Hidden Game: Dobes and Canadiens beat Tampa for sixth straight win
OK, this is starting to get stupid now. At the very least, it makes no sense.
The Canadiens weren’t supposed to be this good, this soon. — not Jakub Dobes — was supposed to be the goaltender of the future. Maybe he still will be? But Dobes is the goalie of today and, we dare say, of Thursday. And maybe even Saturday.
The Canadiens have stretched their season-high winning streak to six games, including the first three contests of this five-game road trip, when everything seemingly could have fallen apart for this team. At this stage, they look like a team that might never lose again.
OK, we’re kidding.
The Canadiens get outshot, and sometimes outplayed, on a consistent basis, yet continue finding ways to win. And Dobes remains virtually unbeatable.
It makes no sense. But isn’t that the beauty of professional sports and the ride it takes us on?
What can you do for an encore?: Two nights after , Dobes merely turned aside 36 more Tuesday night in the Canadiens’ 4-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena.
After being beaten by Jake Guentzel at 13:41 of the first period, Dobes stopped the next 30 shots — 17 alone over the final 20 minutes. In the final seconds of the second period, while the Lightning was short-handed, Dobes denied Brandon Hagel on a breakaway.
This was Dobes’s fourth consecutive win. During that sequence he has stopped 136 of 141 shots. He improved his record to 26-8-4, including 16-3-2 since Dec. 14. He’s a 24-year-old rookie. Just award him the Calder Trophy already and end the suspense.
The gag order ends: Eight days after he stopped talking to the media — or the Canadiens ordered him to do so — Dobes spoke. Briefly.
“I feel like the guys stepped up,” Dobes said post-game in Tampa Bay. “It’s playoff hockey. We need to play like that every night and we’ll be hard to beat with our offence. I’m excited. We’ll see on Thursday (against the New York Rangers) what happens.”
See. That wasn’t so hard, was it?
News you need (Part I): With eight games remaining the Canadiens (43-21-10) have 96 points. While they remain third in the Atlantic Division, they trail Tampa Bay by two points and first-place Buffalo by four points. Both teams hold a game in hand over the Sabres. The Canadiens and Lightning meet once more, April 9 at the Bell Centre. We also should mention the Canadiens only have a two-point lead over Boston, which holds the first wild-card position in the Eastern Conference but has played one more game than Montreal.
News you need (Part II): You’re probably aware Cole Caufield scored his 47th goal in the second period. It was his NHL-leading 27th go-ahead goal and 10th game-winning goal, tied for the league lead. He has yet to score an empty-net goal. It was his first career goal on Andrei Vasilevskiy and Caufield now has 300 career points. It also was Caufield’s 12th goal in March, tying a franchise record established by Guy Lafleur in 1976.
News you need (Part III): Mike Matheson’s assist on Caufield’s goal was his 300th career point. He scored the first of Montreal’s two empty-net goals late in the third period for his 301st point.
You don’t look a day over 21: Juraj Slafkovsky, who turned 22 on Monday — when the Canadiens had the day off in Florida — opened the scoring in the first period and added the first assist on Caufield’s goal. Slafkovsky’s next goal will be his 30th this season.
Momentum … schmomentum: Guentzel’s goal came 76 seconds after Slafkovsky’s.
Stat of the period (Part I): Lane Hutson’s ice time in the first period was 10:05. Periods are 20 minutes, in case you’re new to the game.
Stat of the period (Part II): Tampa Bay had a goal differential of plus-32 in the second period. Caufield scored the only goal of the period.
Pass of the night (Part I): Slafkovsky, behind his back, to Suzuki in the second period. The Canadiens captain failed to score.
Pass of the night (Part II): Slafkovsky to Caufield on the winning goal. Caufield was left with an open net since everyone, including Vasilevskiy, expected Slafkovsky to shoot.
Best headlock of the night: Zachary Bolduc on Emil Lilleberg in the third period.
Best takedown of the night: Joe Veleno on Erik Cernak late in the game.
Hit of the night (Part I): Cernak on Suzuki in the third period.
Hit of the night (Part II): Arber Xhekaj on Scott Sabourin late in the game.
It was nice while it lasted: One game after playing forward on the fourth line, Xhekaj was back on defence, where he probably belongs.
Great moments in officiating: Suzuki’s alleged cross-check on Yanni Gourde with slightly more than four minutes remaining in regulation time. It was a terrible call, especially that late in what, at the time, was a one-goal game.
They don’t like each other: The teams combined for 46 penalty minutes — 24 to the Canadiens. How much fun would a Montreal-Tampa Bay playoff series be?
Next time, decline the penalty: The Lightning went 0-for-4 on the power play.
Quick stats: Suzuki had five shots — one more than Caufield. Josh Anderson, in his return to the lineup, and Joe Veleno each had four hits. Jake Evans blocked four shots. Dobes’s save percentage was .973. Hutson played 26:11. Brendan Gallagher was on the ice for only 8:18. The Canadiens blocked 17 shots. Tampa Bay was guilty of 17 giveaways. The Canadiens won 54.1 per cent of their faceoffs and outhit the Lightning, 23-21.
They said it: “It felt like a playoff game out there,” Suzuki said in Tampa Bay. “We could see them in the playoffs. They’re a really good team. It’s fun to go up against them.”
“He (Dobes) works his ass off and makes our job pretty easy,” Caufield told the media. “It’s a huge win. They’re obviously a really good team. They’ve had success for a lot of years. They’re a team we’ve definitely been trying to get to. To get six in a row here, we’ve been building. Not every one has been perfect, but we’ve found ways. Obviously goaltending has been a huge part of that, too. It’s obviously a good feeling but we’re still hungry for more.”
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