MONTREAL — Canadiens center Alex Galchenyuk beat goalie Reto Berra with a wrist shot 3:28 into overtime to pin the Avalanche with a 3-2 loss Thursday, but despite taking twice as many penalties — particularly late in periods — Colorado has plenty of positives to take out of its third preseason game (counting the overlapping split-squad games Monday against Anaheim).
Avs coach Patrick Roy said Berra should gain confidence from a 33-save effort in which he unofficially did not allow a goal at even strength — and all three goals-against were great shots by Max Pacioretty, PK Subban and Galchenyuk. Pacrioretty scored with Zach Redmond in the box for hooking, Subban’s big one-time bomb came with Max Talbot also off for hooking, and Galchenyuk’s goal came two seconds after Nick Holden was released for interference — a penalty he took while defending the crease during a 5-on-3 disadvantage. The Avs killed the 5-on-3 in OT but took six infractions to Montreal’s three, and the last one cost them the game. Max Talbot took hooking and boarding minors late in the second and third periods, with the first leading to Subban’s goal and the second leading to Holden’s shorthanded penalty in a grade-A scoring area for the Habs.
“Very happy with Reto, I mean, he has been working hard in practice all week and I thought he was outstanding,” Roy said of Berra. “He made several good saves and I think it’s going to be a big game for his confidence. He was sharp and sometimes when you work hard it pays off. It paid off tonight.”
Said Berra: “Nobody is happy in here because we lost. That’s really all we care about. I am happy with how I played but maybe that will set in in a couple hours. Right now it just feels like a loss.”
As a team, Roy said: “I’m very happy with our game. I thought all our guys played really well. I thought we (played) the type of hockey we wanted to see … Great team effort.”
In addition to Berra, Roy singled out defenseman Ryan Wilson (assist, plus-2, team-high 25:42), center Nathan MacKinnon (two assists in 16:54) and forward prospects Dennis Everberg and Borna “Renda” Rendulic. I thought both struggled early, along with AHL-bound guys Ben Street, Bruno Gervais and Daniel Maggio, but both Everberg and Rendulic looked better as the game went on. This is an electric setting at the Bell Centre and going against a guy like Subban (game-high 29:43) has to be intimidating.
Roy said Semyon Varlamov will start against Montreal in Friday’s rematch at Quebec City and reiterated that Thursday’s veteran scratches — defensemen Erik Johnson, Brad Stuart and Jan Hejda, and forwards Jarome Iginla, Alex Tanguay and Daniel Briere — will also play at the old Nordiques arena. Roman Will will back up Varlamov but Roy said Varlamov will play the entire game.
Good to see former Avs goalie Peter Budaj after the game and watch P.A. Parenteau play on Montreal’s top line. Parenteau was minus-2 in 17:41 with two shots. Here’s what Roy said in the morning about the Parenteau trade that brought Briere to Colorado. Some may think this is a dig at the Canadiens, but also remember Briere is better equipped as a third-liner, leader, playoff-proven scorer, and the Avs freed themselves of $4 million in 2015-16.
“It would have been tough for him to play on the top two lines and I think he would have been unhappy with us,” Roy said of Parenteau, who is halfway through the four-year, $16 million contract he signed as a free agent with the Avs. “I believe this trade will serve him very well because he can play on the top two lines with Montreal, play on the power play. He’s a very good hockey player and I’m sure the people in Montreal will love him.”
