One hundred and eighty out of 186 shots. It's the save total that has the Montreal Canadiens feeling good about themselves, when they just as easily could be looking inside the bottom of a long, tall glass at the corner of the bar feeling pretty bad about themselves. Between the amazing netminding of Jaroslav Halak, and the impressive overtime victory total this season, the Habs find themselves in the playoffs looking down at those teams who are probably more deserving of being placed higher than them. It really is a smoke-and-mirrors season so far.
The funny thing is, though, that the Habs will be getting better as this season moves on, not worse, and they could have already experienced their lows and what is to come will be their better moments. They are missing Hamrlik, Mara, and Gionta, three key players that have the ability to make a difference. Get those three back and the wins could be more logical and deserved than they are now.
Truth is, the Habs are a reporter's worst scenario. You watch the games and you can't believe the results. You can't reconcile the W with the shot total. You can't reconcile the standings with the way the games look. However, sports are all about the numbers and the numbers are speaking louder so far than the theories. Here are the numbers: a goalie in the last four games holding a .975 save percentage, the best powerplay in the league running at a ridiculously good 25 per cent, a centreman in the top 10 in scoring, a struggling winger now scoring at a better-than-a-goal-a-game clip in the last nine games, a team in eighth place in the standings. The numbers don't lie. In fact, the numbers are calling me a liar, and I don't appreciate that.
