If last night felt like an uphill battle for the Montreal Canadiens, it’s because it kind of was. This is exactly the type of game the Sharks wish to play: they take advantage of lenient officiating to impose themselves physically, and when the penalties do come, they fall on the other team’s side. It enables them to rely on their dangerous power play to get them ahead. They then just have to clog the neutral zone for the rest of the game.
But this is no excuse for the incredibly poor showing from the penalty-killers in this game — and since the start of the season.