Each month, the Montreal Canadiens award the Molson Cup for the top player of the month, a tradition that has been around since 1972. The award is presented by most Canadian teams and is given to the player with the most three-star selections in a given month. The Habs have had the longest tradition with the prize, since the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers and Ottawa Senators have since changed the name of their monthly award. The Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets do not have a monthly award.
Anderson’s Great Month Earns Him Molson Cup
For the Canadiens, Josh Anderson won the Molson Cup in December. He had a disastrous start to the season, scoring only two points in his first 23 games. His struggles left many wondering if he was done as a top-six forward and if his trade value was now so low he would be untradable. The power forward finally scored into an empty net and went on to find his game. In his last 13 games, Anderson scored six goals and three assists to help lead the Canadiens to a 5-5-3 record in December.
Anderson showed a lot of emotion when he was selected as the first star of the game for scoring two goals against the New York Islanders in a 5-3 victory on Dec. 16. The Canadiens crowd gave him a standing ovation and the loudest cheer of the night, proving that they knew he was working hard and supported him in his struggles. Anderson suffered a lower-body injury in Montreal’s win over the Dallas Stars on Jan. 2 and will be re-evaluated in the coming days. He is expected to play tonight against the Buffalo Sabers.
November’s Molson Cup winner was Cole Caufield.
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