Canadiens Game Day: Scoring continues to be a big problem for Habs
Game Day #GameDay
Maybe the Canadiens should put Jake Allen in net for Game 4 of their playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs and let Carey Price play forward to see if he can score.
Almost nobody else on the Canadiens can.
The Canadiens lost Game 3 by a 2-1 score Monday night at the Bell Centre as the Leafs took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series with Game 4 set for Tuesday night in Montreal (7:30 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio, 98.5 FM).
The Canadiens have scored only four goals in the first three games of the series. Nick Suzuki scored Monday night, while Josh Anderson, Paul Byron and Jesperi Kotkaniemi have also scored in the series. That’s it.
Meanwhile, Price has stopped 91 of 98 shots for a .929 save percentage.
Many of the players have changed over the years in front of Price and so have the coaches, but one thing remains constant when the Canadiens do get into the playoffs: they struggle to score.
Going back to 2015, the Canadiens have played 31 postseason games and scored 63 goals, an average of 2.03 per game. They have a 14-17 record in those games and have scored two goals or less in 21 of them while winning only one first-round playoff series in 2015, along with a qualifying-round series in last year’s expanded postseason.
“I’m not frustrated at all, to be honest,” Price said after Monday’s game about the lack of offensive support he gets in the playoffs. “I believe in these guys. These guys are talented guys. I see their shots in practice every day and I have no doubt that they have the ability to score goals. They’re trying out there, I know they are. It’s going to come. They’re playing some pretty solid defence on their side, but we’re going to find a way to get through that. Their goaltender’s playing well. We’re going to have to make it more difficult for him.”
The Canadiens also have to make it easier for Price, who will be back in goal for Game 4.
The question is: Can they?
“They’re playing well … got to give them credit,” the Canadiens’ Brendan Gallagher said about the Leafs. “But I think we’ve had some looks, we’ve had some chances. You can always do a little bit more. It’s the same both ways. It’s low-scoring, tight-checking games in the playoffs. I mean, they’re dealing with the same thing we’re dealing with. It’s just a matter of finding a way. I think we’ve had enough looks. Just got to put one in and find a way to beat the goalie. It’s one shot could change the game.”
Caufield makes debut
The Canadiens’ Cole Caufield made his NHL playoff debut after being a healthy scratch for the first two games of the series.
The 20-year-old right-winger rang a shot off the crossbar early in the first period with the Canadiens on a power play and finished the game with three shots and 15:50 of ice time, including 3:20 on the power play.
Caufield was on a line with Suzuki and Joel Armia and was the Canadiens’ most dangerous forward when he was on the ice. Caufield had only 9:34 of ice time after two periods before being used more often in the third period.
When head coach Dominique Ducharme was asked why he was reluctant to use Caufield more early in the game, the coach responded: “Reluctant? Nine minutes … almost 10 (in the first two periods) is like playing 15. At one point, you guys got to look at the game. Power play, PK, those influence time on ice for guys. And in the first and second that’s one thing and when guys are getting caught on the ice for two minutes, well that’s another thing. He played 15 and a half tonight. That’s pretty good.”
Caufield impressed Gallagher with his performance.
“He was very good,” Gallagher said. “He had a good game. He had some looks, like most of us. I think he added something to our group. I thought that he played a good game.”
Price said Caufield has a great attitude.
“The kid’s got a lot of enthusiasm,” the goalie said. “It’s great to see. He’s got a quick release and it’s not a muffin, either. He’s got a great shot.”
Save of the night
Price made an outstanding save on Jason Spezza midway through the first period with the Leafs on a power play.
William Nylander carried the puck toward the Canadiens net and looked like he was going to shoot before sending a perfect pass to Jason Spezza, who was standing all alone at the side of the net to Price’s right. The goalie lunged across and stuck out his stick, somehow managing to get a piece of the puck and deflect it over the glass.
“It was just desperation is basically what it comes down to,” Price said. “They had a guy in a pretty good shooting position and I thought he was going to shoot the puck, so I bit pretty hard on it. The puck went back door and I just reached out and was able to get a stick on it.”
Power-play problems
The Canadiens were given an outstanding chance to take the lead early when the Leafs’ Alex Galchenyuk took a four-minute penalty for high-sticking Gallagher and drawing blood only 1:02 into the game.
The Canadiens failed to get a single shot on goal during the ensuing power play, although Caufield did ring one off the crossbar. The Canadiens went 0-for-3 on the power play and are now 0-for-9 for the series.
“We just got to find a way to get going,” captain Shea Weber said. “It is frustrating You want to make a difference and right now we’re not. We’re going to keep trying to make adjustments and keep working at it and we’re going to just have to make a difference when it counts here.”
The Leafs went 0-for-4 on the power play.
Second-period problems
All the scoring came in the second period with Nylander opening the scoring at the 7:18 mark, followed by Suzuki at 13:56 and then Morgan Rielly with the winner for the Leafs at 16:35. The Leafs totally dominated the second period, outshooting the Canadiens 20-8. The Leafs outshot the Canadiens 20-6 in the second period of Game 2 while scoring twice en route to their 5-1 victory
The Canadiens outplayed the Leafs in the third period in Game 3, outshooting them 15-2, but they couldn’t beat goalie Jack Campbell.
“In the first (period) I thought it was a pretty even period,” Ducharme said. “In the second, Carey kept us in there and the third that’s the way we wanted to play at that pace.”
Gallagher said the Canadiens didn’t really make any adjustments after the second period.
“Nothing really changed,” he said. “We were just able to put a few shifts together ourselves and get in those positions where we were probably doing a better job of going line after line and creating momentum.
“It’s a tight series,” Gallagher added. “Taking away Game 2, where we felt it was kind of taken out of our hands (with penalties), I think both Game 1 and and Game 3 here it’s the way it’s going to be the rest of the series. It’s going to be one-goal games. We just got to find a way to win these hockey games. They did a better job than we did tonight. We get a chance to bounce back tomorrow and see what we can do.”
Gallagher struggling
Gallagher missed the last 21 regular-season games with a fractured thumb and has no points and only five shots in the first three playoff games, along with a minus-2.
“Game 1 I thought it was going a little quick for me,” he said. “I didn’t feel like I did all that much. My legs felt good Games 2 and 3. There’s certain areas that I got to keep getting better at, but I felt pretty good here. I think everyone’s going to look at goals. I know goals are hard to come by and I know I’m going to have to score an important one here as this series goes on.
“I’ve had enough looks here the last couple of games,” added Gallagher, who had only 13:15 of ice time in Game 3. “I just got to find a way to put one by the goalie and contribute that way. But I feel good.”
Gallagher had only one goal in nine postseason games last year.
Some stats
The shots were 29-29 in Game 3 and the faceoffs were split 50/50. The Canadiens outhit the Leafs 37-28.
Weber led the Canadiens with 24:51 of ice time, followed by Jeff Petry with 22:24 and Ben Chiarot with 20:35. Phillip Danault led the forwards with 20:14, followed by Suzuki with 20:04 and Anderson with 19:58.
Anderson and Petry tied for the team lead with four shots each, while Suzuki and Caufield both had three. Anderson had six hits, while Tomas Tatar had five and Joel Armia and Petry had four each.
Danault won 10 of the 24 faceoffs he took (42 per cent). Kotkaniemi went 7-4 (64 per cent) and Suzuki went 9-8 (53 per cent).
Evans and Staal sidelined
The Canadiens’ Jake Evans missed his second straight game with an undisclosed injury, while Eric Staal was also sidelined for Game 3.
Staal took part in the morning skate, but it was decided afterward that he wouldn’t play.
“He’s not at 100 per cent and I want guys who are at 100 per cent,” Ducharme said about Staal.
Artturi Lehkonen was added to the injury list when he was hurt in the first period of Game 3 and didn’t return.
Praise for Caufield
Canadiens defenceman Jon Merrill had some nice things to say about Caufield after Monday’s morning skate.
“He’s a confident kid,” Merrill said. “He’s not cocky … he’s confident. He’s sure of himself as a player and as a person, which is really refreshing to see. He doesn’t walk around like he’s better than anyone, but he definitely walks around and knows that he can make an impact. So we’re excited to see what he can do tonight and we all have the utmost confidence that he’s going to come in and do a job for us.”
Like Caufield, the 29-year-old Merrill played for the USA Hockey National Team Development program’s U-18 team and was asked if there was any player on that team he could compare to Caufield, who is nine years younger than the defenceman.
“I think an easy comparison, other than being a left shot, is Patrick Kane,” Merrill said. “I think the quick hands, the quick feet, the way that he can score. But, obviously, those are some pretty big shoes to fill and we’re just looking for him to come in tonight, bring some energy and I know he’ll do that for us.”
Kane scored 33 goals in 55 games over two seasons with the USA Hockey U-18 team. Caufield’s 72 goals in 64 games in 2018-19 broke the previous U-18 team record of 55 set by Auston Matthews and Caufield’s 126 goals in 123 career games broke the old team mark of 104 set by Phil Kessel.
The four-finger salute
After scoring the only goal for the Canadiens in Game 2, Kotkaniemi took off his right glove and raised four fingers while looking up into the stands.
“We had a good week of practice with the (four) guys who didn’t play tonight, so we’ve been in the locker room before so that was our thing,” Kotkaniemi explained after the game.
Caufield was one of those players sitting in the stands for Game 2 that Kotkaniemi gave the salute to.
“I think just a lot of us are close,” Caufield said Monday morning. “They’re the guys that you’re sticking around with after practice and stuff. You form a close bond, so a lot of us became pretty tight. Just a little celebration he had. You’ve got to stick to what’s working and I’m sure he’ll bring it again tonight. Being in the lineup is a big deal and you got to do the right things to stay in there. But I think the team as a whole, we’re pretty close, and I think that’s just something that he wanted to do for the guys.”
Related The schedule
Here’s the rest of the schedule for the Canadiens-Leafs first-round series. All games will be televised on CBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports and will be available on radio on TSN 690 and 98.5 FM:
Game 4: Tuesday, May 25, 7:30 p.m., at Montreal
Game 5: Thursday, May 27, 7 p.m., at Toronto
Game 6: Saturday, May 29, time TBD, at Montreal, if necessary
Game 7: Monday, May 31, time TBD, at Toronto, if necessary
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