This edition of the Hidden Game is dedicated to Ethen Frank and his never-say-die attitude.
The Washington Capitals’ forward made his NHL debut Friday night at age 26 against the Canadiens at Capital One Arena. The right-winger has spent portions of four seasons in the minors and did win consecutive AHL championships with the Hershey Bears.
Fleet of foot and a natural offensively, Frank has scored 80 goals in 161 games with the Bears, including 20 this season in 35 games. You don’t have to be a math genius to figure out that’s a magnificent ratio. But the Canadiens held Frank without a goal in their 3-2 overtime victory — their third straight win and ninth in 11 games. Frank made amends for a second-period tripping penalty, drawing an assist on Lars Eller’s tying goal early in the third.
Score Round One to the kid: The more we see of Canadiens rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes, the more we like the Czech Republic native, now undefeated in his first three NHL games. Dobes was nearly unflappable after allowing a goal by defenceman Jakob Chychrun early in the first period. Not only that, Dobes didn’t allow Russian sniper Alex Ovechkin to score his 873rd career goal as he continues to chase NHL career goal leader Wayne Gretzky, who retired with 894 goals.
Given his 6-foot-4, 215-pound stature, Dobes reminds us of Ken Dryden. Kids, ask your grandfathers to explain. But trust us on this: Dryden was exceptional. Dobes has stopped 71 of 74 shots over three games.
Third time the charm: The Capitals had twice defeated Montreal this season, outscoring them 10-5 in the process.
How things have changed: When these teams last met on Dec. 7 at the Bell Centre, the Canadiens were the fourth-worst NHL club, sitting at 10-14-3. Now, they’re in the mix for a playoff berth as they reached the halfway mark of the regular season.
News you need (Part I): Chychrun’s goal was Washington’s sixth power-play tally in as many games.
News you need (Part II): Chychrun’s goal was the 21st this season by a Capitals defenceman. The team’s blueliners scored 20 all of last season.
News you need (Part III): The next goal produced by Joel Armia will be the 100th of his career — and he came close against Washington. In the game’s seventh minute, while the Canadiens were shorthanded, he was denied on a breakaway. In the last minute of the second period, he broke in alone down the right side, only to again be stopped.
And this is why he’s good: After Dobes allowed a goal slightly less than three minutes into the game, he made a brilliant pad save on Tom Wilson in the sixth minute.
Animal Farm: After taking a tripping penalty barely two minutes into the game, Michael Pezzetta was benched by head coach Martin St. Louis, limited to two shifts totalling 55 seconds in the period. Look, we understand the dynamics at work here. Pezzetta is only playing because Patrik Laine remains sidelined with flu-like symptoms. And Pezzetta is fortunate if he gets six minutes of ice time most games. But we have seen other Montreal players wet the bed this season, yet haven’t missed a shift.
On the other hand, defenceman Jayden Struble also was benched in the third period after taking a pair of penalties. Maybe St. Louis has decided to rule with an iron fist as his team continues to improve?
Dumb penalty: Pierre-Luc Dubois, late in the first period, for hooking Mike Matheson in the offensive zone.
Dummy award of the night: Early in the second period, Brandon Duhaime shoved Nick Suzuki into goalie Charlie Lindgren. Not long after, Lindgren had to be replaced by Logan Thompson.
News you need (Part IV): Cole Caufield’s team-leading 23rd goal this season, nearly five minutes into the second period, not only tied the score at 1-1, it gave him five-game goal streak.
Game of inches: Caufield hit the crossbar not long after.
News you need (Part V): Caufield now has 16 goals on the road, tied for the NHL lead with Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl.
Quick learner: When these teams met in December, the Canadiens were thwarted on numerous breakaways by Thompson. But Josh Anderson provided Montreal with a 2-1 lead at 13:22 of the second period while Montreal was shorthanded — beating Thompson to the glove side with a backhand on a breakaway. It was Anderson’s first goal in 10 games.
News you need (Part VI): The Canadiens have now scored five shorthanded goals this season.
Speed kills: Frank beat Arber Xhekaj to a potential icing call early in the third period before setting up Eller. It was the Capitals’ first shot of the period and only their 11th in the game. When Washington defeated Vancouver in overtime on Wednesday, it produced only 13 shots in regulation.
News you need (Part VII): The Canadiens are now 20-18-3. Last season following 41 games, their record was 17-18-6.
Quick stats: Both Caufield and Suzuki had six shots. Pezzetta had six shifts and 3:05 ice time. Struble was on the ice for only 5:09. Matheson, conversely, played 27:27.
They said it: “It feels good to get a win in this barn,” Suzuki told the media in Washington post-game. “When they scored to tie it, we still felt comfortable.”
“I made a couple plays. Those guys don’t want to score when I pass to them,” Juraj Slafkovsky quipped to journalists in Washington. “I was skating a little better, but I can still be more physical. We’re pretty confident. You get a couple wins and it’s just fun. Everybody around the team’s happy. It’s easier to come to the rink. We trust ourselves way more than we did before. It’s a good spot where we are right now.”
“As long as we stay out of the (penalty) box I feel like we’re a really good team,” Dobes told reporters in Washington. “When we took one point, I was pretty happy. When we took two, I was thrilled. It was a good game today.
“It was a dream come true,” Dobes added about facing Ovechkin. “He’s an unbelievable player. I’m just fortunate to share the ice with him. Our goal was to take him away. Sometimes the hockey gods are on your side.”
“We have a lot of buy-in in our process,” St. Louis said. “This last little while we’ve given ourselves a chance every game. I feel like we’re harder to play against.”