Sorry, do you speak Hockey?

There is truth to the idea that numbers can tell a story, but there is so much that is left unsaid. In the dialect that is unique to hockey, terms such as goals, goals-against, save percentage, and points-per-game are tossed about with an almost absurd frequency. Most fans, however, know that there is more to the game than just numbers. You cannot quantify leadership. A thunderous body check cannot be turned into a fraction. There isn’t a percentage for determination.

Still, for better or for worse, stats is the language that we speak. We need the cleanliness of numbers to understand a chaotic game. Now that Les Glorieux are sitting (precariously) atop the Eastern Conference, I had planned to use some choice figures to prove why they deserve to be there. Instead, I will present a slew of stats, without the drivel, and let you decide which numbers are meaningful and which are meaningless.

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All stats are valid prior to Monday's games.

Montreal's line-up tonight will have a combined plus-minus rating of +19.

The Habs have 7 players with 40 or more points (most in the NHL).

Montreal has 9 players with 12 or more goals (most in the NHL). There are, however, 4 other teams (Dallas, Detroit, Philly, and Ottawa) that have 9 players with 10 or more goals. The NY Rangers have a league best 10 players with 10 or more goals.One of 209 celebrations. (THE GAZETTE/Allen Mcinnis)

Mark Streit and Saku Koivu each have 12G-36A-48P and both have a -6 plus-minus rating. They both also have 3 game-winning goals.

Alex Kovalev ranks 1st in the league with 40 powerplay points (16G-24A). He ranks just inside the top 100 with 26 even-strength points. Andrei Kostitsyn has 28 even-strength points - the same as Marian Hossa. Tomas Plekanec leads the team with 32 ESP.

The Habs are 2nd (tied with Detroit) in the league with 209 goals scored. Ottawa leads with 216. Montreal's powerplay continues to dominate the league, operating at a 25.3% efficiency. In 66 games, they have scored 78 goals on 308 opportunities with the man-advantage. Montreal has allowed 2 short-handed goals-against, which is best in the league. Their PK is a lowly 80.5% which ranks them 23rd in that category. 51 goals have been scored against the Habs when they are at the disadvantage. The Canadiens have scored 7 short-handed goals.

Kovalev's 68 points (29G-39A) have him ranked 16th in the league.

Mike Komisarek leads the NHL with 195 blocked shots. Roman Hamrlik is 8th overall with 142.

Andrei Markov's 50 points (13G-37A) rank him 3rd in the league amongst defensemen. Mark Streit's 48 points (12G-36A) have him one rung down at 4th. Exactly half of Streit's points have come on the powerplay.

Carey Price has won 6 of his last 7 starts (not including the historic Rangers game). Since the trade of Cristobal Huet, Price has gone 3-0-0 with a 0.956 save percentage and a goals-against average of 1.33.

Montreal has not been in first place this late in the season since 1993.

The Canadiens have 16 games remaining, 9 of which are against divisional rivals.

Montreal's Top 5 Hitters:
Komisarek (237)
Bouillon (144)
Latendresse (114)
Hamrlik (104)
Ryder (100)

Points-Per-Game Leaders
Kovalev 1.03
Plekanec 0.89
Markov 0.76
Koivu 0.74
Streit 0.73
A. Kostitsyn 0.68
Higgins 0.62
S. Kostitsyn 0.50
Ryder 0.45
Smolinksi 0.37