1. It's not how you start, it's how you finish.The Canadiens started atrociously against San Jose but, they improved in Anaheim.The game against Los Angeles featured a terrible start, followed by an unfortunate finish.And in Arizona--where they should've dominated--the Habs hit their stride to avoid losing four straight games.2. Every 'Price for the Hart' story starts and ends with the question: Where would the Canadiens be without this guy?We have no way of knowing how the Canadiens would've played without him. It's easy to point at Dustin Tokarski's record and say that's it, but the Canadiens are likely as deficient as they are in the possession metrics because they have Price and are happy to rely on him.Taking Tokarski's spot starts as an example of what the Canadiens would look like with an average goaltender isn't necessarily an accurate depiction.But, we can all admit, they wouldn't be leading the Eastern Conference at this point of the season. As James Mirtle suggests in his latest column , the Habs would probably be fighting for the their playoff lives if Price were replaced with a goalie at the league's average save percentage.3. How insane has Price been?Over his last 34 games, he's got a .942 save percentage and five shutouts.Putting that in perspective, as I did on Twitter yesterday, Brian Elliott broke the record in 2011-12 with a .940 save percentage in 38 games.Going deeper, Tim Thomas' record .938 in 2010-11 was set over 57 games. In 53 games, Price is at a .936.Deepest: Dominic Hasek's best (1998-99) was a .937 over 64 games.Since returning from injury, Pekka Rinne's posted a .911 in 14 games. As a result, the Predators have gone 7-7-1 over that span and it's brought his season total down to .926.And since I mentioned Price's last 34 games at .942, it's worth mentioning that Rinne's at a .922 over that time.Price has pretty much wrapped up the Vezina.4. The Canadiens next opponent is the Tampa Bay Lightning.The Lightning are probably the league's strongest example of a team that doesn't need superb goaltending to win.Tampa ranks 14th in goals against, and Ben Bishop's not exactly scorching, sporting a .913 save percentage over 50 games. Andrei Vasilevskiy hasn't been much better at .917% through 12 games. Evgeni Nabokov appeared in 11 games with the Lightning this year before being traded back to San Jose, and he's a considerable drop off at .882%.Where the Lightning thrive is on offense. They've scored more than any team this year and boast the third-best shot attempt numbers, just behind Los Angeles and Chicago, respectively.5. The Lightning have beat up on the Canadiens this season. A lot of the fans around Montreal think they're the team to beat in the East.Here's my question: Will their strong offensive play be able to carry them through the playoffs?I believe they have the depth to do some damage, but the biggest riddle to me involves a scarier proposition than the average goaltending numbers they've had all season: Neither Bishop nor Vasilevskiy has ever played an NHL playoff game.6. I bet Lars Eller slept well over the last two nights.The goal that finally came--his first in 15 games--had to have been a sweet relief, but the best part of this story is 15:12.After Eller took a penalty that gave the Kings even footing in a game they were 45 seconds away from losing, Therrien stuck by him in overtime and the shootout.Then in Arizona, his ice-time was just a minute or so under what he played in Los Angeles.Confidence is king, and Therrien walked the line to ensure Eller could still find his.7. Devante Smith-Pelly has gotten better with each game he's played.He finished with eight hits against the physical Kings, and he notched his first assist--a beauty--against the Coyotes after putting five shots on net.8. Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reported that Alexei Emelin participated in practice Saturday, and was green-lit for contact. Lavoie said Emelin could return as early as Tuesday against the Lightning, if not Thursday against Ottawa.Either way, that's an impressively quick recovery from an injury that could've kept him out for six weeks.So, logic would dictate he comes in for Sergei Gonchar. But with Therrien, sometimes you throw logic to the wind...9. Not sure what the general evaluation is on Jeff Petry, but by my eye, he's a pretty good player. He's physical, he's fast, he's got very good vision and a knack for playing aggressively at the right time.You have to think looming free agency a thought that tickles his fancy. Very few, if any puck-moving defencemen make it to free agency; all the more reason he'll cash in big on the open market, should he have an impressive run with the Canadiens.But, I can't help but wonder how Marc Bergevin will approach the situation. Bergevin tried to trade Josh Gorges for Cody Franson. He's been looking for a Jeff Petry for quite some time after settling for Tom Gilbert.10. Speaking of Gilbert, he's playing his best hockey at the right time. Great road trip for him, and he's making a strong case to not only stay in the lineup, but to remain in the top four.Nathan Beaulieu's progress has been notable. But for him to stick full-time; for him to beat out Gilbert, he's going to have to start producing more. That's the pressure he's under right now.Before Petry's acquisition, Beaulieu was playing 28 shifts/game over a five-game span. Now he's down to 18 over the last five.There's competition on this blueline. With Emelin healthy, the Canadiens have eight defensemen in Montreal they can count on, and they have Greg Pateryn and Jarred Tinordi waiting in the wings.