FLA@MTL: Newcomers make their mark

MONTREAL - The Canadiens welcomed a veteran-laden Panthers team to the Bell Centre for Game 2 of the preseason schedule, with 16 bonafide NHLers in the lineup for the visitors on Wednesday night. Despite dropping a 5-2 decision to the Cats, the Habs youngsters still managed to turn some heads in the feisty affair.

For his part, coach Claude Julien was impressed with his team's effort in the outing.
"I liked a lot of things tonight. The first period was a little more difficult, but we adjusted. We also had a lot of scoring chances that we just weren't able to capitalize on," explained Julien, whose troops pelted Panthers netminders Roberto Luongo and Michael Hutchinson - who shared crease duties on Wednesday - with 33 shots through 60 minutes. "To me, the score didn't reflect the game."
Peca's time to shine
Habs freshman Matthew Peca made the most of his 16:39 of ice time in his Canadiens debut on Wednesday night. The 25-year-old forward, who has 20 games of NHL experience under his belt, opened the scoring with a power-play marker in the first period before picking up an assist on Nikita Scherbak's third-period snipe with a great play from his own end later in the evening.
"The system is different, but I did my best and it worked out," said the humble former seventh-round pick, who was promoted to second-line duties mid-game.

Getting testy
Despite not counting in the standings, Wednesday's preseason game was in at least mid-season form in the intensity department. The Habs dished out 32 hits, Max Domi racked up 14 penalty minutes, including a 5-minute major, Brett Lernout came to the defense of Mike Reilly in the third period, and Paul Byron dropped the gloves with Jonathan Huberdeau in a rare September scrap.
"The intensity doesn't surprise me. That's how we practice and you see that reflected in the games. That's how we want to play all season long," confirmed Byron, who won the Jacques Beauchamp-Molson Trophy as the team's unsung hero in 2017-18. "We did some good things, but we have to keep improving. It was a good first game against a good team, but we'll go back and work on some things and come out stronger."

One of three Habs, along with Jonathan Drouin and Jeff Petry, sporting an "A" on his sweater in the game, Byron chose to lead by example against the Panthers, both with his play and with his fists - something that didn't go unnoticed by his younger teammates.
"I think it's great to see veterans like Byron getting involved like he did," said Xavier Ouellet, who signed with the Canadiens as a free agent on July 1. "When you see guys like him who already have their spot in the lineup going out there and stepping up like that, it sends a message to everyone else."
With five more games left on the preseason docket, Drouin wants to see that intensity level continue to climb all the way into opening night.
"That's a good team they have over there. I loved the intensity," he said. "That's what's going to get us ready for the regular season. I liked the intensity from everyone out there tonight."
The Habs will be back in action on Thursday night in Quebec City against the Washington Capitals with Brendan Gallagher, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Phillip Danault and Charles Hudon among the group of players projected to be in the lineup for the Canadiens against the reigning Stanley Cup Champs. Click
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