Stu Cowan: Canadiens have added size, but they still can’t score

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Canadiens fans are probably feeling the same way as Yvon Lambert these days.

“It was tough for me to watch the Canadiens the last 10 years, to be honest with you,” the former Canadiens forward said Wednesday during an interview with Mitch Melnick on TSN 690 Radio. “The only positive thing this year, I know that we had a really good start. But the thing that I’m pleased and I’m happy (about) is we have a bigger team. A lot bigger than the last nine years.”

Lambert was a 6-foot, 195-pound power forward during his nine seasons with the Canadiens, winning four consecutive Stanley Cups, starting in 1976.

The 70-year-old said he found it frustrating watching a small Canadiens team play for the last decade with nobody on the roster who would defend them. He added that Brendan Gallagher would be the perfect player if he was only bigger.

“But he has the guts to go (in front of the net),” Lambert said. “He goes down, but he gets up right away.”

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Lambert likes the fact GM Marc Bergevin added size during the off-season, bringing in forwards Josh Anderson, Tyler Toffoli and Corey Perry, along with defenceman Joel Edmundson.

“It’s a lot better,” Lambert said. “We have a lot of work still to do. Like right now we’re not scoring goals. I think our young kids, they’re struggling a little bit. But we have to keep working with them and they’re going to get experience and a kid like (Jesperi) Kotkaniemi, (Nick) Suzuki, they’re struggling right now. … But you have to give them a chance. They’re really young and I’m sure they’re going to learn, they want to learn. There’s a lot of pressure here in Montreal, that’s for sure. But that’s the way it is … that’s the way it is.”

The pressure will really be on the Canadiens during their final eight regular-season games — starting Friday night at the Bell Centre against the Winnipeg Jets (7 p.m., TSN2, RDS, TSN 690 Radio, 98.5 FM) — as they fight to hang on to the fourth and final playoff spot in the North Division. The Canadiens hold a four-point lead over Calgary after the Flames beat the Oilers 3-1 Thursday night in Edmonton.

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After a fantastic 7-1-2 start to the season, the Canadiens are limping to the finish line with a 4-9-0 record in their last 13 games, while scoring only 23 goals during that span — an average of 1.77 goals per game. That slump coincides with Gallagher being sidelined with a fractured thumb.

Kotkaniemi has no goals and three assists during those 13 games. The 20-year-old has gone 16 games without a goal and has only five this season.

With Tomas Tatar and Paul Byron missing practice Thursday because of lower-body injuries, head coach Dominique Ducharme moved Kotkaniemi to left wing on a line with Phillip Danault and Josh Anderson. Tatar and Byron are not expected to play Friday night.

“You can’t forget that, even if it’s his third season, he’s still a young player,” Ducharme said about Kotkaniemi. “But we’ve still seen him develop this year. For a young player, the toughest thing is consistency. KK knows it, too.”

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When asked about moving to the wing, Kotkaniemi said: “Last time I played wing, I felt I probably had a little more time to shoot and create some offence. When you play centre, there are a lot more responsibilities in the middle. I’m going to create something tomorrow.”

The Canadiens are being patient with Kotkaniemi, as they should be with a 20-year-old. But the patience of fans with this team might be running out and it will be severely tested if the Canadiens somehow miss the playoffs.

Left-winger Brady Tkachuk, selected fourth overall by Ottawa at the 2018 NHL Draft (one pick after the Canadiens took Kotkaniemi), has 16-18-34 totals this season with the Senators. Tkachuk, who is coming off a Gordie Howe Hat Trick (a goal, an assist and a fight) in the Senators’ 6-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks Wednesday night, leads the NHL in shots (201) and ranks second in hits (215), which is a very impressive combination. He’s like a big version of Gallagher.

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The Canadiens were desperate for a centre at the 2018 draft, so they took Kotkaniemi. It might still prove to be the right decision in the future … time will tell.

But for now, the Canadiens’ biggest problem remains an inability to score goals despite the additions of Toffoli and Anderson, who lead the team with 25 and 17 goals, respectively. Gallagher ranks third with 14 goals despite missing the last 13 games. Those three have accounted for 41 per cent of the Canadiens’ goals this season.

Lambert said he shakes his head now when he sees players on the bench looking at a tablet after missing a scoring chance.

“They watch the replay on the internet there,” he told Melnick. “Oh, my God. That’s not the way. … Geez, you have to be upset and you just wish to go back on the ice and score that Goddamn goal.”

scowan@postmedia.com

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