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Montreal Canadiens Experience Overtime Heartbreak vs. Devils
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- Montreal Canadiens Experience Overtime Heartbreak vs. Devils
Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images
One thing was certain heading into Thursday's game between the Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils ; a streak would end. Whether it would be the Devils' home unbeaten streak, goalie Jakub Dobes ' perfect record, or captain Nick Suzuki 's 12-game point streak.
In the end, the Habs lost for the first time in overtime this season, as the Devils emerged with a 4-3 win.
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Editor's Note:This post was written by Montreal Hockey Now contributor David Landsman. You can follow David on Twitter by clicking on this link .
Rough Start
The game started off kilter for the visiting Montreal squad, as they let in a goal on the first shot they faced for the second straight game. This time, it was Devils' forward Cody Glass , who potted his third of the season just 1:53 into the contest, catching Dobes off his marker.
The Canadiens didn't let the early Devil goal phase them, as they tied the game a little over a minute later, thanks to a Noah Dobson shot that deflected off Kirby Dach . The puck somehow found itself behind Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom .
Playing Without The Lead
The second period saw a lot of back and forth play between the two squads, but remained a stalemate until just the midway point of the frame, when forward Ondrej Palat scored, going top cheese on Dobes. Coming off a 15 goal campaign in 2024-25, it was Palat's first of the season.
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Montreal had a chance to tie the game late in the second when they had a powerplay, but Markstrom and the Devils stood their ground and went into the room up by one.
The Habs came roaring out of the gate to start the third, and forward Jake Evans scored his second of the season, outworking Jack Hughes and finding a spot between the long legs of the Swedish goalie to tie the game at 2-2.
However, Montreal, or actually just Jayden Struble , lack discipline, taking back-to-back minors. Yet the Habs penalty kill, which had been struggling all season, managed to kill them both. Entering Thursday's contest, they were 23rdin the entire league, but they managed to kill off all five minors assessed against them versus the Devils. It marked only the fifth time this season they did not allow their opponents to score a goal on the man advantage.
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Youthful Exuberance
Midway through the third, the youth movement took over, and the line of Alex Newhook , Oliver Kapanen , and Ivan Demidov took to the forefront, when Kapanen jumped on a big rebound to give the visitors the late 3-2 lead. It was Kapanen's fifth goal of the season.
Late-Game Collapse
With the net empty, New Jersey peppered Dobes from all angles, trying everything they could muster to tie the game. And after a shot took the sails out of Montreal defenceman Mike Matheson , a goalmouth scramble led to Devils forward Timo Meier finding the loose puck and burying his fourth of the season, leaving the Habs in disbelief as they were just 1:07 away from the win.
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In overtime a miscue by Newhook led to a breakaway opportunity for Devils forward Jesper Bratt , and the talented winger made no mistake, tucking the puck five-hole for the game-winning goal.
Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks
The loss was Dobes' first of the season. In fact, the last time he lost a regular season game, you'd have to go all the way back to April 12 of last season. He's still putting up excellent numbers so far this campaign, and on the broadcast there were mentions that he could possibly fight for the Calder Trophy as the league's best rookie, competing against his teammate Demidov. There was also talk about him possibly making the Olympic squad for Czechia.
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Wouldn't that be something, if the Montreal Canadiens could have two Olympic goalies represented.
But that's a topic for another day.
Despite the frustrating loss, the Habs managed to bank one point, and remain among the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
Montreal is off Friday, but then are back on home ice at the Bell Centre as they host the Utah Mammoth on Saturday night. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 pm ET.
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