Jakub Dobes made consecutive starts for the first time this season, and he rewarded coach Martin St. Louis’ confidence with a masterful 36-save performance in a 2-1 overtime win over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday at Scotiabank Saddledome.
Mike Matheson scored the winner exactly one minute into 3-on-3 overtime. But it was Ivan Demidov’s primary assist that got the many Habs supporters in attendance on their feet.
Dobes was great, but his counterpart in the Calgary net Dustin Wolf was no slouch himself. The 2025 Calder nominee made 26 games to keep the Flames close. They entered the game 1-6 and played like a team in desperate need of a win.
With Kirby Dach and Patrik Laine out, as well as Owen Beck sent back to Laval, coach St. Louis experimented with an all-Quebec line of Zachary Bolduc, Joe Veleno and latest call-up Joshua Roy.
Bolduc scored the game’s first goal on the power play from his office in the bumper slot. Nick Suzuki drew his 10th assist of the season, while Lane Hutson got his fifth. Bolduc has scored all four of his goals on the road this season.
It was a scoreless second period, but mostly due to Dobes’s heroics. The Canadiens landed in the penalty box three times, and the Flames fired 18 shots on Dobes (to Montreal’s nine), but the young netminder turned them all aside.
On to the third period, where Wolf kept it a one-goal game by making a shoestring save on Suzuki. The Habs captain later hit a post.
At 5:56 of the third period, the Flames finally solved Dobes. After a rare miscue by Noah Dobson, 6-foot-8 forward Adam Klapka stole the puck and beat his fellow countryman glove side to tie the game 1-1.
Off to overtime we went, but not before catching country music superstar Shania Twain enjoying the goaltending duel with a glass of vino.
For the overtime winner, it’s all about Demidov and his incredible patience waiting for a seam to open up. He found his man in Matheson and the veteran scored his second of the season to steal an extra point from Wolf and the Flames.
With the game teetering on the brink in the third, Suzuki came up large with two scoring chances and a key penalty kill. He topped Hockey Stat Cards’ postgame report card. The first line failed to convert at even strength, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Slafkovsky has played with an edge all October and that continued last night. Josh Anderson is snakebit this October, but he’s starting to get his chances.
Thanks to the Hockey Inside Out YouTube commenters for sticking around for a late one, made all the later thanks to a technical issue with the lights that delayed puck drop. They haven’t given up on Sam Montembeault and expect him to be in nets against the tougher Edmonton Oilers tomorrow, but they’re also for riding the hot hand, who happens to be Dobes at the moment.
The commenters are still worried about the second period swoons that keep happening. They’re also amazed at Demidov’s talent level. There are things he can do with the puck that most players simply can’t.
Here’s what they had to say about last night:
3. “Needed that one. Wasn’t pretty but with Oilers on second end of back to back this is the one that had to be a victory…” — Justin Miller
2. “Before tonight Mtl had 5 players tied with 11 hits: Xhekaj, Matheson, Bolduc, Anderson……. and…………………………….. Cole Caufield” — Steven Greidanus
1. “The Habs season starts tomorrow with Edm. The next 13 games the Habs can’t afford this style of play against the teams they’re scheduled to play.” — Rick Woods