Two Out Of Three Aint Bad

As if being named first star in each game of a three in three set isn't enough, Dimitrij Jaskin gets - for the second week in a row - first star honors in the whole great big QMJHL. Hard to argue with that logic considering big #26 essentially took on all comers and kicked opposing goalies in the nether regions to the tune of 11 points in four games. As the season goes on, it's also becoming more and more apparent that Jaskin is not only entertaining, he's an entertainer. Very few players in franchise history have been able to combine such an outstanding skill set with the ability to play to the crowd and show appreciation for the fans. Two other players that immediately come to mind in this department are Alexi Tezikov and Keith Yandle. These types of guys make it impossible for you to not have fun at the rink... they're going to cram the excitement down your throat... and they don't come around too awful much. Guess there's nothing better to do but sit back and enjoy it... although I am a bit concerned 'ol Dimitri might get a little extreme with a post-goal celebration and suffocate Ivan Barbashev in an overzealous bear hug or break Alex Dubeau's hand with a high five one of these nights.

Speaking of Mr.Dubeau, he takes home third star honors, going 3-0 with a 1.00 GAA and .962 Save percentage. It's been a real roller coaster season for the Cats' netminder. There have been a number of nights where you never knew what to expect from him. Results could vary from game to game and period to period... and a few bad goals still elude him. However, it seems that lately those goals have bothered him less and less. Yesterday afternoon against Quebec has to go down as his best example of bouncing back yet. After allowing a less than perfect shot off the stick of Nick Sorensen to slip through the wickets, Dubeau morphed into a true money goaltender for the next 40 minutes, making - among other stops - two huge saves on a Remparts 5 on 3 and a point blank toe save on Ryan Culkin to keep the game close when the Cats needed it most. A good friend of mine felt Dubeau deserved a star yesterday and frankly, I couldn't disagree. Outside of Jaskin, Dubeau was probably the biggest reason why the Cats took two points against Patrick and Co.

Simply put, Alex Dubeau has gained a fair amount of confidence these past few weeks. All you have to do is watch him to see it. What has caused it? The change in goaltending coaches? The fact that the team has shown confidence in him by upgrading the team at the deadline and retaining him as the number one guy between the pipes? I'd like to think it's perhaps a little of both. Many teams and players play lousy leading up to and during the Christmas trade period. Not only are players eager to get home and celebrate, they can be easily distracted by the flurry of movement most teams make as clubs buy, sell or tinker with the lineup. After the deadline, the message had to have been sent to Dubeau (either directly or indirectly) that he was the guy, the distractions were over and it was go time with him being a key player. Although it was highly unlikely that the Cats were going to offload and that Dubeau would be shipped out, I know if I was a kid in the Q, I wouldn't be able to keep from being just a tad anxious over what the future held at that time of year. Especially in an organization like Moncton, where Danny Flynn both treats his players fairly but also keeps his cards so close to his chest you couldn't read them with an X-Ray machine.

At this point, there's no reason to worry about where you'll be tomorrow if your anyone on the Wildcats. If you're Alex Dubeau, you've erased the month of December from the memory banks and just do your very best to go on a run for the next (hopefully) four plus months. So far, that's exactly what he and his teammates have done. But if, say, Jonathan Racine was to quietly look Alex in the eye and say "No more bad goals", just like Larry Robinson did to young Patrick Roy back in the '85-'86 season, that probably wouldn't hurt either.

In other news, if you loved that pass Alex Galchenyuk fired off on the second Habs goal yesterday against New Jersey, good news! You'll (hopefully) get to see more and more of it this season as the club has made it official neither he nor Brendan Gallagher (the man who finished off that play) aren't going anywhere except to pay for some crazy expensive rookie initiation meal at some awesome steakhouse somewhere in eastern North America. As well, PK is back with the CH, signing a two year deal. His ability to jump start the Montreal offense from the blueline will be particularly vital with the long term absence of Max Pacioretty, sidelined after undergoing an emergency appendectomy over the weekend. Now that he's undergone the procedure, does this mean he's able to go to the movies? Can someone please call Dr. Recchi to clarify?