2023-11-12 02:55:40
Summary
For a second straight home game, the Canadiens allowed the first goal in the first minute of play, but they nevertheless managed to turn things around to win 3-2 against the Boston Bruins in overtime.
Midway through overtime, Kaiden Guhle pressed the attack and jumped on a loose puck at the top of the slot to end the game and give the Canadians victory, their second win in a row.
Montreal thus ended a streak of ten consecutive losses against the Bruins. The Habs have not had the best of their rivals since November 5, 2019.
Here is the summary of the match in a few observations.
Another false start
Exactly as was the case the last time they found themselves in front of their fans, the Canadians allowed the opponent to score the first goal of the match even before the first minute of play had elapsed. Back in the Bruins lineup after serving a four-game suspension, defenseman Charlie McAvoy sent a disc from the blue line that Pavel Zacha brilliantly redirected behind Samuel Montembeault.
Zacha, who replaced Patrice Bergeron in the center of Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak since the retirement of the Quebec player, scored his fifth goal since the start of the season. This trio was extremely threatening for almost the entire game. Marchand’s forecheck particularly put the members of the CH defensive brigade under great pressure and they multiplied the blunders since they invariably had to rush their actions.
A fifth goal for Gallagher
Not so long ago, many people would have accepted a pairing of Réjean Houle and Ralph Backstrom to get rid of the services of Brendan Gallagher, who was struggling to keep up during vulgar intra-team meetings at the start of training camp.
But then, Gallagher ended up recovering and it was thanks to a final effort around the net that he offered victory to his team by scoring his fifth goal since the start of the season. The trio of veterans formed by Gallagher, Sean Monahan and Tanner Pearson were the ones who made their presence felt the most at even strength among the Canadiens throughout the duration of the match.
“It’s difficult to play in this league when you’re not 100 percent physically,” recalled head coach Martin St-Louis at the end of the game. I’m happy with his success, but everything he brings to this team is not visible on the scoresheets. »
Spotlight on Guhle
Even if he doesn’t have the flamboyance of Nick Suzuki or Cole Caufield, Kaiden Guhle is already seen as one of the pillars of the team. Unsurprisingly, the spotlight was on the 21-year-old defenseman as his first goal of the season scored at 2:13 of the overtime period allowed the Canadians to record a second victory in a row.
True to form, he stood out defensively by blocking five shots – a CH high tied with Mike Matheson. Mainly opposed to the trio of Marchand, Zacha and Pastrnak, Guhle was not on the ice when they scored at the start of the match. “He brings stability, consistency, he’s a complete hockey player,” said St-Louis.
ContentId(3.1434312):Antechamber: Kaiden Guhle teleported to the Antechamber
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The waltz of the guardians continues
Ménage à trois requires, Samuel Montembeault made his first start since he gave 5 goals on 34 shots to the Saint Louis Blues last Saturday evening. The Quebecer did very, very well by making 26 saves, half of which came in the third period, on 28 shots.
Montembeault has absolutely nothing to reproach himself for the goals scored by Zacha (deflected shot) and Marchand (redirected with his skate on the power play). He was definitely at his best by stopping all three Bruins shots during a double penalty kill in the third.
Special teams again
There are obviously a lot of projects in progress at the CH, but one of the elements where the improvement is the most perceptible and without a shadow of a doubt is the numerical superiority game. In 2022-23, the team finished 29th with a success rate of 13.7 percent.
Tonight, the Habs scored a goal with a man advantage in a fifth straight game when Nick Suzuki fooled Jeremy Swayman with a precise wrist shot from the point. This is already the third time that the captain has scored on such an occasion.
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