Lane Hutson demonstrated yesterday that Corey Pronman was in the field (and the latter added to it).

Last night, the Canadiens Hockey Club was in Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Hockey Club. And even without Emil Heineman, who was hit by a car on Monday and will miss a few weeks of action, the Habs found a way to win.

In a 5-3 win, not everything was perfect, of course. But Lane Hutson proved he can be more than just a decent player.

We say that, of course, because Corey Pronman’s ranking of Hutson 39th among his best players aged 23 and under caused quite a stir in town.

In fact, apart from the ranking (which is special in itself, but hey), it’s mainly the fact that his talent with the puck was described as « above average » and his sense of competition as « average » that got a big reaction.

Not the analyst’s best, let’s say.

And yesterday, on the ice, Lane Hutson showed just how strong he is. Getting three assists in a 5-3 game is one thing, but we must also mention his two blocked shots, his plus-3 differential and his excellent defensive play.

He’s taking on the opposition’s best and he’s playing a lot, Hutson… and collecting points.

But I think the comment that got the most reaction was the one where Pronman said that Lane Hutson, if he keeps it up, could be a top-4 player one day in his career.

It was a really good one.

I’m not saying he’d be on every team’s top pairing right now, but he’s playing on the Habs’ top-2. He’s going up against the big boys and he’s holding his own defensively and producing when he’s got the puck.

He leads all rookies in points, and only five defensemen in the NHL have more than his 35 points: Werenski, Makar, Hughes, Morrissey and Theodore. Not exactly a gang of hams…

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But this morning, when no one was forcing him to repost his new text, Corey Pronman shared a piece on the guys with the biggest increase in yesterday’s rankings from the start of the season. And Hutson is there.

Note that yesterday’s segment on Hutson (including the bit about the top-4 and his level of competitiveness) was cut and pasted into a paper published this morning, after the rookie’s excellent game yesterday. He doesn’t look any better this morning, Pronman.

But hey. Anyone who watches Habs games knows what Hutson can bring to the ice. And just yesterday, he was able to prove it to everyone in a Habs win.

But he wasn’t the only player who helped the Habs win. What do I remember from yesterday’s game?

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1. The best players were the best players. We’re talking about Hutson and his three assists, but Mike Matheson (two points, including a magnificent goal) and Alexandre Carrier (two assists) were also good at the blue line.

Up front? Patrik Laine, Kirby Dach (twice) and Cole Caufield found the back of the net. They took advantage of an opponent who wasn’t at his best defensively.

2. In the first period, the Canadiens played perhaps their worst 20 minutes in weeks. Luckily, Samuel Montembeault, who deserved his W yesterday, was there to keep his club and teammates in the game.

But in the second period, it was much better. Especially in terms of penalties…

The Canadiens corrected themselves, and as Martin St-Louis said after the game, he didn’t need to intervene between the first two periods. This means that the guys evaluated each other and corrected together what needed to be corrected.

That’s a sign of maturity. And it reminds us that unlike many moments since the fall of 2021, the Canadiens are capable of regaining momentum and getting back into games.

3. In his last nine duels, Kirby Dach has six goals. We’re talking about all nine games since the holidays… and that brings his season total to eight. Clearly, he’s getting his legs back.

And so much the better.

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4. Emil Heineman is the Canadiens’ only injured player at the moment. That wasn’t the case for André Tourigny’s men, who have several injured men (6-7 guys, including Shea Weber) at the moment.

The result? The Canadiens dressed Michael Pezzetta for the game. Recalling someone to take him to Utah wasn’t realistic, obviously.

The more time passes, the clearer it becomes that Pezz, both for himself and for the Habs, must be put through the waivers – for his own good. Either he doesn’t play, or he doesn’t play… well.

We know what he can bring to the table, but it’s hard to do it playing so little (3:50 yesterday, less than an hour so far this season) and it’s hard to make a name for yourself taking nasty penalties. Put him out of his misery, for his own good.

5. At one point, in terms of shots, it was 12-1 for Utah. It ended 26-25 for the Habs, who really tightened up their defense starting in the second period. It took a long time for the home team to get a shot off in the second.

6. Seeing the Canadiens use the term « hit-and-run » on X made me laugh.

extension

The Canadiens won’t be practicing this morning: instead, it’ll be a day of travel to Dallas. The next practice will take place tomorrow morning, in Dallas. #MorningSkate

As a reminder, the Habs will play tomorrow in Texas before returning home for two games at the Bell Centre this weekend. The Maple Leafs and Rangers are on the menu.

(Credit: NHL.com)

As you can see, after tomorrow’s game against the Stars, it’ll be mostly at home for the rest of the month. Apart from a short trip to Detroit, the boys will be playing mainly at the Bell Centre from now on, in January.

But don’t forget that the California trip is coming up… #EarlyFebruary