Going into Wednesday night’s season opener, the Montreal Canadiens weren’t given much of a chance. Many (including myself) are expecting that the Toronto Maple Leafs will fight for the division title, and many (including myself) think that the Canadiens will struggle to make the playoffs.
However, the Canadiens did everything but come away with two points. They led the way at even strength by a significant margin. They had over 57% of the shot attempts at five on five. They outshot the Leafs, and generally ran the pace of play. They went into a Scotiabank Arena that was looking for a celebratory homecoming for their team and simply out-skated them most of the night.