Suzuki: ‘We showed a lot of heart’

TORONTO – The Canadiens staved off elimination with a 4-3 overtime win over the Maple Leafs on Thursday night at Scotiabank Arena. Montreal now trails the series 3-2.

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Following the game, goaltender Carey Price, forwards Phillip Danault and Nick Suzuki, and interim head coach Dominique Ducharme spoke with reporters via Zoom.

Here are a few highlights from their respective chats:

Price on getting the desired result in the extra frame:

We showed resiliency. It’s not easy to have the right mentality going into an overtime like that after giving up a two-goal lead in the third. I thought the group was calm and composed in the locker room after.

Price on playing in front of fans at the Bell Centre in Game 6:

It’s exciting to be able to play in front of fans. We’ve missed them a lot this season. I’m excited for the fans who get to go.

Danault on the message in the locker room heading into overtime:

We were happy with our game. We built things all game long and we didn’t want to let the situation affect us. We have character. The guys want to win. It was important for us to force another game at home and play in front of our fans.

Danault on rookie Cole Caufield:

Cole made a nice play to cut the pass. It was a great defensive play that led to the goal. He played a very good game and brought a lot to the group. He’s confident and very good with the puck.

Suzuki on the impact of veteran leadership in the playoffs:

We’ve got a ton of leaders that I look up to. We had a meeting, and guys like Perry and Staal spoke up. They talked about how these opportunities in the playoffs don’t come that often, so you’ve got to make the most of it. We’ve got a ton of leaders keeping us calm like Shea and Carey, and it carried into OT.

Suzuki on extending the series with a good performance:

I thought we showed a lot of heart. We feel like we can come back in this series, especially going back to the Bell Centre for Game 6. It’s going to be a lot of fun to play in front of our fans. We know it’s not going to be a full barn, but I know it’ll be loud and we’ll be ready to go.

Ducharme on what he appreciated about the Canadiens’ effort:

I liked our consistency. It wasn’t perfect, but I liked the way we worked and competed. We wanted to be more dynamic offensively and we did that. It’s a step in the right direction.

Ducharme on his message between the third period and overtime:

I mentioned that it was a moment for players who are “gamers.” The game is on the line. Luckily, it didn’t take long. We had our chance and we capitalized. We needed to make sure that we took a shot when we could. We created a turnover that led to the 2-on-0. It’s rare in a game, especially in overtime.