In the Habs’ Room: After would-be goal nixed, Gallagher demands consistency
Habs #Habs
Breadcrumb Trail Links
“I got knocked on my ass. … You can’t tell me I’m not trying to work my way out of the blue when the guy’s pushing me in.”
Author of the article:
Pat Hickey • Montreal Gazette
Publishing date:
Feb 24, 2021 • 2 hours ago • 3 minute read 
Ottawa Senators defenceman Nikita Zaitsev (22) checks Montreal Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher (11) during third period NHL action in Ottawa Feb. 23, 2021. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick /The Canadian Press Article content
“All we want is consistency,” said Brendan Gallagher as he tried to understand why a potential game-winning goal was disallowed.
Gallagher thought he had the game-winner on a deflection in the dying seconds but, as is the case with all goals scored in the final minute of regulation time, it was reviewed by the situation room in Toronto where it was decided that Gallagher had impeded Ottawa goaltender Matt Murray.
“You can’t tell me (Murray) didn’t have time to reset,” said Gallagher. “I got knocked on my ass. I got pushed by two guys and I got up, I saw the puck and I reset. You can’t tell me I’m not trying to work my way out of the blue when the guy’s pushing me in.”
Gallagher said he was confused because the league provides videos of dos and don’ts prior to the season.
“We get the same training on this at the start of the year as the referees do and there are plenty of examples exactly like that and they go the other way,” Gallagher said. “If you showed me that at the beginning of the year and said it didn’t count, fine. But I’ve seen the examples where they do count.”
Advertisement
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
The disallowed goal would have put the cap on a strong comeback from the Canadiens, who came back from 0-2 and 1-3 deficits after a horrendous start. Instead, the game went to a shootout and rookie Tim Stützle scored the winning goal to give the Senators a 5-4 win and a sweep of their two-game series against Montreal. The Senators were 3-2 winners in overtime on Sunday.
The Canadiens might not have worried about the disallowed goal if they had played better in the early stages of the game. They surrendered a goal at 1:36 of the first period and were down 2-0 before the game was 10 minutes old. They gave up two power-play goals and failed to score on their two power plays.
“We definitely had a slow start,” said captain Shea Weber, who scored two goals. “They came out jumping and we were kind of sitting back. For whatever reason, we couldn’t get it going but Carey kept us in and battled hard for us and gave us a chance at the end.”
Advertisement
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Carey Price did make some spectacular saves, but he gave up a softie to Brady Tkachuk, which allowed Ottawa to tie the game after Montreal took its only lead on Tyler Toffoli’s 12th goal of the season.
Big saves aside, Price’s numbers are among the worst of his career with a 5-3-3 record, a 2.95 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage.
Coach Claude Julien said he was “out of synch, nervous” in the first period and he said the penalty kill’s failure was the result of players being in the wrong position and making uncharacteristic mistakes. But he saw some reason for optimism in the second-half comeback.
“When you struggle, you hope there’s something that sparks you (and) the second half of the game brought that,” said Julien. “The best thing that could have happened to us was to have the goal that was disallowed count and win the game with two to four seconds left, but we have to take that second half of the game and build on that going to Winnipeg and find away to turn things around.”
Winnipeg is the Canadiens’ next stop and they will be playing the Jets for the first time this season Thursday and again on Saturday. The Jets are third in the Canadian division wth 23 points, one more than the Canadiens.
phickey@postmedia.com
twitter.com/zababes1
Share this article in your social network Montreal Gazette Headline News
By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300 Thanks for signing up!
Comments
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.