To the surprise of absolutely nobody, this edition of the Hidden Game is dedicated to the incomparable Marc-André Fleury.
The Minnesota goaltender played the final Bell Centre game of his illustrious 21-season NHL career Thursday night and might have recorded the easiest shutout of the 76 he has produced, facing only 19 shots in the Wild’s 4-0 victory against the Canadiens.
This night was all about the 40-year-old — from the time he led the Wild onto the ice for the pre-game warm-up to a thunderous ovation or when the scoreboard focused on him, apparently to his surprise, during the final notes of O Canada, sung exquisitely as usual by Cantor Gideon Zelermyer. He received another ovation in the third period when the Canadiens organization saluted him. The game had to be temporarily halted as the spectators chanted his name.
Not only was Fleury named the first star, Montreal players queued at game’s end to shake his hand.
A more perfect script couldn’t have been written, pushing Fleury’s record at the Bell Centre to 13-6-3. The Sorel-Tracy native had more than 100 family and friends in attendance, including his wife, three children, mother and sister.
Fleury has said he enjoys playing on the road, relishing the thought of having the fans against him. But on this night, they were all in his corner.
The oldest NHL player now has an 11-5-1 record this season. We’re just wondering whether Fleury worked hard enough to require a post-game shower.
Strange, but true (Part I): The Wild has a better record on the road than at home. With this victory, Minnesota improved to 20-5-3 away, but it’s only 11-12-1 at home. The Wild already has surpassed last season’s 19-win road total.
Strange, but true (Part II): When Joel Eriksson Ek was penalized for boarding at 9:15 of the third period, it provided the Canadiens’ with their first power play in two games.
Strange, but true (Part III): In 120 minutes against the Wild this season, the Canadiens failed to score a goal. When the teams met Nov. 14, in Minnesota, the Wild triumphed 3-0.
Good riddance: Minnesota improved to 18-1-0 against the Canadiens, including a nine-game winning streak since Oct. 20, 2019. The Canadiens have been outscored 37-12 over that span.
Finding a way to win: The Wild is missing leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov, who needed surgery for a lower-body injury and will be sidelined a minimum four weeks. Kaprizov has 23 goals and 52 points in 37 games and is a plus-19. The team is now 9-5-1 without him.
California dreamin’: On a four-game losing skid and quickly falling out of the mix for a potential playoff berth, this could be the perfect time for the Canadiens to get out of Dodge, with stops in Anaheim, San Jose and Los Angeles, beginning Sunday afternoon, against the Ducks.
Best NHL moustache: Our unofficial award goes to Minnesota defenceman Jake Middleton — even if it looks fake.
Stop us if you’ve heard this before: It was another slow start for the Canadiens, who didn’t register their first shot until the game’s seventh minute — one from the point by defenceman Lane Hutson.
NHL officiating at its finest: In the game’s eighth minute, Jon Merrill wrestled Alex Newhook to the ice. No penalty was assessed.
What was he thinking?: About one minute later, with the Canadiens on a two-on-one break, Patrik Laine, who scores goals, attempted a pass to Christian Dvorak — who doesn’t. The play was broken up.
Like watching paint dry: Through 16 minutes there were a total of six shots on goal — four by the Wild.
Dumb penalty: Late in the opening period, Kirby Dach was coming out of his zone, lost the puck and then tripped Marco Rossi.
With friends like this: Alexandre Carrier knocked the stick out of Jakub Dobes’s hands. Seconds later, Liam Ohgren opened the scoring.
Worst play of the night: Seconds before the Wild scored its second goal, Josh Anderson missed a check, then went face-first into the end boards.
If only: In the 14th minute of the second period, Juraj Slafkovsky beat Fleury but couldn’t beat the crossbar. He was set up by, who else, Hutson.
News you need: Of the Canadiens’ eight shots through two periods, Hutson had two.
Giveaway of the night: Newhook on the Wild’s third goal, scored by Devin Shore, nearly six minutes into the third period.
Strange, but true (Part IV): The goals by Ohgren and Shore were their first this season.
Well, there was one tough save: In the sixth minute of the third period, Fleury made a spectacular pad save on Anderson.
The clubhouse leader: Dvorak at minus-3.
Quick stats: Anderson led all Montreal players, with five shots. Hutson had three. Carrier had three hits. David Savard blocked three shots. Dobes’s save percentage was .885.
They said it: “We didn’t generate a lot offensively tonight,” Nick Suzuki said. “I think we’re earning (penalties) to be honest. We’re doing a lot of complaining on the bench. We weren’t crisp making passes, making plays. We turned a lot of pucks over, losing too many battles.”
“I have a lot of work to do,” Dobes admitted. “I had my good story a couple of weeks ago. He (Fleury) had his good story today and tomorrow. That’s how hockey works. We’ll be better. We’ll reset. It sucks that we lost.”
“They play with great structure,” Anderson said of the Wild. “I thought we had a good first period. I think our second periods need to be better. We have to bring more energy, maybe shorter shifts to get everyone going. Our game fell off in the second period. I wish we were on the other side of things tonight.”