu who likely played his worst of the three games he's been in, though still moved the puck well for much of the night.

The team also couldn't finish a number of their own opportunities, most notably a Brendan Gallagher sweet move early in the second the resulted in a puck clanking off the post. Gallagher may have been the team's best forward in the loss, again showing that he oozes with potential.

Aaron Palushaj continued on his productivity streak from Saturday, following up on his 2 assist performance with a goal and a helper last night. After a horrible first part of camp, this recent spurt may allow him to stay with the club through the remaining exhibition games instead of being a part of the cuts coming Monday night or Tuesday.

Yannick Weber is doing little to inspire confidence in his spot in the top 6. While Alexei Yemelin hasn't been blowing anyone away, he has been far more solid and stronger than the Swiss defenseman and looks to be well ahead of him in the depth chart. With no shot of making the team this year and playing in his first preseason game, Morgan Ellis may have actual been the team's best d-man last night, playing in front of many family and friends as he is a native of Prince Edward Island and plays for Cape Breton in the QMJHL.

The Canadiens next preseason game is at home tonight against the same Bruins. Canadiens prospect Michael Bournival is recovered from the knee injury he suffered during camp and expected to make his preseason debut.

Preseason Game 5: 25/09/11 Montreal Canadiens vs. Boston Bruins, in Halifax

Line-up for tonight's game as your 1-3-0 Montreal Canadiens face an iteration of the Boston Bruins for the first time since the B's eliminated the Habs in the first round of the playoffs en route to winning the Stanley Cup.

MONTREAL CANADIENS

Forwards

Brendan Gallagher - Scott Gomez - Erik Cole

Andrei Kostitsyn - Brian Willsie - Aaron Palushaj

Mike Blunden - Andreas Engqvist - Mathieu Darche

Alexander Avtsin - Dany Masse - Olivier Archambault

Defensemen

Nathan Beaulieu, Hal Gill, Alexei Yemelin, Yannick Weber, Alex Henry, Morgan Ellis

Goaltenders

Peter Budaj (full game)

Robert Mayer

BOSTON BRUINS

Forwards

Brad Marchand, Nathan Horton, Tyler Seguin, Benoit Pouliot, Greg Campbell, Jordan Caron, Zack Hamill, Daniel Paille, Shawn Thornton, Trent Whitfield, Max Sauve, Chris Clark

Defensemen

Zdeno Chara, Joe Corvo, Adam McQuaid, Stephen Kampfer, Zach McKelvie, David Warsofsky

Goaltenders

Tuukka Rask
Anton Khudobin

Interesting to note that Zdeno Chara and Benoit Pouliot are in the line-up tonight, meaning they're unlikely to play at the Bell Centre in Montreal tomorrow. Max Pacioretty, meanwhile, will skip his turn this evening in favour of playing at home tomorrow, so any Chara-Pacioretty hostilities will have to wait (though they are rather unlikely anyway).

Brendan Gallagher will have another golden opportunity to strut his stuff with two talented offensive players, while Aaron Palushaj NEEDS to string a second solid game in a row together here if he has any shot at sticking with the big club. In Gallagher's case, if there are a number of players on the IR when the year begins, it's possible he stays in Montreal for a few games to see how he fares vs. NHL competition. There is no doubt he'll end up back in Vancouver before the 10 game mark to prevent his contract from kicking in, but if the team needs more health bodies, he has been one of the better players.

NOTE that the game begins at 6:00 PM EST tonight!