Habs don't disappoint in Roberval

A few thoughts as we ponder where the magic of Hockeyville might take place next year:

Roberval gets a gem – Tuesday night’s Kraft Hockeyville 2008 game in Roberval, Quebec, between the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres was about so much more than what transpired for 60 minutes on a sheet of ice. For that reason, the night still would have been a tremendous success had the game been lopsided, even if – dare we say it – the beloved Habs had lost.

The 1,200 inside Benoit Levesque Arena and the masses who gathered in the parking lot to watch on a giant TV screen watched the sort of game the NHL would want to sell to audiences around the globe – an extremely competitive affair that saw the Canadiens hold off the Sabres, 3-2, behind a pair of goals from Tomas Plekanec.

“I was definitely nervous,” said Montreal goalie Marc Denis, a Quebec native who went the distance in net. “This was my first start in a Montreal Canadiens uniform. I had a lot of friends and family here in attendance. To do it so close to home, in front of my friends and family, it was obviously special. There were definitely jitters.”

There was a buzz going through the crowd long before the opening faceoff, and it only increased when Plekanec scored the lone goal of the first period to stake the Canadiens to a lead they would never relinquish.

Just when it looked like Montreal was getting ready to roll – Plekanec and Andrei Kostitsyn each scored shorthanded during the second to increase the advantage to 3-0 – the Sabres climbed right back into the game in the third on goals by Derek Roy and Nathan Gerbe. That set up a frantic finish that saw Denis and the Canadiens hang on for the victory.

In the end, everyone won – first and foremost the people of Roberval.

“It was fun to be a part of,” said Sabres captain Jason Pominville, who hails from Repentigny, Quebec. “Me and Patty (Lalime) were able to go a school today after the pre-game skate, and just being able to see the kids with a smile on their face just made our day. It was a fun event to be a part of. If they ever did it again, I’d be the first to come back.”

Stamkos lights the lamp – Steven Stamkos, the first pick in the 2008 Entry Draft, enjoyed his first big moment as an NHL player when he scored in the shootout against the Pittsburgh Penguins in his first preseason game.


Tuesday turned out to be another memorable game for the 18-year-old Tampa Bay Lightning center, as he scored his first regulation goal in a 3-2 win against the New York Rangers. Skating on the power play, Stamkos took a feed from offseason acquisition Radim Vrbata and whipped a shot past Stephen Valiquette at 7:01 of the second period, sending the St. Pete Times Forum crowd into a frenzy.

After hitting several posts in his first home game Monday, it was a relief for Stamkos to finally connect for a goal that came during the course of team play rather than on the breakaway that makes up the shootout.

“Vrbata did a great job in bringing the puck and sucking the defenseman in, and coach (Barry) Melrose was just telling me to shoot the puck,” said Stamkos. “(Valiquette) gave me short side there, so I was lucky enough to hit the net,” Stamkos said.

On the other side of the ice from Stamkos on Tuesday was former youth hockey teammate Michael Del Zotto, a defenseman taken by the Rangers at No. 20 in June. The two skated together for the Markham Waxers as 15-year-olds during the 2005-06 season, and while Del Zotto’s path to the NHL is not likely to be as rapid, Stamkos knows the two will be seeing each other again before very long.

“Having an opportunity to play with him in minor hockey, he got me a lot of goals with that nice pass,” Stamkos said. “He’s a great offensive defenseman, sees the ice very well, plays physical. He’s a pretty well-rounded player and I’m sure I’ll be playing against him in the NHL in the near future.”

Gordon’s debut a success – New York Islanders rookie coach was a winner in his first NHL preseason game thanks in large part to an undrafted free agent looking to follow his coach to the big time.

Trevor Smith scored on a tremendous individual effort 2:03 into overtime in Moncton, New Brunswick, giving the Islanders a 2-1 victory Tuesday against the Boston Bruins. Smith took a pass from Mike Iggulden in his own zone, skated around a player in the neutral zone, beat the defense and roofed a backhander over goalie Tuukka Rask.

“I just jumped on the ice, the puck was turned over and Mike fed me for a pass up the wing and I had a full head of steam,” said Smith, who scored 33 goals last season while splitting time between the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, the Islanders’ American Hockey League affiliate, and the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies. “I took it wide and put it upstairs. I saw the left defenseman, so I just wanted to get a quick shot off.”
Gordon was familiar with a number of players on the ice for Boston, having coached the Providence Bruins in the AHL prior to being named Islanders coach. He saw his new team enjoy a 38-19 shots advantage and play a sound overall game.

“I thought our effort was tremendous from start to finish,” Gordon said. “There was no letting up and our guys competed for 60 minutes. That was most pleasing about it. Our guys competed in all situations. I expected the things we did wrong to be a long laundry list, but they were kept to a minimum.”

Bad news for Blues – Although they won their first game of the preseason Tuesday, the St. Louis Blues suffered a major loss when they learned they will have to go forward this season without defenseman Erik Johnson, the first pick in the 2006 Entry Draft.

Johnson, who put up 5 goals and 33 points as a rookie last season, suffered two torn ligaments in his right knee during a Sept. 16 golf outing when his right foot got caught between the accelerator and the brake of his golf cart. The Blues had to wait for swelling in the knee to go down before a diagnosis could be made.

Now, instead of trying to help lead a St. Louis defense that added another blue-chip prospect in Alex Pietrangelo, the fourth pick in the 2008 Entry Draft, Johnson will require surgery to repair his anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments.

“In our business you get a few curveballs. This is a pretty good curveball,” team president John Davidson said prior to the Blues’ 3-2 defeat of the Dallas Stars at Scottrade Center. “We still have our same goals. We’re going to get up tomorrow and think about winning. You have to be able to adapt.”

Pietrangelo made his case to stick with the Blues and pick up some of Johnson’s ice time by contributing a pair of power-play assists in Tuesday’s game.

Material from wire services and team broadcast and online media was used in this report.