The deadline is Monday afternoon at 3.

Based on what we saw in that nailbiting win over Carolina, here’s what I think Pierre Gauthier will do:

…

…

Toward the end of Jacques Martin’s postgame press conference, Barry Morgan of CJAD noted the Feb. 28 deadline and asked the kindly old coach “what areas of improvement have to be improved in your view?”

Martin grinned, secure in the knowledge this one would be easy to duck.

“Last time I checked that was the GM’s responsibility,” Martin said. “We know our team well. If Pierre (Gauthier) can improve the team, he will. If he can’t, we’re happy with the players we have.

“You have to look at the sitation. What is the cost to get certain players. You gotta think what’s long-term for the organization?”

Gauthier knows his team well. So does Martin.

And 63 games into the season, most of us know the Montreal Canadiens pretty well.

The D is long on bodies but, minus three regulars, short on talent.

Roman Hamrlik is heroic (especially when he plays 17:30, with no exhausting PK shifts), P.K. Subban is a future superstar, Hal Gill is a wily vet, Yannick Weber shows promise, James Wisniewski is a PP asset who has problems on the back end and Brent Sopel is, as advertised, a depth defenceman whose PK abilities enhance Hamrlik’s chances of making it through the season alive. 

The forwards … don’t get me started.

After getting home from the Bell Centre, I tuned in the end of the Boston-Vancouver game. Based on what I saw, here’s a news flash:

The Bruins are good.

They’re really good; and barring an epic collapse, they’re going to win the Northeast Division.

General manager Peter Chiarelli has fine-tuned his club for a deep playoff run. The addition of Tomas Kaberle shores up the Boston D, and Chris Kelly adds speed up front.

Karberle played 20 minutes, including 2:57 on the power play. Kelly’s 22 shifts included 2:45 on the PK.

Playing in his hometown, Milan Lucic scored the winning goal and added two assists. The bruiser who derailed Mike Komisarek’s career has 27 goals this season.

Could the Canadiens use a beast like Lucic, who was drafted one spot behind Ben Maxwell in 2006?

Mos’ def.

Is there a power forward who can score out there, waiting to be fleeced out of some GM by the wily Gauthier?

One two more questions:

Would a Dustin Penner, for example, make the Canadiens better than Boston? And what would be cost?

Gomez, Auld and Picard?

Done.

But what if Edmonton general manager Steve Tambellini wanted P.K. Subban or Max Pacioretty?

No way.

What if he asked for a package that included Lars Eller?

Look, I hate to ruin everyone’s Sunday. But based on what I saw at the Bell Centre and on HNIC at home last night, your Montreal Canadiens would have a very tough time winning four of seven games against Boston.

They play the Bruins at the Bell Centre March 8 and in Boston on the 24th – two chances to prove me wrong … again.

But I’ve watched this team play 62 games this season, and I haven’t seen a Cup contender.

Maybe Carey Price can pull a Jaro 2.0 in the playoffs. He certainly has the talent.

Maybe Andrei Kostitsyn can continue to flourish, freed of the shackles that playing with Scott Gomez imposes. He has the talent.

Tomas Plekanec, who was brilliant last night, has the talent. So do Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta.

Then it thins out.

I thought Gomez played a decent game last night, but maybe that’s because my expactations have sunk so low. He played 15:29 (to Pleks’s 22:22) and won a couple faceoffs during the Canadiens’ only power-play.

But the Bell Centre crowd is on the edge of turning Gomez into their newest bête noire. Had the Canadiens lost last night, the $8 million man would have been serenaded with a full-breezer chorus.

Benoit Pouliot is maddeningly inconsistent. Chosen one spot ahead of Carey Price in the 2005 draft, Benny  played all of eight minutes in a crucial late-season four-pointer.

Linemate David Desharnais played 11 minutes and took two penalties of the pussy-ass variety in which this team specializes. But the diminutive one was 7-3 on draws, and DD was on the PP unit that produced the winning goal.

Along with Pacioretty and Eller, Desharnais is part of the Canadiens’ future. Plekanec and Mike Cammalleri are just hitting their prime, and Brian Gionta has some miles left in the engine.

But then you get into spare parts: Jeff Halpern, Travis Moen, Tom Pyatt/Ryan White.

Again, I hate to spoil anyone’s Oscar night, but this is not a lineup that strikes fear into the hearts of the Bruins or Flyers. 

Nor, I fear, will it become one, no matter what Pierre Gauthier does tomorrow.

I’m not giving up on the season. And I reserve the right to reverse myself and fire up the bandwagon as soon as the Canadiens string a few Ws together (which they haven’t done since the beginning of the month).

But this ain’t my first rodeo.

The Canadiens just don’t have the horses … and I wouldn’t sacrifice any of the colts.

There’s a big one tonight at the Bell Centre – where there aren’ any small ones.

• Sopel should be in the lineup

• Pat Hickey on the trading frenzy

• Hurrah for hirsute Habs!

• Stu Cowan on Jeff Skinner

• Kovy’s not-so-excellent Ottawa adventure

• Stephen Brunt on Sidney Crosby

• Baby Habs win at the Bell

There’s not much to add to Quick Hits, and I really should start my Christmas shopping.

The win was sweet because a loss would have been so dreadfully sour.

The players, their familes and a good many fans would be “celebrating” an unhappy Christmas tomorrow.

The team would be in eighth place, four points ahead of ninth-place Carolina, with the Hurricanes holding two games in hand.

The Boxing Day visit to Long Island would be a must-win for a team that had lost four in a row, the season’s longest futility streak.

But it won’t happen.

Oh, it would still be good to beat the Islanders. The Eastern Conference race is tight and probably will stay that way.

But the Canadiens can revel in a solid 60-minute effort and enjoy some well-earned time off before climbing on a plane Saturday afternoon.

•  •  •

A Christmas treat for fans of old-time wrestling … including my man David Stubbs:

Props to my great and good friend GG11, who posted this Andrei the Giant and Pepper Gomez classic to her Women on the Ledge web site.

The team’s top two centres, Tomas Plekanec and Scott Gomez, were very good in Carolina.

Andrei Kostitsyn, fresh from a night in the pressbox, played his best game in weeks and scored his first goal of December.

Max Pacioretty has become a fixture on the Gomez line – a fast, physical player who opens ice for his smaller linemates and goes to the net on a consistent basis.

On L’Antichambre last night, Gaston Therrien beat the drums for calling up David Desharnais. Moreover, Therrien insisted  Desharnais should be centring one of the top two lines.

Dude, please.

Plekanec and Gomez are doing fine. Super Smurf won’t steal their jobs.

Would Desharnais be an upgrade on Lars Eller?

Eller played 7:55 last night and has been averaging 10:26. But I still love the kid’s size/skill/speed package, and I think bringing him along slowly is the right approach.

That said, if Benoit Pouliot draws back in, I’d like to see him reunited with Eller and Mathieu Darche.

But who sits?

Tom Pyatt, a Jacques Martin favourite, played 1:41 on the PK last night. Maxim Lapierre skated and had a couple hits. Darche is the poster boy – man, actually – for the kind of lunch-bucket hockey Martin wants his team to play. Travis Moen can’t put the puck in the ocean, but he works hard and is the only Canadien who knows how to fight. Jeff Halpern is a faceoff and PK specialist who can work with gifted linemates (remember the glories of PhD?)

Martin may stick with a winning lineup against the Islanders – which would mean a fifth healthy scratch for P.K. Subban.

Yannick Weber played almost 20 minutes last night, and I think I was nervous for 18 of them.

The kid has an NHL point shot – and God knows, the Canadiens need one of those – but I don’t like his D. He’s small, easily muscled and prone to error: Not a good combination.

Alexandre Picard was better, but the Canadiens have issues on defence. Josh Gorges is playing hurt (although my man was better last night than he was in Dallas), and wear and tear is piling up on the Old Czechs.

Carey Price had been displaying signs of fatigue. He was being beaten by shots that he stopped earlier in the season.

But with the game on the line, Price was superb in the third period last night. He made 10 saves, including game-savers on Eric Staal, Chad LaRose and Erik Cole.

I think Price should enjoy the Boxing Day game from a nice seat on the end of the bench.

The Canadiens finish the month with a visit to Washington and a back-to-back in sunny Florida. They’ll need primo Price to pick up some points this week.

Happy and safe Christmas Eve to everyone … even you, Chris Lee.

By the skin of their teeth, because the third period was terrifying, the Canadiens racked up maybe their biggest win of the season.

Had they ridden four straight losses into the short Christmas break …

Suffice it to say we’d all be choking on turkey.

But the birthday boy showed and played great in all three zones.

All you Scott Gomez bashers get lumps of coal in your stockings.

And let me join you in tucking into some humble pie.

I’d given up on Andrei Kostitsyn. Many fans had.

The healthy scratch in Dallas was a message from Jacques Martin, but I wondered whether it would get through or be lost in translation.

It seems to have worked.

AK46 had a goal, two SoG, two hits and a blocked shot.

Once again, the Big Enigma flashed the talent that made him a high first-round draft choice: Size, speed, a great shot and, tonight, a willingness to hit and get involved.

If he played that way 82 times in a season …

And while visions of that Belarusian sugar plum dance in your head, isn’t it nice to have a bona-fide Top Six?

•  •  •

Check out a wild one in Boston, complete with NESN homer commentary.

And I hate to channel Don Cherry here, but the Jarome Iginla – Jamie Benn fight was a classic

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We’ll see how the view from the pressbox affect Benoit Pouliot.

I don’t know if Benny will be back in the lineup on Boxing Day. Martin may be reluctant to mess with a winning 18, especially a group that worked very hard in Carolina.

But Pouliot is coming back in eventually. And maybe he learned something watching AK46 tonight.

Will P.K. Subban be back on the Island?

More problematic.

Yannick Weber made me nervous in this game. He’s small, gets tossed around and is prone to errors in his own end.

I still don’t know how the Canadiens survived that third-period match-up that saw Weber, Alexandre Picard and a tired Lars Eller line on against Eric Staal.

Weber played 19:40, Picard 19:18.

Too much ToI for a third pairing.

But Martin had no choice. Roman Hamrlik (who had a rough night) and Jaro Spacek played less than the 24 minutes they’ve been getting lately. Josh Gorges is hurt and played 20:15, Hal Gill 19:34.

Without Andrei Markov, Martin distributed time equally among his three pairings. 

That may be fine on Long island. But the Canadiens go to Washington next week. And Tampa Bay.

Enough fretting.

It was a delightful – and essential – win. The Canadiens maintain their tenuous hold on first place in the Northeast.

And the Dec. 23 jinx – which lasted from 1945 to 2009 – seems finally over.

•  •  •

Does Carey Price look tired to you?

I wonder if Martin will consider giving his goaltender a long weekend.

The coach cancelled practice in Dallas on Wednesday, and his team had fresh legs tonight.

This is a tough time of the season for the players: a heavy schedule, Christmas, family, etc.

Price has not been Priceian in recent games.

He’s young and he’s in shape.

But he may be suffering mental fatigue, born of the necessity to excel every night in order to give his low-scoring team a chance.

I think he’ll need more rest to gear for the stretch.

•  •  •

Jack beckons.

More tomorrow.

You too, Andrei Kostitsyn

And the birthday boy, Scott Gomez.

A HUGE win.

Philadelphia and your surprising Montreal Canadiens are second and third, respectively, in the Eastern Conference.

The Flyers are at the Bell Centre Tuesday night.

We know Alexandre Picard is no Andrei Markov.

We’re about to find out if Picard is better than Ryan O’Byrne.

The medical staff at RDS say Markov is gone for three months.

That’s a premature diagnosis, but it doesn’t look good. The most telling part of the replay is Markov slamming his fist into the boards in frustration.

So, what now?

Yannick Weber? MAB?

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Markov’s durability has become a big question mark.

Yes, the skate cut in the opening game last season was a fluke.

But he played only 45 regular season games. Then Markov was gone again, one game into the Pittsburgh playoff series.

Markov missed the first 10 games this season, played seven and then …

Andrei Markov will be 33 in December. He’s played 623 regular season NHL games, another 29 in the playoffs.

Bobby Orr was only 30 when his knees forced him to hang up the skates. He’d played 657 in the regular season and 74 in the playoffs. In his last three seasons, the Greatest Ever played 10, 20 and six games.

Maybe the Orr comparison is too gloomy.

Again, the RDS three-month diagnosis is not official.

But fans have to think about where the team stands minus its most talented Dman.

• Goaltending: No problem. Carey Price was spectacular against Carolina, and he’ll be ready for Philly.

• Defence: Roman Hamrlik and Jaro Spacek were the Canadiens best pairing this week. They played against the Sedins and against the best lines of Boston and Carolina (though you kinda wish they were out against Eric Staal late in the third last night, eh?)

Josh Gorges, who was just getting into a groove with Markov, probably will be reunited with Hal Gill.

P.K. and Picard? Do-able, but it would limit Subban’s minutes. He played 20:39 last night and made some great plays. It’s amazing how qquickly he can recover and be at top speed.

The penalty-kill was strong in Markov’s absence, so that won’t be a problem.

The power play is another story. Three PP goals last night, but two came after the Markov injury.

The Canadiens were 7-2-1 before Markov returned to the lineup. You can say the early-season schedule was soft, but you also have to acknowledge the team developed good habits that have produced winning hockey.

The Canadiens are the only team in the NHL that has not surrendered more than three goals in regulation this season.

They have not lost a game in which they scored first. This tells you something about the Canadiens’ character, discipline and determination.

Andrei Markov is (I nearly typed “was”) a great player.

But here’s a bold assertion: Markov is no longer the best player on the Montreal Canadiens.

The best player on this team wears number 14.

And Tomas Plekanec will be in the lineup on Tuesday.

As will 17 other guys who have learned how to win.

Take a deep breath and hold it.

OK, maybe you can exhale. If you hold your breath until the Canadiens make an announcement on the extent of Andrei Markov’s injury, you’ll be bluer than the jerseys of Canada’s Team.

“Lower body,” was all Jacques Martin would reveal. “We’ll know more in a few days.”

It didn’t look good. A knee-on-knee collision with Eric Staal sent Markov tumbling toward the boards, flinging off his gloves and grimacing with pain.

As he was helped off by P.K. Subban and Canadiens athletic therapist Graham Rynbend, Markov seemed to be favouring his surgically-repaired right knee.

The injury cast a cloud over a great night that capped an amazing week.

The Canadiens got seven goals from seven players.

It was the first time they’d hit that lucky number since March 24, 2008.

The win capped a week in which your red-hot team outscored the Vancouver Canucks, Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes by a cumulative 12-3.

So are the Montreal Canadiens for real?

And how real are their chances of continuing to fly high if Markov is grounded for an extended period?

For now, let’s enjoy an impressive W over a team that ALWAYS wins at the Bell Centre.

The Canadiens hadn’t beaten Carolina in regulation on home ice since … well, a long bloody time.

And it looked like tonight might not be the night.

Carolina trailed 2-0 aftter the first period despite a 15-10 shot advantage, not to mention eight shots the Canadiens blocked and three misses. Corresponding totals for the home team were 10-3-3.

The difference?

Carey Price. The goaltender was spectacular in the first period and superb after Carolina had come back to tie the game.

Price’s best save, however, came with his team comfortably ahead. I still don’t know how he got his glove out quickly enough to stop Chad Larose from in close.

Blogger Steven Hindle, on Twitter, wrote: “Did I just see Carey Price bend the Matrix?”

I saw that movie. Didn’t really understand it, but I understand why Price is playing unconscious.

The team in front of him is doing the job, and the goaltender’s confidence grows stronger with each outing.

The Canadiens are fourth in the league in goals-against per game at 2.12. They have not surrendered more than three goals in regulation time through 17 games.

And the power play has come to life: 3-for-5, 6-for-14 in the last three games.

Conventional hockey wisdom has it that a good team has PP and PK percentages that add up to more than 100.

The Canadiens PK efficiency is at 88.9 per cent. The PP has inched up to 14.5

So they’re 103.4

Plan the parade.

Martin predictably praised his goaltender and special teams but reserved kind words for his “gars de soutien”.

“A couple of shifts by the third and fourth line restored the tempo for us,” the coach said, praising the PhD and Eller-Moen-Pyatt lines for keeping their play simple.

“They got pucks in deep and outworked Carolina,” Martin added. “Our skill guys didn’t do that at times.”

He wasn’t talking about Number 1 skill guy Tomas Plekanec. Another stellar effort – a goal, three assists, 4:37 on the PK, 13-12 on faceoffs – had Martin describing Plekanec as “a pleasure to coach” and “a great person.”

“He’s always first at the rink,” Martin said. “He prepares properly. He plays against the other team’s top line all the time, and he’s not a selfish player.”

Sounds like the kind of guy you lock up for five years.

Suggested topic for late-night arguments:

What kind of contract should the Canadiens offer Andrei Markov?

Yes, he’s still their best player.

But Markov is the wrong side of 30, and the injuries just keep coming.

More tomorrow.

But what a butt-kicking to end a great week.

You knew this was how it would go down.

It was written in the stars and every line in your palm.

This is what it means to be a Montreal Canadiens fan:

Heartache … with more to come.

The Toronto Maple Leafs will play their Stanley Cup final at the Bell Centre on Saturday night.

The game will be a brief taste of 1967 for the Leafs.

And it’s 2007 for the Canadiens.

The terrifying scenario hinges on what happens in New York on Friday night.

The Rangers have to beat the Flyers to keep their playoff hopes alive.

They will.

Some teams win when the pressure is on.

Others don’t.

Marc-André Bergeron told it like it is on RDS: ”We were shit.”

It’s been blue-blanc-rouge-brun all week long.

The Canadiens had their chance to clinch on Long Island.

They were overmatched against Carolina.

Eric Staal, Chad Larose, Cam Ward, Ray Whitney, Erik Cole … Sergei Samsonov, for heaven’s sake.

The Hurricanes played like they needed points for a playoff spot.

The Canadiens?

What can we say that hasn’t been said, at various times, through 81 games?

When the pressure is on – whether it’s an opponent’s fourth line aggressively forechecking in October or the necessity of Ws in April – your Montreal Canadiens do not compete.

Without their goaltending, a lottery draft team.

Two $8 million hockey players took the ice at the RBC Center: Eric Staal and Scott Gomez.

Staal had three goals, two assists and eight shots on goal.

Gomez had an assist and one shot.

And he wasn’t the worst Canadien.

Ryan O’Byrne and Sergei Kostitsyn were benched during the second period and never returned.

Benoit Pouliot was benched then demoted to the fourth line … until the coach shortened his bench and went to three lines.

Ah, the coach …

The Canadiens haven’t dominated an opponent since they outshot the Rangers 35-20 and beat them 3-1 at Madison Square garden.

That was March 16.

Since then, Jacques Martin has watched his team spinning its wheels, not scoring goals, squeezing out Ws on the back of Jaro Halak.

The Canadiens skated off the ice in New York with a clear path to the playoffs. They had their destiny in their hands – and they’re in the process of fumbling it – with their coach seemingly incapable of stanching the bleeding.

The Canadiens are small.

They’re soft.

And on the evidence of what we saw this week on Long Island and in Carolina, the team has no pride.

That’s a harsh judgement to levy against a hockey team that includes Brian Gionta, Jaro Halak, Josh Gorges, Travis Moen, Hal Gill, Dominic Moore – the guys who give everything they’ve got in every game.

But you can’t dispute the evidence: 125 minutes of mediocre, and often piss-poor, hockey against two teams that won’t make the playoffs.

Martin had “no explanation” after that embarrassment. He said his team was “not ready to battle”. He described their no-show, in a crucial game, as “inexcusable.”

Well, Hello!

You’ve got till 7:15 p.m. on Saturday to do something about it, Jacques-o.

Anyone got any suggestions for the coach?

Darche in, Sergei or Pouliot out against the Leafs?

Carey Price?

New bodies for Tomas Plekanec and Mike Cammalleri? A double transplant – brain and heart – for Andrei Kostitsyn?

The long season has taken its toll on Pleks, who’s played the minutes of a 6’4″ centre like that Staal guy.

Cammalleri, another smurf, hasn’t been the same since his injury.

AK46 … it’s getting so I can’t watch him play. Too lackadaisical, too inconsistent, too damn stupid in his decisions on what to do with the puck.

Imagine Gionta with Kostitsyn’s physical gifts.

Imagine Gorges with O’B's size.

Imagine a playoff spot secured, setting up a nice meaningless Saturday night dance with the Leafs.

HEY!

Wake up and smell the coffee … and the way this is going, something stronger.

•  •  •

No Joni Pitkanen on D for Carolina.

No Tim Gleason.

The blueline corps of the team that won 5-2: Brian Pothier, Brett Carson, Bryan Rodney, casey Borer, Jay Harrison and someone named Jamie Mcbain, who played 26:58 and was plus-4.

•  •  •

Do the Montreal Canadiens know how to develop young talent or what?

Benched: Ryan O’Byrne, Sergei Kostitsyn, Benoit Pouliot.

Not benched: Scott Gomez

The future is so bright we’re going to need sunglasses to watch the games. 

Didn’t like the way that movie ended, eh?

Get the popcorn ready.

And the hemlock.

Be afraid.

Be very afraid.

The Canadiens’ regular season (which may be the only season we have in Montreal) has five more games.

Three are on the road, beginning with a Friday night visit to – gulp! – Philadelphia.

If the team’s postseason comes down to that April 10 game against the Leafs at the Bell Centre …

Well, does anyone want to think about that?

Maybe we should … because the playoff berth that was in the bag during that post-Olypics win streak is becoming more problematic with every game your Montreal Canadiens play – and manage to lose.

Yes, the first period may have been the best 20 minutes the Canadiens have played this season.

And yes, Cam Ward stood on his head to keep Carolina in the game.

But playing in their own building with the postseason hanging in the balance, the Canadiens played one of their worst third periods.

And when the dust had settled, sportscaster Paul Graif came up with the line of the night:

“Did you ever think you’d live to hear Kerry Fraser cheered and Carey Price booed.”

There was mild applause for the veteran referee, working his last game in Montreal.

And there was a smattering of catcalls when Price was announced as the game’s third star.

He didn’t deserve the abuse.

Price could not be faulted on either of the Carolina goals.

On the first, Roman Hamrlik was torched to the outside by Brandon Sutter, took a delayed penalty and was tumbling into Price when the Carolina forward – who’s having a MUCH better season than his father and uncle out in Calgary – nudged the puck into Hammer who obligingly deflected it past the line, a Toronto video review nanosecond before the net slid off its moorings.

The winning goal was the result of chaos in the Canadiens’ end.

Mike Cammalleri was just out of the box after a successful penalty kill. He lingered near the red line looking for an outlet pass and was late getting back into the play.

Maxim Lapierre had a chance to clear the puck out and couldn’t. Erik Cole fed the biscuit toward the goalmouth, where Eric Staal was unattended on Price’s short side.

Despite having been on for most of the preceding PP, Staal still had enough energy to tap in  short rebound for the winner.

Throughout the game, and particularly on the aforementioned PP, the Carolina captain showed why he’s a star – and what the Canadiens lack by not having a centre with Staal’s size.

He’s 6’4″. And while Staal weighs only 205, he plays with tenacity and does not shy away from the heavy traffic.

The Canadiens dominated early – Carolina did not get its first shot till the game was more than six minutes old; their third shot, almost four minutes into the second period, was Sutter’s goal. But they did not create the kind of pressure on Ward that yields second and third chances.

The Canadiens have very good skill players: Tomas Plekanec, Brian Gionta, Cammalleri, Scott Gomez. But with the exceptions of Andrei Kostitsyn and Benoit Pouliot – neither of whom goes to the net with the determination of an Eric Staal –  the goal-scorers are small and tend to get their chances from the perimeter.

The lack of size hurts the Canadiens as a 5-on-5 team. And the weakness becomes particularly apparent at this time of the season, when teams are scratching and clawing and biting and fighting and taking no prisoners in the push toward the postseason.

You don’t see many pretty goals in late March and thereafter. Carolina’s two scores travelled a total distance of maybe three feet.

Inelegant but effective – especially against a Canadiens team that blew its wad early and had little left for the final 20 minutes, when Carolina fired 17 shots at Price in a reversal of the first period.

Can the Canadiens play desperation hockey?

They’d better figure out how.

The Canadiens are in eighth place: two points up on Atlanta, four ahead of the Rangers.

Everyone assumes the Thrashers will be done in by their tough schedule – at Washington, at Pittsburgh, home to New Jersey, at Washington again then home to the Penguins.

The Rangers play at Tampa Bay, Florida and Buffalo. They’re home to Toronto and the Flyers before ending the regular season in Philly.

That’s the NBC afternoon game on April 11.

Depending on what the Canadiens do against Toronto on the previous evening, that game could be VERY interesting.

•  •  •

Ryan O’Byrne was on the ice for the winning goal and blew coverage on Staal, playing with his back to the most dangerous player on the ice.

O’B spent the rest of the third period on the bench, while Marc-André Bergeron – who is to NHL-calibre D what Carrot Top is to comeddy – paired with Andrei Markov.

•  •  •

Canadiens laid on a nice post-game spread for Kerry Fraser, who reffed his last game in Montreal.

Two bottles of champagne.

God stuff: Moët & Chandon.

Fraser wore three jerseys in the game. He’s autographins one of them and giving it to Scott Gomez to be auctiuoned for a charity Gomez supports in Alaska.

The April 10 Toreonto visit will be Dan Marouelli’s last game. He wanted to end his career in the city where he reffed his first NHL game.

Peace on earth, goodwill toward all men … and not a negative word about your Montreal Canadiens.

Hands up everyone who thought this team would be riding three wins into their two-day holiday break.

Playing without their MVP for 35 of their first 39 games, the Canadiens have as many Ws as the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings – and more than the Philadelphia Flyers.

On their last seven-game road trip , in 2003, the Canadiens were 0-6-1.

Heading into game four of the current odyssey, they’re 3-0 and have outscored home teams 12-4.

And that loud thud you heard was the 64-year-old monkey falling off  their backs.

Japan surrenders, and next thing you know the Canadiens win another Dec. 23 road game.

The heroes:

Jaro Halak is on fire: 46 saves in Carolina after 47 in Atlanta and 40 on Long Island.

Check Twitter. See if Carey Price’s agent has posted anything.

Boxing Day night in Toronto, national TV audience: is there the slightest doubt who will be starting in goal?

Two weeks ago, Halak asked to be traded. At the time, I envisioned a Cristobal Huet-type deal. Maybe a second-round draft choice.

That was then.

Halak becomes more attractive with every start.

The Canadiens still need help. They give up too many shots. Their 5-on-5 play is not good. Goaltending and special teams are carrying the team. 

But here’s the problem:

If the Canadiens deal Halak, are we sure Price can give them goaltending of this quality?

Bob Gainey has a lot to think about over his plum pudding. Goaltending … and Tomas Plekanec.

Pleks is the NHL’s sixth-leading and on pace for more than 90 points. He plays on the PP, he kills penalties, he centres the top line.

He has brought Andrei Kostitsyn back from the dead. Pleks makes “Czech sausage” passes that Sergei Kostitsyn and your grandmother could cash.

Can Bob Gainey afford to lose Pleks? No.

But can he afford to sign him? Plekanec gets more expensive with every shift.

One of the Commenters  suggested a David Krejci deal. The Bruins centre got $3.75 for three years.

If Plekanec maintains his excellence, he’ll be A LOT more expensive than that.

And when you look at the $$$ committed to Scott Gomez (first three assist game with the Canadiens for the big 3-0 birthday boy), Brian Gionta and Mike Cammalleri …

Those huge honking contracts have a liot of the radio fire-breathers turning up the heat under Gainey. But in the spirit of Christmas, let’s credit the GM with some astute acquisitions:

• Glen Metropolit had two power-play goals.

• Marc-André Bergeron Andrei Markov PP goal that opened the scoring.

• Playing against Tom Kostopoulos, Travis Moen reminded us why he’s an upgrade.

• Benoit pouliot had an excellent debut. The kid can skate, he uses his reach well, he has excellent O-zone moves and he displayed a willingness to go to the net.

One game is only one game, but Pouliot could fit in nicely with Gomez and Ginta.

Which raises the question of what Jacques Martin will do with Sergei Kostitsyn.

Playing SK74 fourth-line minutes would be a waste of talent … the more so because unlike Guy Carbonneau, Martin uses his fourth line sparingly.

Georges Laraque played all of 4:49 in Carolina – despite the Canadiens leading comfortably and enduring too many cheap shots from the Hurricanes.

So there are some interesting personnel decisions to be made.

Maybe Trader Bob will pull off a multi-player blockbuster.

Topic for discussion while we enjoy a couple days off:

Gainey might have the best one-two goaltending punch in the league.

Should he deal one of them?

Here’s the fun question:

Which one?

•  •  •

The Canadiens lead the league in PP efficiency at 24.6 per cent.

Kinda helps that Markov is back, eh?

They’re sixth in the league with an 83.9 PK percentage.

•  •  •

Christmas presenbt for Mike Cammalleri:

Scoring touch on the road.

14 of 18 at the Bell Centre.

•  •  •

Overheard in my local sports bar:

“So Butch Bouchard thought the Canadiens were going to win tonight. Unfortunately, he thought they were playing the Cobalt Silver Kings.”

•  •  •

In the first period of the game in Pittsburgh last night, Ottawa outshot the Penguins 24-9.

Yes, you read that right: 24 shots in 20 minutes on the Stanley Cup champions, in their building.

What a team, those Senators.

They lost 8-2.

Easily. 

Carolina is crap, but still …

Different this year?

Marc-André Fleury is on fire.

And Dan Bylsma is a MUCH better coach than "Mike" Therrien. 

I’m in the Eastern Townships, attending the wedding of my good friend Mike Hockey, Pat’s younger brother.

Should be a good game. But if Geno stays on, the series is over.

Feel free to rant. I’ll try to catch up with Comments when I get back tonight.

But Marc-André Fleury is great late, and the Penguins hang on to win 3-2.

First blood in a series that may have a lot of bleeding. 

Michel Therrien’s mustard-coloured jacket.

Justin Williams sticking Saku Koivu in the eye.

11 penalties.

Two goals disallowed.

With the Hurricanes, it’s always something.

What it is mainly, as Mke Komisarek said last night, is a Carolina style that contests every inch of the ice. A team that doesn’t match their work ethic has a problem.

One consolation: Canadiens don’t play them again for the rest of the regular season.

Another consolation: It’s the Christmas break. The team is idle until Saturday, and Guy Carbonneau has given them four days off before they travel to Pittsburgh and practice on Boxing Day.

So in keeping with the holiday spirit, let’s try to be of good cheer.

Canadiens played a decent game last night. Not great, maybe not very good, but decent.

As they did against Buffalo on Saturday night, the team displayed character by coming back from one-goal deficits.

Canadiens got a point, giving them five of a possible six on their pre-Christmas homestand.

As someone posted in the Comments section, the real hockey begins after Christmas. Heading into the All-Star break the Canadiens play nine of 13 games on the road, including Pittsburgh this Saturday, two visits to New Jersey and games against the Rangers and – uh-oh! – Boston.

We’re about to find out what the team is made of.

And there are reasons for cautious optimism:

• Goaltending: Two good ones. Carey Price had a shaky start and was in a foul mod after the game last night but made some spectacular saves, notably on Chad Larose in the third period. He and Jaroslav Hala are going to keep the Canadiens in most games.

• Defence: Four good ones, one fair one and an old geezer pressed into regular service because a young guy hasn’t delivered. You know the names.

• The Kiddie Corps: He coughed up the puck on the winning goal last night, but Matt D’Agostinihas been a revelation. It took 30 games, but Sergei Kostitsyn has finally started flashing the ability we saw last season.

And best of all, because I like the guy, Guillaume Latendresse has found his role. Gui! had eight hits last night to lead both teams. This is what he has to do to help the Canadiens. The goals will come … and they won’t be disallowed.

• Robert Lang: Oldest player on the team at 38, so you have to hope he doesn’t run out of gas later in the season. But he’s been a terrific acquistion. Lang is smart, rarely makes costly mistakes, wins faceoffs – 11-4 last night – and is on pace for 27 goals.

• Alex Kovalev: Quiet by his elevated standards last night. But he’s finally started playing for a new contract.

• Maxim Lapierre, Tom Kostopoulos and Steve Bégin: Maybe I listed them in the wrong order. One of Bégin’s patented buzzsaw shifts brought a dead building to life last night. Tom the Bomb never takes a shift off. And I’m not going to throw Max under a bus for that slash. He’s a young player, he’s learning and he gets better all the time.

• Georges Laraque: Not effective against Carolina because their game is speed … and his game isn’t. But I still like the deterrent factor against teams like Philadelphia.

• Alex Tanguay may be waking up from his long autumn nap. Two assists last night, and he plays well with Lang.

• Andrei Kostitsyn and Saku Koivu will be back soon, and that will help.

If Tomas Plekanec finds his MIA game under the Christmas tree and if Christopher Higgins comes to the startling realization that he’s playing for a new contract and if Ryan O’Byrne can morph into an NHL defenceman …

Well, the post Christmas "real" season could be interesting.

I don’t know that the Canadiens can catch Boston.

The Bruins have been otherworldly. They’ve scored the most goals in the league and – this is the part that blows my mind – allowed the fewest.

Boston is 10 points ahead of the Canadiens and show no signs of slowing down. The Bruins had no problem with the Carolina trapping style that stymied the Canadiens last night.

The Canadiens are second in the Northeast, six points up on Buffalo. They ought to be able to hold that position and secure themselves a decent playoff seeding.

I like their chances in any first-round matchup … except maybe #$%^ing Carolina.