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Thursday’s matchup was the last game before the trade deadline for both the Habs and Oilers and it featured two teams that could not possibly be more opposed in everything they represent heading into the game.

The Oilers were ice-cold since the 4 Nations Face-Off, but their status as a contender was not to be questioned as they had already committed to being buyers with a few moves in recent days, including finalizing a Jake Walman acquisition right after the game. Meanwhile, the Canadiens were red-hot since the break, so much so that they had rekindled the possibility of being in the playoff race for the rest of the season.

The Habs were not viewed as buyers regarding the deadline as they even surprised many when they re-signed pending free agent Jake Evans. This hinted at the possibility Montreal was going to be rather quiet in the next 24 hours and bet on themselves and their own rentals on the roster.

Unsurprisingly, the Oilers had a better game as they looked to correct their recent play. The Habs held tight through most of the four periods and likely deserved a better fate. In the end, Stuart Skinner played a huge game in the Edmonton net before Evan Bouchard was able to put home the game-winner with seven seconds left in overtime.

Considering other results for the Habs’ Eastern Conference playoff race foes, the overtime point gained in the 4-3 loss was important as most teams in action lost in regulation and the Canadiens ended the night only one point out of a playoff spot though the Ottawa Senators do have a game in hand.

Habs Lineup

Cole Caufield — Nick Suzuki — Juraj Slafkovsky
Emil Heineman – Jake Evans – Joel Armia
Brendan Gallagher – Christian Dvorak — Josh Anderson
Patrik Laine — Owen Beck — Alex Newhook 

Mike Matheson – Alexandre Carrier
Lane Hutson — Jayden Struble
Arber Xhekaj – David Savard

Samuel Montembeault 

10 Thoughts

1) The Oilers came out strong and smothered the Habs early on. Montreal weathered the storm by protecting the middle of the ice. The Habs were able to counter and get some shots off the rush which got them going. They gained momentum throughout the period. They were the better team in the second half of the frame but Skinner was excellent and the period ended 1-1 and 11-9 on shots in favour of the visitors. 

2) Just before the 10-minute mark, the Beck line got a good shift in the Edmonton zone but the players were guilty of poor puck management in there. Laine, in particular, was guilty on two occasions of forcing plays that weren’t there through the middle of the zone. The second time, it trapped Struble and Hutson. Struble reacted poorly which opened Corey Perry for a backdoor pass. The pass went through and Perry was on a partial break and the veteran completed a nifty backhand move for the game’s first goal. 

3) Things went from bad to worse for the Habs as Gallagher took a high-sticking penalty before Carrier did the same a minute later. Savard and Evans were monumental as the Canadiens were able to kill a 5-on-3 chance for one of the top power plays in the league. It was an important kill as soon after, Caufield intercepted a pass in the neutral zone.  He skated in, got a shot on Skinner, and then collected his own rebound and scored only 10 seconds after the second penalty expired. It was another beautiful goal for Caufield who had a strong first period. 

4) The second period looked much like the first in that Edmonton came out really hard and Montreal had to weather the storm. As the period moved forward, the Habs once again got better, but this time the period ended 2-2 with the Oilers having the shot advantage by a 14-7 margin which points to the fact that the visitors were not as successful getting back to being the aggressor throughout the period. 

5) The Canadiens took a rather blatant too many men penalty in the opening minute and this time, the Oilers’ potent power play made them pay. Montreal’s defenders appeared to be surprised when Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid switched spots on their advantage setup. This caused them to sit back and give Draisaitl too much time as he skated in a buried a shot by Montembeault. 

6) The Habs were able to claw back into the game and get out of the period with the score tied. This was mostly due to a Lane Hutson rush. Hutson once again attracted the attention of all the Oilers while Armia was able to get open right in the middle of the slot. Hutson delivered a perfect pass and Armia was able to release a one-timer that beat Skinner. 

7) The game was in reverse in the third as the Habs came out hard and forced the Oilers to take a penalty in the opening two minutes of the period. Unfortunately, the ensuing power play cost them momentum as Hutson tried to do a little too much and gave Mattias Janmark a breakaway. 

8) The third period was rather sloppy on both sides, but this was mostly due to both teams being overly cautious. The Habs needed the points in their playoff race, and the Oilers wanted the win to counter their recent play. The result was a cautious back-and-forth period where neither team really pushed the pace or tried to make plays up the middle. 

9) Edmonton really took over in the final five minutes. It was Montembeault’s best sequence in the game as the Habs hung on for dear life and managed to get the game to overtime. 

10) After an excellent overtime period that saw chances at both ends of the ice. But in the end, it was Bouchard who was able to evade Slafkovsky’s coverage on a rotation play. McDavid immediately took advantage of the occasion and delivered an unbelievable pass that opened Bouchard on a backdoor play for Bouchard to take advantage and beat a laterally moving Montembeault. 

HabsWorld Habs 3 Stars

1st Star – Cole Caufield 

It was interesting to see how the Edmonton coaching staff managed his star players to counter the Suzuki line. The Suzuki line is known as a play-driving line and so the Oilers countered by stacking Draisaitl and McDavid in tandem against them in the offensive zone at every chance they could. This forced Slafkovsky and Caufield to flex their defensively responsible muscle often on the night. Caufield really stood out positively in this aspect all night long, and he added his beautiful goal in the first period on top of that.  

Stats: 1 goal, +1, 5 shots, 2 hits, 20:01 T.O.I. 

2nd Star – Lane Hutson 

That’s three six-game point streaks for Hutson in his rookie season as it feels as though there is a new and different obscure record Hutson is challenging with every passing game. While Hutson wasn’t perfect on the night, his teammates bailed him out when they needed to. On the other hand, his play that opened the zone for Armia and tied the game in the second period was an absolute masterclass in manipulating the opposition’s defence to open passing lanes. The main reason he finds his name here is a rather long list of excellent defensive plays he made in this game where he used his stick, body, and brain to cut off the opposition from the puck and the Habs found themselves in the offensive zone thanks to brilliant defensive plays by Hutson. 

Stats: 1 assist, even, 20:21 T.O.I. 

3rd Star – Brendan Gallagher 

The entire Dvorak line was the most consistent for the Habs on the night. They didn’t generate a ton of scoring chances but didn’t give up much either. Gallagher was an absolute warrior on the night as he put his body on the line on multiple plays to complete plays and keep his team in the game. It’s a very unsung hero-type performance by Gallagher, but one that likely goes very noticed by teammates, especially on a night where Evans was a bit off.  

Stats: even, 2 hits, 14:35 T.O.I.