The Canadiens are coming off a decent four-game road trip, but knowing it could have been more successful.
With four points accumulated out of a possible eight — thanks to a win and two overtime losses — it could be argued Montreal merely spun its wheels on the excursion, making no progress, but also not falling further behind.
But veteran forward Brendan Gallagher doesn’t see it that way. He continues to believe and maintain Montreal has every opportunity to make the playoffs for the first time since their improbable 2021 run to the Stanley Cup final.
“It’s never an easy road trip. Obviously, you’re playing good teams that are fighting for playoff spots and positioning,” Gallagher said following the team’s noon practice at the CN Sports Complex in Brossard. “Would we have loved to pick up a couple more points? Absolutely. But we’re still in a good spot here.
“We come home right where we want to be. We have to embrace the challenge and enjoy the opportunity that comes with it.”
The Canadiens (31-27-7, 69 points ) awoke Friday morning one point behind Columbus for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. The New York Rangers are tied with the Blue Jackets, but have played one more game. Detroit, one point behind Montreal, was at Carolina on Friday night.
The Canadiens have 17 games remaining, including nine at home, beginning Saturday, when they host Florida, the defending Cup champions (7 p.m., City, SNE, TVA Sports, TSN Radio-690, 98.5 FM). The Panthers (41-22-3) are first in the Atlantic Division and are coming off a 3-2 victory at Toronto on Thursday.
This is the second of four meetings between the teams, with the Canadiens secure in the knowledge they blanked Florida 4-0 on the road Dec. 28, in the NHL debut of goaltender Jakub Dobes. Dobes will back up Samuel Montembeault this time, but Joel Armia will return to the lineup. He missed Wednesday’s 5-4 overtime loss at Seattle with an upper-body injury.
“We’ve got some teams we’re familiar with coming into our building,” Gallagher said. “You’re going to see the intensity level pick up here as we get closer to the end of the season. It’s critical for everyone. These are fun games to play in. Obviously, we want to be sharp and on top of our game. Embrace the challenge. Embrace the opportunity. You want to be here. You can’t be afraid of the moment. It’s one of those things you’ve got to have fun with. We know how to play.”
The Canadiens and Columbus would be tied had Montreal not squandered a two-goal third-period lead against the Kraken. But with the game seemingly in control, rookie Jani Nyman, making his NHL debut, gave Seattle a life with a power-play goal at 10:53. Then, following a late tripping penalty against David Savard, Matty Beniers tied the score at 17:48 with Kraken goalie Joey Daccord removed for an extra attacker, providing Seattle with a two-man advantage.
“It’s weird to say. I think the third period might have been our best period,” Gallagher said. “Once we got the lead we were playing pretty good hockey. We were kind of flat-lining and we just took some penalties. They made us pay. It’s obviously frustrating when you’re up by two that late in the game, especially knowing how critical points are.”
It took Seattle only four seconds into overtime — an NHL record — for Brandon Montour to score the winner, although he clearly jumped past Lane Hutson before the puck was dropped.
“It was a pretty smart play by Montour,” Gallagher said. “His centre is winning it the other way. There’s not a ton of risk in him cheating it and jumping the other way and anticipating the play. He obviously timed it up really well. The puck bounced perfectly for him and he took advantage.
“Everyone cheats on faceoffs. If you’re not cheating on faceoffs, you’re not playing the game right.”
Gallagher realizes the importance of depth scoring down the stretch. He understands the team can’t continue relying on Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky — the Canadiens’ top line — doing the heavy lifting. Joshua Roy, recalled this week from AHL Laval, knows he must contribute. Roy had 20 goals and 35 points in 46 games for the Rocket after playing four games with Montreal between Nov. 26 and Dec. 1.
“I think I have the right mindset to come here and help the team make a spot in the playoffs,” Roy said. “That’s my main goal. For sure, I was hoping for a call.”
To nobody’s great surprise, forward Josh Anderson (therapy day) was excused from Friday’s practice. Anderson played his 600th career game at Seattle.