Say what you will about the Canadiens and the inconsistent ride they’ve taken their fans on through the early portion of the season.
But when the Canadiens stink, they generally follow an inferior performance with a solid effort.
Last week, after losing 7-2 at the Bell Centre to a very good New York Rangers club, the Canadiens rebounded with two consecutive victories.
This week, after being blown out 8-2 by the Seattle Kraken — not considered an upper-echelon team — Montreal went into Capital One Arena Thursday night and battled the surging Washington Capitals even through two periods before the roof fell in during the third, the Caps scoring two goals in 36 seconds for a 6-3 win.
News you need (Part I): The Capitals have allowed the fewest shots per game in the NHL, an average of 25.1. Therefore, it should come as no surprise Washington held the Canadiens to only 16 shots, including just four in the third period.
News you need (Part II): The Caps’ five-game home winning streak is the first time they’ve accomplished that since 2019.
History lesson (Part I): You might remember Capitals starting goaltender Charlie Lindgren launched his NHL career with the Canadiens, signing as a free agent in March 2016. He won his debut a week later at Carolina. Lindren spent five unremarkable seasons in the organization, going 10-12-2 in 24 starts. But he also produced two shutouts, a not-terrible 3.00 average and highly respectable .907 save percentage. He’s now 3-1 against his former team.
The drought is over: The home team opened the scoring with a power-play goal from thug Tom Wilson at 3:21 of the second period. It ended a 0-for-22 skid with the man advantage over the last six games.
History lesson (Part II): The Caps last season went a full month, beginning Oct. 29, without scoring a power-play goal despite 34 manpower advantages. Nonetheless, Washington made the playoffs on the final night of the regular season. Go figure.
News you need (Part III): Cole Caufield — who else — scored the Canadiens’ opening goal, midway through the second period, on the power play. Caufield now has scored in four consecutive games. With 10 goals in 11 games he should be good for about 80 this season, give or take.
Not just a scorer: You’re probably aware that Washington captain Alex Ovechkin, prematurely grey at age 39, needs 37 goals to pass Wayne Gretzky and become the NHL’s all-time career leader. But with two assists against the Canadiens, he has 702 of those as well. Oh yeah, Ovechkin scored the Caps’ sixth and final goal, his fifth this season and 858th of his illustrious career.
We’re noticing a trend here: Pierre-Luc Dubois, on an annual basis rumoured to be on his way to the Canadiens, is now on his fourth NHL team — Washington — after originally being selected third overall by Columbus in 2016. He also has played for Winnipeg and Los Angeles.
Dumb penalty (Part I):Juraj Slafkovsky, in the offensive zone, was called for holding Trevor van Riemsdyk after getting away with a hook moments earlier in the first period.
Dumb penalty (Part II): Connor McMichael, at the end of the same period, for high-sticking on Kaiden Guhle.
Dumb penalty (Part III): Wilson tripped Kirby Dach in the third period, leaving Washington two men short for 1:35. The Canadiens, however, generated only one shot.
Not a dumb penalty: Wilson — that guy again — delivered a devastating hit on Guhle in the third period, targeting his shoulder upon the defenceman’s return to the lineup. Josh Anderson immediately sought retribution, not only fighting Wilson and earning a roughing minor, but dropping him with a lovely punch. Both players received fighting majors.
Freak of nature: Washington forward Aliaksei Poitras, who had a goal and assist, is a mere 6-foot-6. The Belarusian weighs a healthy 225 pounds and is a big reason — no pun intended — why the Caps’ average size is 6-foot-2 and 201 pounds.
Last shot wins: Four second-period goals came in a span of 2:47.
Momentum, schmomentum (Part I): A mere 74 seconds after Brendan Gallagher gave the Canadiens a 2-1 second-period lead, Brandon Duhaime tied the score.
Momentum, schmomentum (Part II):Nick Suzuki scored a late second-period goal, lifting the visitors into a 3-3 tie. That in itself should have provided the Canadiens with a spark. Did we mention Montreal generated four shots in the third?
He’ll sleep well: Periods last 20 minutes — and Canadiens defenceman Mike Matheson played more than half of it (10:19) in the first. He finished with a tiring 27:46.
With friends like this, who needs enemies: Christian Dvorak, yet to score this season, decided to throw the puck out front of his own net. It was intercepted by Jakub Vrana for Washington’s third goal at 12:39 of the second period.
News you need (Part IV): We’ll go out on a limb and suggest the Canadiens have some defensive shortcomings. Montreal has now allowed 26 goals in its last five games.
Just wondering: With a 4-6-1 record following the first month, are the Canadiens still “in the mix?”
Quick stats: Despite Anderson’s heroics, he was a minus-3. Jake Evans, Matheson, Guhle, Jayden Struble and Justin Barron all were minus-2. Lane Hutson and David Savard were both plus-1. Struble had three of Montreal’s 16 shots. With 28 stops, Cayden Primeau’s save percentage was .824.
They said it: “The first two periods we were playing well,” Suzuki told the media in Washington post-game. “We put ourselves in a good position.”
“We had a pretty good 40 minutes,” Gallagher said. “Then we came out in the third and just didn’t play the same way. We just have to find the answers. You get that through work. It’s disappointing for sure. We’re going through some things right now. The frustrating thing is it’s repeating mistakes by all of us. Once again we’re sitting here disappointed we lost a game. It felt like we handed it to them. We’re disappointed by the mistakes we made on our end.”