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Canadiens Highlights: Sabres Strike First
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- Canadiens Highlights: Sabres Strike First
Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images
The Montreal Canadiens faced the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night, with both teams attempting to earn a statement win in the first game of the second-round series.
Prior to puck drop, a pair of lineup changes were confirmed by head coach Martin St-Louis . Joe Veleno was used in his first playoff game, centring the fourth line between Zachary Bolduc and Kirby Dach , while Arber Xhekaj was paired with Noah Dobson on the third pairing.
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The Habs managed to outshoot the Sabres, but it was not enough to secure a victory, as Buffalo emerged with a 4-2 win.
Let’s dive into the highlights!
Sabre Strike
As if often the case in hockey, a strong play at one end of the ice can quickly result in a goal at the other. Following a play in which Lane Hutson hit the crossbar, he proceeded to cough up the puck at Montreal’s blue line, leading to a 3v1 for the Sabres.
Noah Dobson attempted to slide to break up the pass, but failed to make an impact, resulting in Josh Doan ’s second goal of the playoffs, and a 1–0 Sabres lead.
Eventual Response
The Sabres would establish a two-goal lead before the Canadiens responded, though it must be said that the teams were fairly evenly matched at 5v5. More than anything, the powerplays dictated the momentum.
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Speaking of which, the Habs required a powerplay before they found the back of the net. They also needed a perfect pass by Juraj Slafkovsky , and a smart finish by captain Nick Suzuki to cut the Sabres lead to 2-1.
First Banana
It must be said that Jakub Dobes was Montreal’s most valuable player in the first round, but he did not enjoy his best game of the playoffs on Wednesday night.
He wasn’t terrible by any means, but for the first time since the regular season ended we saw a version of Dobes that lacked confidence, not to mention any semblance of poise.
The Sabres scored four times on nine shots, though two of those goals did come on the powerplay. To Dobes’ credit, the majority of the shots were decent scoring chances, and the defencemen playing in front of him were generous with the giveaways.
Tertiary Scoring
With the Sabres up 4-1, fourth-line forward Kirby Dach picked the perfect time to inject a little energy into the mix, via a great individual effort, and a beautiful goal.
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The second-chance marker, which featured elite hand-eye coordination, cut the lead to 4-2, but more importantly, brought the Habs back into the game at a time when they were at risk of quietly fading away. Instead, they had over 20 minutes ensure they provided an honest effort to open the series.
To Montreal’s credit, they did up the pressure, and spent a fair amount of the third period in Buffalo’s end, but it was all for naught, as the Sabres parked the bus long enough to beat the Canadiens 4-2.
The Montreal Canadiens will be back in action on Friday, facing the Sabres in Buffalo. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 pm ET.
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All Montreal Canadiens statistics are 5v5 unless otherwise noted, via Natural Stat Trick .
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