It’s been a while since the Montreal Canadiens’ power play was any good.
In fact, the last time the Canadiens were lethal with a man advantage was back in the 2012-2013 season, which saw them finish fifth in the league with an effectiveness rate of 20.7%. Back then, players like Tomas Plekanec, Erik Cole, PK Subban, and Andrei Markov were clicking and firing on all cylinders.
These days, though, the Habs’ power play is among the NHL’s poorest. Currently firing at 16.7%, the special teams unit is now 0-for-23 over their last eight games with no signs of improvement.
And as it turns out, despite rotating coaches a few times, that’s been the story of the last five years.
According to data from NHL.com, the Canadiens are dead last (32nd) when it comes to scoring with an extra skater, capitalizing on just 15.7% of chances since the 2018-2019 season began.
To put that number in perspective, Montreal has scored just 179 goals over 1,139 power plays. Ouch.
On the other side of the spectrum are the Edmonton Oilers, who sit at the top of the list with a 27.4% scoring rate when playing with an extra skater. The likes of superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have played a major part in keeping them at the top.
Second on the leaderboard is the Tampa Bay Lightning, with a 25.3% on the power play.
As for other special teams, unfortunately, Montreal has not been much better while down a man.
Statistics show that the Canadiens are 29th on the league’s penalty kill leaderboard over the past half-decade, averaging a 76.8% efficacy rate.
The only teams worse than the Habs in that department since 2018-19 have been the Chicago Blackhawks (76.7%), Detroit Red Wings (76.6%), and Seattle Kraken (75.7%).
Part of their inability to fight off opposing power plays may come from the fact that they have been one of the most penalized teams in the league for quite some time. Over the past five years, only seven teams have taken more penalties than the Canadiens, who’ve racked up 3,745 penalty minutes.
Suffice it to say, special teams have been a mess for quite some time and are likely to remain that way, barring a major change.
Until that happens, the Habs will likely struggle to be competitive.
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