Dustin Tokarski’s Dominance A Sign Of Things To Come For Montreal Canadiens

By Lissa Albert @LissaRantSports on October 10, 2014

It certainly didn’t look like a winning game for the Montreal Canadiens. Not for most of the night.

They played sluggishly for most of their second game this week, and it took the air out of the fans’ collective sails after the excitement of a 4-3 win on opening night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The fact that the game remained such a low-scoring contest and that the Habs gave up only one goal in all, however, is testament to the skills of a very solid Dustin Tokarski, the team’s newly-crowned backup goalie.

To fans last season, it seemed like the Canadiens led the league in called-off goals. Last night, the “trend” continued. Referee Chris Lee (not a popular referee among Habs fans) called off another that many felt should have counted.

There are two main takeaways from this game, and the first is one I rarely voice because it’s normally a lazy argument. However, the referees seemed to be favoring the Capitals with penalties called against Montreal while overt offenses on the Washington side went unchecked. In the end, each team racked up 19 minutes in penalties, and it’s one’s perception — or closer examination of each play — that would be the telltale truth of referee bias.

That said, the Parenteau goal, which was not counted, was clearly a good goal and should have been valid. It’s hard for fans to be objective of course, but upon viewing replays, the goal, among all the other objectionable “offenses” by referees, should not have been waved off. There is seemingly no mechanism for referees to be reviewed or assessed. This has long been a problem that I will likely revisit, but given the very frustrating string of blatant uncalled penalties, it definitely reared its head last night.

Looking forward, however, the main takeaway from the game was what started as buzz in playoffs, through the summer, and when a decision was made shortly before the season began: the goalie. After playoffs ended for the Canadiens, speculation began on who would take over the backup position. Tokarski, the management’s choice for the remainder of playoffs after Carey Price was injured in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final, showed tremendous skill and calm demeanor when he was tested in a trial-by-fire. When GM Marc Bergevin made the decision to trade Peter Budaj, talk began among the analysts and fans: would Tokarski be able to hold his own?

There were many who seemed to feel that the playoffs were not a good enough test of his skills. He burst onto the scene in May almost un unknown, but quickly became a story of the playoffs.

Last night’s game more than proved he is worthy of his new title. With a total of 30 shots against him, he gave up only one goal. It was a solid performance by a player I was never worried about, but who needed to prove himself when thrust into the spotlight. For many, the playoffs were not enough of a test to convince them; for me, it was. I had confidence this goalie would rise to every challenge and tonight certainly tested his skills. Each save made was done with cool conviction, and he was faced with near-goals multiple times.

Tokarski came through once again, and has not only earned the respect of many non-Habs fans — he has earned the confidence of the Montreal fanbase. It’s likely that he will still have to work hard to earn the fans’ full confidence, but Budaj had to do so as well. A backup goalie has a tough role to play. Tokarski seems to be one to watch this season.

 Lissa Albert is a Montreal Canadiens writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter @LissaRantSports. “Like” her on Facebook and/or add her to your network on Google.