Rookie netminder Jakub Dobes improved his record to start his career to 4-0 in a 3-1 Montreal Canadiens win over the Dallas Stars on Thursday night at American Airlines Center.
Dobes made 32 saves. His save percentage now stands at .963 on the season, and his goals-against-average stood firm at just under a goal-per-game. He came up large in the second and third periods, where the Habs were doubled up in shots 26-13.
With the win, the Canadiens improved their record over the last 14 games to a league-best 11-2-1. The Habs also avenged a 2-1 shootout loss against these same Stars less than a week ago.
Joel Armia scored his 100th career goal on a night where he was a beast on the penalty kill and delivered eight hits.
Jason Robertson opened scoring for the Stars just 3:50 into the first period. That would be the last blemish on Dobes all night.
Less than a minute later, Cole Caufield undressed two Dallas defenders and found Juraj Slafkovsky all alone in front. Slaf scored his fifth of the season to tie the game 1-1. It was Slafkovsky’s first goal in 10 games. Montreal outshot Dallas 11-7 in the opening frame. Nick Suzuki got the other helper.
In the second period, the Habs hung on for dear life. Things didn’t change much to start the third period, but they did emerge with the lead.
With 10:45 left in the third, the Habs took advantage of an icing call. Alex Newhook won the ensuing draw in the Dallas end, Lane Hutson fired from the point and Newhook beat Joel Oettinger on the deflection for his eighth of the campaign. The officials went upstairs, but determined it wasn’t a high stick. Habs up 2-1. Hutson extended his point-scoring streak to six. He’s got 10 points in his last six games.
Joel Armia capped off one of his best games of the season with a 3-1 insurance marker in an empty net for his milestone goal.
While Armia got his deserved accolades, the night belonged to Dobes. The 23-year-old freshman goalie continues to look unfazed against top-tier opponents: he’s now beaten the Florida Panthers, Colorado Avalanche, Washington Capitals and Stars. He’s giving starter Sam Montembeault some much-needed rest during this gruelling part of the calendar.
The team continues to play with ostensibly 11 forwards. Michael Pezzetta got 7 shifts in, and another trip to the box, before his night was done. The Habs are returning home to play a pair of weekend games at the Bell Centre, so now might be the time to call up a reinforcement from Laval while Emil Heineman recovers from his traffic accident.
Mike Matheson didn’t hit the scoresheet, but he was the main defensive cog with 26:57 of ice time. Kaiden Guhle and Christian Dvorak sacrificed themselves for the cause with shot blocks that left them both wincing on the bench.
After the win, the Habs are one point back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. There’s a logjam of teams vying for only a couple of chairs, and teams like the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings have also enjoyed recent winning streaks.
The Liveblog commenters are thrilled to see the Habs playing games with a playoff-like intensity midway through the season. This time last January, we were collectively refreshing Tankathon every five minutes.
3. “Armia and Dobes were my heroes tonight. Big difference from early in this year, we now have multiple game breaking players that can change a game in a heartbeat. It is so much nicer as a fan watching, when you know you are never out of it.” – Doug Kirkby
2. “Right now I can say without hesitation, we have two very dependable goalies.” – Ryan Katz
1. “I suggested this early in the season and was laughed at… but if term and $ are ok, I would re-sign Armia.” – Michael Way