One more or less loss for the Canadiens won’t change anything in his season, as interim head coach Martin St-Louis continues to focus on teaching in anticipation of the next campaign.
Evgeny Svechnikov broke the tie late in the third period and the Winnipeg Jets defeated Montreal 4-2 on Monday night at the Bell Centre.
The victory was much more important for the Jets, who are trying to get back into the playoff game in the Western Conference. For his part, the Canadian has known his fate for a long time.
The Habs had some good moments on offense, but their defensive flaws allowed the visitors to do what was necessary to leave with two more points in the bank.
“It’s not easy coming from behind, especially at five-on-five, when they stay strong on their blue line and force us to throw away pucks,” St-Louis said. Their goalkeeper is very good at collecting pucks behind his net.
“The Jets played well”
Joel Armia and Josh Anderson scored for the Canadiens (20-42-11), which has lost three of its last four games. Montembeault made 31 saves.
Montembeault got his first start since March 27, after coming on to relieve Jake Allen, who was injured in the first period Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Allen had 11 starts in 12 Habs games since returning to action on March 17.
“Jake was playing good hockey. He gave us the best chance of winning. He was healthy, he had energy. The games were far apart, St. Louis listed to explain why Allen played so much. Before Jake came back, Sam also gave us some really good hockey. It was also an opportunity for Jake to grab his net and do his job.
“Tonight Sam was excellent and he gave us a chance to win. I’m not surprised. »
Morgan Barron had a goal and an assist, while Paul Stastny and Adam Lowry also moved the ropes for the Jets (35-28-11). Dylan Samberg had two assists and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 23 shots.
St-Louis had made three changes to its roster. Forwards Ryan Poehling, Paul Byron and Corey Schueneman replaced Michael Pezzetta, Tyler Pitlick and Chris Wideman.
The Canadian will be back in action on Wednesday when he visits the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Commendable effort, familiar result
It took more than 13 minutes of play before the teams got any real scoring chances. Hellebuyck was the first to stand out by catching a backhand shot from Cole Caufield. Montembeault then closed the door on Lowry seconds later.
The Canadian entered the score after 29 seconds of play in the second period. Armia benefited from a comeback after a fine climb from Christian Dvorak.
Montembeault made a brilliant mitt save against Svechnikov moments later, but the Jets beat him at 1:46. Barron got the ropes moving with a shot to the top of the mitt side.
Barron then set the table for Stastny, who beat Montembeault on an almost identical play at 4:00.
The rest of the period was the business of Montembeault, who multiplied the spectacular saves. The Habs goalie frustrated Stastny with his shield on a return, then had two more thefts off Svechnikov and Ehlers later. The crowd highlighted Montembeault’s work by chanting his name.
Montembeault was also rewarded by his teammates, who tied the game 2-2 after 6:19 of play in the third period. A long shot from Jeff Petry grazed Anderson’s leg before ending up in the goal.
The Jets, however, took the lead for good with 8:59 left in the third period. Svechnikov finally beat Montembeault with a low shot after a three-on-two attack.
Lowry completed the scoring in an empty net with 1:29 left on the clock.
Locker Room Echoes
Josh Anderson stressed that it was important for the Canadian to continue his learning.
“I don’t want to go into details, but we do a lot of video sessions and there’s a lot of teaching in everything we do. We are trying to get a little head start in anticipation of the next season. »
Brendan Gallagher noted that the future is bright, although wins continue to be scarce.
“For me, what’s exciting is seeing all these new faces that I wasn’t familiar with at the start of the season. We can see their potential and the role they will have in the long run. There are players who find themselves in important chairs and who have to face some of the best players in the world, particularly within our defensive brigade. We see how they can progress and that gives hope. »
Samuel Montembeault admitted to having appreciated the support of the spectators against the Jets.
“It was special to hear my name being chanted at the Bell Centre. I am happy with the work I am currently doing. I haven’t seen a lot of action lately, but it’s going well. It’s just a shame that on the third base I was caught on the heels when he cut in the middle. I tried to step forward to cut corners, but he fired a quick shot. »