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Winless against the Minnesota Wild since 2019, the Montreal Canadiens enjoyed the return of Kirby Dach to the lineup on Tuesday and the top line wing slot, replacing a day-to-day Alexandre Texier. Jakub Dobes also returned to the lineup in his first start in nearly a week. Dobes showed signs of rust, as his desperation saves were indeed desperate, but also resilience when the Wild came back in the third period. He did not crumble or look shaken, perhaps even more important for the skaters in front of him.
Dach also looked rusty and had some giveaways in different areas of the rink. Jumping back into a playoff atmosphere, it is understandable that some seasoning is needed before he can make an impact. Guhle appeared to have gotten a bit more of that seasoning, as he held his gaps all night and closed off numerous rushes into the Canadiens’ zone. Caufield, Hutson, and Demidov were the stars at home, delivering clutch, skillful performances for a home crowd that cannot wait to see their squad back on the ice on Thursday.
Habs Lineup
Cole Caufield — Nick Suzuki — Kirby Dach
Juraj Slafkovsky – Oliver Kapanen — Ivan Demidov
Zachary Bolduc – Phillip Danault – Josh Anderson
Samuel Blais – Joe Veleno — Brendan Gallagher
Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson Lane Hutson – Jayden Struble
Kaiden Guhle – Arber Xhekaj
Jakub Dobes
10 Thoughts
1) Suzuki, Caufield, and Dach opened the game to an ovation from the fans and a Minnesota team that had played the evening before. Montreal started with energy and jumped all over the bottom of the Wild’s lineup. Demidov walked Yakov Trenin in the slot before moving the puck to Slafkovsky and forcing Jesper Wallstedt to burn an excellent sliding save to his left. Montreal kept up the pressure through the next few minutes of game time, however, they found a number of their zone entries stymied by Jesper Wallstedt’s superior puckhandling. After nearly eight minutes had expired, Demidov and Kapanen were able to blow the zone after a giveaway by Minnesota below the Montreal blue line. Demidov carried the puck in and delivered a beautiful toe-drag around the sliding defender but Kapanen had nowhere to go with the puck on the back door once Demidov finally got it to his stick.
2) Brock Faber drew a minor penalty against Danault when the centreman slashed into his hands as he pursued Faber in the Wild’s slot. The Canadiens had their feet moving and the forecheck was pushing the Wild defenders on the edges, and Faber was also deep into his shift. The defender went down as a result of the “slashing” stick that stayed on Faber’s stick and pushed downwards. The penalty killers were only on the ice for 15 seconds. Vladimir Tarasenko ripped a one-timer high in the slot past Dobes to put the Wild up halfway through the first period. After winning the faceoff, Quinn Hughes moved the puck briefly around the top of the umbrella before dumping off to Zuccarello in the bumper position. Tarasenko shifted slightly and drifted into the open ice facing Dobes, Carrier did not get in the lane completely, and Montreal’s crowd was quieted for the time being.
3) Returning from a TV timeout, Gallagher, Danault, and Anderson all got in on the returning players’ goal to tie the game at one. The Habs forced a turnover with their forecheck, Gallagher picking off a loose puck and got it back to Guhle. Guhle passed the puck down to Anderson at the top of the circle, whose heavy shot produced a rebound that dropped in front of Wallstedt. Danault banged the puck through his legs and got the Canadiens on the board with his first goal of the season.
4) Moments later as the goal was still being announced, Dach drew Montreal’s first penalty of the game from Minnesota. Ryan Hartman and Dach were below the goal line in the Habs zone when Dach jumped on a loose puck in the corner. Hartman chopped down on his stick and hand area, Dach collapsed, and the Habs went on the power play. They won the faceoff but couldn’t control and had to circle back and reenter the zone. Over the course of four passes, Montreal had the defenders sprawling. As usual with the top unit, they elected to continue to pass the puck around the Wild defenders instead of attempting to shoot it through. The second unit fared little better in their penetration, and the power play expired with no meaningful shots and the momentum lost along with the puck as it crossed back into their zone on Kirill Kaprizov’s stick. After dashing into Minnesota’s zone during a change, Carrier circled around the net and put the puck on Demidov’s stick at the halfwall. Demidov sent it pack to the point for Matheson, who wasted no time in sending it towards the net at high velocity. Carrier’s route back to his assignment took him directly through the middle of the slot, where he slapped his stick on the ice and sent a perfect deflection over Wallstedt’s shoulder to give the Habs the lead late in the first.
5) Montreal looked to keep the iron hot as the team clashed at the start of the second period. Dach had an early egregious giveaway that ended in nothing, but Montreal otherwise dominated play and possession, reaching a crescendo of an 18-5 shot differential. Minnesota then turned up their own effort dial and got their legs moving, demonstrated by a dangerous cross-seam pass from Quinn Hughes to Ryan Hartman and the ensuing shot that Dobes saved with his face. Brock Faber put an exclamation point on Minnesota’s push when he sent a long shot from the blue line through wafer-thin coverage from Dobes to tie the game.
6) Demidov and Hutson connected for a spectacular goal to re-establish the lead for the home team, enabled by the bruising defensive play of Struble. Minnesota’s forwards were pushing through the neutral zone when Struble pushed off the puck carrier at his own blue line, creating the turnover and sending it back up the ice. Montreal gained the zone, and Demidov got it low in the zone before cutting into the slot. He hit Struble as he entered, but Struble’s shot was blocked by a sliding Ben Jones. Struble got the puck back before Jones could knock it away, curled inside the circle to the boards, and sent it back to Demidov at the top of the slot. Demidov held the puck, froze in the shooting position for a full second, then sent another no-look pass across his body, sheathing his stick with the pass to Hutson near the goal line. Hutson blasted his ninth of the season past Wallstedt and whipped the Bell Centre into a frenzy again.
7) Hartman earned his second penalty of the night when he interfered with Nick Suzuki in the neutral zone. He clipped Suzuki with his hip as both were vying for a high-arcing puck coming from the Minnesota end. Unfortunately for hockey fans, referees, and both teams on the ice, Lane Hutson was then rung up on the worst call of the season. As the top unit was entering the Wild’s zone, Marcus Foligno was skating backwards and then toe-picked. Eric Furlatt’s hand went up, but he was the only person in the entire building who believed there was a valid call on the ice. Once the replay was shown, the chants rained down from the crowd onto the officiating crew. Why has the NHL decided to allow the Officials Union to keep any changes to the hiring structure and training process insulated? Why do officials never have to answer questions from the press? Why, why, why has the NHL and officials dug their heels in and refuse to implement some form of expedited review process and/or the ability to fix a call in the moment if it is obscenely wrong? We will likely never know.
8) At 4:45 of the third period, Furlatt “redeemed” himself with an extra-delayed tripping call to the benefit of the Canadiens. Suzuki was inside his own blue line when he feet were taken out by a sliding Nico Sturm. Caufield, Hutson, and Demidov played catch around the perimeter during two zone entries and possessions, but the Wild’s tight system gave nothing away and the penalty expired without any shots on net or any solidifying of Montreal’s lead. Both teams continued to exchange glancing chances and tentative rushes to the outside of coverage, neither willing to overextend for an offensive chance.
9) With 10 minutes remaining in the third, Lane was again called for a penalty that never seemed to actually occur. While battling in front of Dobes, Hutson and Trenin both fell while leaning on each other. Unfortunately for the diminutive defender, the referees couldn’t possibly believe that Hutson got position, and so off to the box for “hooking” he went. The penalty killers held firm and fast, Dobes being called upon for a sprawling cross-crease save when Mats Zuccarello’s shot deflected into the feet of Kaprizov on the back door. Matheson was then called for tripping Zuccarello in front of the net while trying to get to a loose puck, and the Habs went down by two skaters for the next 40 seconds. Dobes shut the door on a short-side jam, but just as the first penalty to Hutson expired, Tarasenko was able to bank the puck off a diving Dobes’ arm and tie the game on the power play.
10) With 15 seconds left, lightning struck in the Bell Centre. The Habs had been buzzing and got a half dozen chances in the dwindling minutes of the third period. Montreal would win a faceoff or scrum off the draw, get the puck back to the point, then pound it on net. Wallstedt had been consistently swallowing up pucks from the point without issue, and overtime looked inevitable as the Wild kept the chances to the outside and did not push the pace if they were able to clear the puck. With around 30 seconds left, Suzuki curled into the zone and protected the puck into the Wild corner to Wallstedt’s left. He established some space from the defender and sent the puck to the point for Hutson. Hutson walked the line towards the middle and chopped the puck back to Suzuki, who had now curled all the way up to the empty ice between the curve of the circle and the half wall. In a half second, Suzuki spied Caufield in the soft coverage and laid a pass right to him. Caufield turned and fired immediately, slamming the puck into the top shelf and getting the Habs a go-ahead goal without having to worry about 3-on-3 overtime. Montreal received a well-deserved standing ovation for another win, and now they look ahead to a crucial four-point game on Thursday against the Sabres.
HabsWorld Habs 3 Stars
1st Star – Lane Hutson
Hutson was the facilitator of offense for Montreal once more, his two points coming at pivotal moments for the Canadiens. His engine never shut off or slowed down, and even though the Habs played with the lead, Hutson led the defensive corps with his tenacious play in his own zone to recover loose pucks and outlet the offense. Moreover, how many more times are you looking forward to Demidov at the top of the umbrella and Hutson lurking near the goal line?!
Stats: 1 goal, 1 assist, +2, 2 shots, 4 PIMS, 19:29 T.O.I
2nd Star – Ivan Demidov
The Demi Show was on again in Montreal, as the young phenomenal Russian winger dazzled the home crowd with dangles in the slot, lighting spins and cutbacks low in the zone, and alarming no-look passes. Demidov’s poise has been growing over the course of his rookie campaign, and it was on display nowhere better than his feed to Hutson. As he grows, his play will only further develop and enhance the play of those the coaches choose to benefit from him. The only question really is: will Montreal be able to afford him in two years?
Stats: 2 assists, +1, 3 shots, 1 hit, 15:07 T.O.I.
3rd Star – Brendan Gallagher
In my opinion, Gallagher had not only his best-looking performance of the season, but also his most engaged. He was tenacious on every loose puck in his vicinity, and even crossed the length of the zone to crash and bang some bodies, often knocking the puck out into the open in the process. His pace in the game put him in positions to make key plays, especially on those that maintained the Habs’ momentum or cut into Minnesota’s. With 10 minutes left, Gallagher was able to keep pace on the backcheck and cover Struble’s man. He got body position and held it, himself between the net and the Minnesota forward, killing the play.
Stats: +1, 2 shots, 1 hit, 11:55 T.O.I.
