We thought we’d seen this movie before, but on this night there was a plot twist not even we could have envisioned.
Yeah, Jakub Dobes won again. Ho hum. The Canadiens’ goaltender became the first NHL player at that position to start the season with a 6-0 record, as Montreal ended its four-game road trip with a 4-3 overtime victory against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena.
It appeared in the third period that Dobes might record his first shutout this season and the second of his career. Instead, he proved to be human after all, allowing three goals in less than 10 minutes on the 15th, 19th and 20th shots he faced.
His save percentage was a pedestrian .857 against Seattle. Dobes allows too many rebounds and is no Johnny Bench with his glove hand. Kids, ask your grandparents who Bench, now 77, is.
While Dobes continues to win, which is all that matters, we have a feeling head coach Martin St. Louis might return to veteran Sam Montembeault Saturday night at home against Ottawa. Montembeault, who has struggled, played only once on the road trip and is due.
If only every game were this quick: The opening faceoff was at 7:38 p.m. PDT. The winning goal was at 10:05 p.m. It was late in Montreal, but still ended nearly two hours earlier than the 18-inning marathon the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers played the night before in Game 3 of the World Series.
News you need (Part I): Cole Caufield – who else – scored in overtime. It was his second goal of the game, ninth this season, third game-winner and 11th career tally in overtime, a franchise record.
News you need (Part II): It was Seattle’s first loss at home this season in four games. A victory would have matched the team’s longest home winning streak in franchise history.
News you need (Part III): Nick Suzuki had three assists against Seattle and is now on a 10-game point streak.
News you need (Part IV): It was the 100th multi-point game of Suzuki’s career.
News you need (Part V): With an assist on the winning goal, Lane Hutson has a five-game point streak.
News you need (Part VI): Canadiens defenceman Alexandre Carrier had a team-high four blocks, increasing his total to 29 this season.
News you need (Part VII): The Canadiens are now 4-0 in overtime this season.
Strange but true: The teams met for the second time in two weeks. The Canadiens won that night in overtime as well. They won’t meet again until next season, unless it’s in the Stanley Cup final.
He’ll miss playing the Canadiens: Seattle defenceman Brandon Montour had two goals and an assist. He has scored eight goals and 21 points in 21 games against Montreal.
Just call me Mike: We’re not quite sure why TSN commentator Craig Button insists on calling Canadiens defenceman Michael Matheson, repeatedly. What are we missing?
Mission accomplished: Juraj Slafkovsky had only one goal through his first 18 games last season. When he made it 2-0 late in the opening period, it was his fifth goal in 11 games. And with only one assist, he’s in the running for the Cy Young Award. Honourable mention to Caufield, at 9-4.
Pass of the night: Caufield to Slafkovsky.
What kind of a name is Climate Pledge Arena?: Sounds like a furniture polish to us.
It was like watching paint dry: Seattle was held to five shots in both the first and second periods. The teams combined for only 22 shots through 40 minutes. At least the third period provided some entertainment.
Random thought of the night: He produced only one assist, but this might have been Kirby Dach’s best game of the season.
Shoot the f—in’ puck: Early in the third period, the Canadiens had a two-on-one break. Ivan Demidov was in perfect position to test goalie Joey Daccord. Instead, he attempted a pass to Oliver Kapanen that was broken up by Montour. Demidov took only one shot — his 10th this season.
Dumb penalty: Jaden Schwartz tripped Hutson behind the Canadiens’ net in the third period. Alex Newhook scored on the ensuing power play, giving Montreal a 3-0 lead.
If looks could kill: St. Louis glared at Jayden Struble when he returned to the bench in the third period. Seattle scored its first goal while Struble was serving a hooking penalty. Before taking the penalty, Struble attempted an ill-advised play at his blueline rather than sending the puck deep into the zone.
Hit of the night: Dach, 6-foot-4 and 221 pounds, annihilated Ben Meyers, 5-foot-11 and 194 pounds, behind the net in the third period.
Quick stats: Caufield had five shots. Slafkovsky and Noah Dobson each had three shots. Dach, Struble, Joe Veleno and Jake Evans each had three hits. Evans went minus-2. Matheson blocked three shots while playing 27:05. The Canadiens won 61.2 per cent of their faceoffs but were outhit, 22-18.
They said it: “We jump out to a 3-0 lead in the third and kind of let them hang around long enough for them to get the power-play goal and get some momentum,” Suzuki told the media in Seattle. “We couldn’t stop the bleeding until the overtime. That’s something we’ve got to clean up.
“He (Caufield) wants the puck on his stick in those overtime moments,” Suzuki added. “He knows he can score from anywhere in any situation.”
“Up three, you never want to lose that lead,” Caufield told reporters in Seattle. “But when that happens, you can’t break. There’s obviously some things we can clean up in the last 10. But for sure it feels good to end this road trip with a win. It’s hard to play a perfect 60.”
“It was just a bad play,” Struble said in Seattle. “I should have put the puck deep and lived to fight another day. I thought I had a good game until then. It was a little mishap, a brain fart. We found a way to win, which is huge.”
“I thought we played pretty good,” Slafkovsky said in Seattle. “We’re all happy and can’t wait to go home.”
“We haven’t had a lot of ‘up three goals with 10 minutes to go’,” St. Louis said in Seattle. “The other team plays differently down three and down one. We have to understand that. There’s not one action that can’t snowball things. Every play matters. Every decision matters.”
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