MONTREAL – “1-3-1”. No, it’s not the result of the last Daily 3 draw, but the name of the game system endorsed by the Los Angeles Kings has been on everyone’s lips. after the 4-2 defeat on Saturday night at the Bell Center.

Some complained, but everyone recognized that head coach Todd McLellan’s men had implemented this system, which makes life difficult for puck possession-oriented teams like CH, perfectly, at least in the first two thirds.

“It’s really not pretty hockey, but there are ways to counteract that. It’s just that we didn’t make it tonight, rued striker Cole Caufield, who earlier gave Habs fans hope by closing the gap to a goal with 2:28 left in the game. We struggled to get the puck for most of the game. »

“It’s certainly not a lack of commitment on our part,” continued defenseman Chris Wideman, who briefly played under McLellan with the Edmonton Oilers in the 2018-2019 season. The Kings boys have gotten used to the system now and all the credit goes to them tonight. Your five guys at the rink really were on the same page. »

“We didn’t have a good first half. There are no excuses, said forward Kirby Dach, who started the game in the center of Juraj Slafkovsky and Mike Hoffman before ending the final twenty minutes on the right of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. It’s also a team that plays well in defence. There is neither time nor space. »

The Kings – led by top scorer Kevin Fiala and captain Anze Kopitar – made life difficult for their opponents from the opening minutes, charging into Jake Allen’s net. They overtook the first third with 16:5.

Kopitar and Viktor Arvidsson scored twice within 19 seconds midway through the first half, but it’s not like Les Glorieux didn’t have a chance after that. Fiala and Kopitar were particularly punished in the first game, but the Canadians couldn’t really upset Pheonix Copley on the power play.

“These are normal things for a team returning from a trip west,” said head coach Martin St-Louis, whose players played their first game since beating the Kraken 4-2 in Seattle on Tuesday night. It was a difficult start. We had no legs, no energy. At least we kept pushing after that.

“We brought a lot more energy and pace in the third leg but it’s never easy to catch up in this league. We then tried to help the guys in the third race, but those were decisions made in the heat of the moment. »

According to St-Louis, we shouldn’t draw too many conclusions from the combinations used in the third section, especially as an artistic blur hovers around the absence of defender Mike Matheson, whose health is being reassessed daily from a lower body injury. Note that the Montreal native missed the first 17 games of the season with another lower body injury in training camp. With David Savard missing the third game in a row, CH will lose two defensive pillars.