The Montreal Canadiens will host the Buffalo Sabres Tuesday night at the Bell Centre with a chance to take a 3-1 lead in their second-round series.
After a 4-2 loss in Game 1, the Canadiens have bounced back with back-to-back blowout wins in Games 2 and 3, outscoring the Sabres 11-3. It was the first time this postseason that the Habs have won two consecutive games, after alternating wins and losses throughout the entire seven-game series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
In the first round, the Canadiens lost Game 4 at the Bell Centre against the Lightning with a chance to go up 3-1. With a second opportunity to take a series stranglehold, head coach Martin St. Louis says the team will try to keep their emotions in check to avoid looking past the golden opportunity in front of them.
“The message doesn’t change. We’re attacking these games with truth. Take the scoreboard out of the equation. That’s one way to help stay even keeled. Every morning we come back and the scoreboard isn’t part of the equation,” St. Louis told the media on Monday. “We’re trying to stay in the present to be in a better place mentally. It’s important in sports. Especially in this market, so we talk about that with the guys all the time. Having the mentality about starting every day, you gotta restart every day no matter what.”
Defencemen Kaiden Guhle and Alexandre Carrier, who have combined for three points in three games in the series thus far, say the team has to quickly refocus after Sunday’s emotional win.
“It’s overall how we are as a group, we’ve done it all year. We had some battles we came on top of, we learned from that,” Carrier. “Not being too high, not being too low, just focus on ourselves. We’re a confident group; we can lose a game, but we know we can bounce back.”
“You can be happy and excited for yourself until midnight and then the sun rises again and you gotta do it again,” said Guhle.
Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes has been excellent following a poor Game 1 showing, stopping 64 of 67 shots in Games 2 and 3. He has backstopped a Canadiens team that has seemingly found its offensive legs after a low-scoring series against the Bolts. After scoring 16 goals in seven games against Tampa Bay, the Canadiens have tallied 13 in three games against the Sabres.
Forward Alex Newhook, who has scored two goals in the back-to-back wins, says he tries to lead the young Canadiens by example.
“I think having experience is valuable for sure. Something I was lucky to gain early in my career. Try to lead by example,” said Newhook.
Newhook won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022, making him the only Canadiens roster player with a Cup ring. However, several players have reached the Stanley Cup Final before, including six returning players from the 2021 Final against the Lightning: Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Josh Anderson, Jake Evans, Phillip Danault, and Brendan Gallagher.
“There’s moments to speak up, but we got a lot of veterans in here as well who have played in the Stanley Cup Finals. Lots of guys to lean on and step up when needed. Just do what I can,” Newhook added.
The Sabres are trailing a series for the first time this postseason and know they need to come out much quicker on Tuesday night to overcome the raucous Bell Centre crowd and take back home-ice advantage.
“We weren’t good enough. We weren’t good enough to win the game,” said head coach Lindy Ruff. “It isn’t a time for excuses. I need their best game [tonight].”
“We have to come out flying [Tuesday]. No excuses, we’ve just got to be a lot better,” said forward Alex Tuch.
The series took a physical turn in Game 3 as Sabres forward Beck Malenstyn and Habs blueliner Arber Xhekaj were fined for separate infractions. Malenstyn was fined $3,515.63 for goaltender interference against Dobes, while Xhekaj was docked $3,385.42 for roughing against Sabres forward Sam Carrick.
