Goaltender Jakub Dobes turned in another stellar performance for the Montreal Canadiens Sunday night in Game 3, stopping 26 of 28 shots en route to a 6-2 win.
The victory gave the Habs a 2-1 lead over the Buffalo Sabres in their best-of-seven series and put them one step closer to a conference final showdown with the Carolina Hurricanes.
While the Habs got one of their most balanced offensive efforts of this year’s playoffs, featuring five different goal scorers and 13 players registering at least one point, Dobes made several big stops throughout the night that kept the Canadiens on the attack.
Fans at the Bell Centre showed appreciation for their 24-year-old netminder during his postgame interview at centre ice, drowning out his answers with a hearty “Ole! Ole! Ole! Ole!” followed by chants of his name that left Dobes beaming.
When asked by NHL.com after the game what it’s been like to be a cult hero in a hockey-loving city, Dobes countered with some perspective.
“I’m not a hero,” Dobes said via NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger. “I’m just me. I’m just a goofy goalie who tries to stop pucks.
“Trust me, I don’t call myself a hero. I pretty much will go home, eat, watch Game of Thrones and go to bed. I don’t think that’s anything heroic. And when it’s time to do my job, I will do anything to win and make this franchise, these fans happy, and hopefully will win on Tuesday.”
Captain Nick Suzuki agreed with Dobes’ modest self-assessment.
“Yeah, that’s pretty accurate,” Suzuki said. “He’s definitely goofy but has the type of self-confidence that you need.
“He’s a special guy, and they’ve embraced him here over the past three months. This is a town that’s always embraced their goalies, so he’s doing a great job.”
After emerging as Montreal’s No. 1 goaltender during the regular season, Dobes has been even better in the playoffs. He had a 2.78 goals-against average and .901 save percentage in 43 regular-season games compared to this postseason’s 2.13 GAA and .918 save percentage in 10 games.
“It warms your heart, and I’m really proud to be a Canadien and play for this franchise,” Dobes said. “After the Tampa series, I couldn’t believe some of the things that happened in the city, but it’s so much fun. I’m just happy that the fans are having fun with this as much as we do.”
Dobes’ six wins are second only to Frederik Andersen (eight) of the Hurricanes, who have yet to drop a game so far this postseason and await the winner of the Montreal-Buffalo series in the Eastern Conference final.
“Obviously he’s been huge for us, and saves us when we need him the most. And he’s been unbelievable throughout these playoffs and kept us in every game. So he’s going to keep it going,” star forward Cole Caufield said.
“He works hard every day, and is prepared for every moment.”
Sunday’s game was also key for Caufield, who hadn’t scored in the previous nine playoff games despite potting 51 during the regular season. He finally found the back of the net in the second period with a power-play marker that gave the Habs a 2-1 lead, and they never looked back on their way to taking the series lead.
Game 4 of the second-round series will go Tuesday evening from Bell Centre before shifting back to Buffalo for Game 5 on Thursday.
