Niemi gets yanked and the Habs lose all the same as a trip to the Sunshine State goes ugly for the Canadiens who now find themselves back in the fight for their playoff lives as their losing streak hits 4 games.

The Habs had their hands full as they ended their death gauntlet 4-game stretch in Tampa Bay against the league’s best. They skated with the Bolts for 40 minutes, but in the end talent and skill won out and Montreal left Tampa empty-handed and in the midst of a three-game losing streak.

It was a game that left everyone hoping to see more of these two teams facing off in the playoffs, but Zach blames the 4th line and the powerplay for an exciting loss, but a loss nonetheless, to the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.

Wow. It was the Habs best performance in a couple of seasons and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Facing a gauntlet of Winnipeg, Toronto, Nashville, and Tampa Bay, your Montreal Canadiens could not have got off to a better start to the stretch. Wow.

It was a game that gave new meaning to the term lame duck. Anaheim was bad in this one and your Montreal Canadiens, Brendan Gallagher in particular, took advantage of a team that has quit.

Alex Galchenyuk returned to the Bell Centre on Wednesday night and played hero for the visiting Coyotes, well for a second at least, until the Montreal coaching staff thwarted him one more time.