The Montreal Canadiens kept the good run rolling Saturday night, but they had to sweat for it.
After building a 3-0 cushion against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal watched the game tighten fast when Toronto scored twice in 55 seconds in the third period. Still, the Canadiens steadied themselves, got a key insurance goal, and then survived a double-minor penalty in the final minutes to leave with a 4-2 win.
That result fit the shape of the night: Montreal looked like the team on the rise, while Toronto played like a club trying to stop the slide. The Canadiens came in having won six of their last seven, and they backed that up early by jumping on the Maple Leafs right away.
Alex Newhook set the tone with a pair of first-period goals. He opened the scoring about six minutes in, then struck again roughly seven minutes later to make it 2-0.
Newhook isn’t usually the first name people circle for finishing, but he’s been finding the net in bunches lately. When he scores once, another one often seems to follow.
His role has bounced around this season. At one point he was filling in for Nick Suzuki on the top line, and more recently he’s been on the fourth line with Kirby Dach and Oliver Kapanen.
That trio has been productive over the last two games, combining for seven points, and Newhook’s flexibility has made him a useful piece for Martin St. Louis.
Montreal also got help from Toronto’s mistakes, especially from Gavin McKenna. The first overall pick from the most recent NHL Draft had a rough night with the puck, and the Canadiens made him pay twice.
His first turnover came when he failed to clear the puck cleanly, allowing Newhook to steal it and finish the play past Sergei Bobrovsky. Later, McKenna tried to move the puck across his own zone, and Chris Kreider jumped the route for a breakaway and buried it for his third goal of the season.
McKenna did get one back in the third period, but the damage had already been done. It was still a night defined by those two costly giveaways.
Then came the tense part.
For the second time in three games, Montreal entered the third period with at least a three-goal lead. The last time that happened, against the Winnipeg Jets, it ended badly.
This time, the Maple Leafs made it uncomfortable again by scoring twice in under a minute to pull within one midway through the period. The first came on a power play after what looked like a questionable call on Arber Xhekaj, and Nylander finished that chance for Toronto.
McKenna followed with the next goal to make it a one-goal game.
Montreal answered, though. Zack Bolduc scored on the power play to restore a two-goal edge, and that proved to be the cushion the Canadiens needed.
They still had to finish the game short-handed after Juraj Slafkovsky was called for a double minor for high-sticking, leaving Montreal on the penalty kill for the final 3:33. But Fowler made the saves he had to make, the skaters in front of him did their job, and Toronto never found the opening it needed.
In the end, the Canadiens got the win they wanted - and a reminder that even when a game gets messy, they’ve got enough to close it out.
In Other News...
Canadiens Face One Big Kucherov Question Fans Wont Ignore
Nikita Kucherovs trade request out of Tampa Bay has already become one of the summers most intriguing leaguewide storylines, and Montreal has naturally found its way into the conversation. With the winger entering the final year of his contract, the Lightning are in control of the process for now, which means any serious pursuit would have to navigate both Tampa Bays asking price and a market that figures to heat up quickly.
The Canadiens have been mentioned as a possible suitor, which alone is enough to get attention in Montreal given the kind of impact a player like Kucherov would have. But this is still very much a speculative situation, and the reality is that several teams are expected to be in the mix while the Lightning decide how to handle the trade process. For Canadiens fans, it is the kind of name worth watching closely, even if the road to a deal remains anything but simple. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Suddenly Have Fans Watching Detroit For One Big Reason
Jeff Gortons reported trip to Detroit has given Canadiens fans a new team to monitor, and for good reason. The Montreal executives presence in the city has fueled fresh chatter around the Red Wings, with speculation tying the Canadiens to two players who would instantly draw attention if the rumor mill ever turned into something more concrete.
The names floating around are Dylan Larkin and Simon Edvinsson, but the rest is still very much in the rumor stage. Edvinsson is reportedly seeking a trade, while Larkin may be open to broadening his options, yet there has been no confirmation of talks or even a meeting between Gorton and Detroit officials, which leaves the whole situation hanging in the kind of uncertainty that usually keeps fans refreshing their feeds. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Finally Have Hope On Key Injuries Including Demidov
The Canadiens got a small but meaningful sign of progress on the injury front this week, with Ivan Demidov, Samuel Montembeault and Mike Matheson all taking part in on-ice recovery sessions as they work their way back. For a team that has been waiting on key pieces to get healthy, seeing that trio back on skates at least nudges the picture in a better direction and gives Montreal a little more reason to believe help is coming.
Demidovs return had already been pushed beyond the original target date, and the earliest realistic window now points to mid-November. The bigger takeaway for the Canadiens is that all three players appear to be moving toward a return before the end of the month, which would give Martin St. Louis more flexibility in a stretch where every lineup decision has mattered. [Read more 🡒]