Dylan Larkin caused a lot of damage to the Canadiens on Saturday night. Not only did the Detroit Red Wings star forward not only score two goals, including victory, but he was also the source of an injury that could prove costly to Montrealers.
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The Canadian lost 3-2 in overtime, and he could have lost the services of goaltender Jake Allen, who left the game after being the victim of a violent collision with Larkin.
Allen gave way to Samuel Montembeault at the end of the first period, and the Quebecer finished the game with 22 more saves in front of the CH net. Allen’s state of health is not yet known, but it doesn’t bode well.
“There is nothing confirmed yet [au sujet d’une commotion cérébrale], but it will be necessary to see with the therapists, is limited to say the head coach Dominique Ducharme, rather gloomy.
After the game, the CH proceeded to the preventive recall of goalkeeper Cayden Primeau of the Rocket de Laval. He will join the team in Boston for Sunday night’s game against the Bruins.
At the other end of the ice, Alex Nedeljkovic repelled 35 shots aimed at the Red Wings goal.
Ryan Poehling and Chris Wideman hit the target for the Canadian (4-10-2), who was trying to score a second straight victory.
Pius Suter completed the scoring for the Red Wings (8-6-2), who had already lost 6-1 and 3-0 to CH at the Bell Center earlier this season.
The first period was the story of the Canadiens’ fourth line, made up of Poehling, Michael Pezzetta and Alex Belzile. He worked very hard during the first period and knocked on Nedeljkovic’s door several times.
Poehling was ultimately rewarded for his relentlessness, having found the back of the Red Wings net with a precise wrist shot, 4:39 of the first frame. It was his first goal of the season, and his second in his last 10 NHL games.
“He scored a great goal in the first period. It was a nice play from Pezzetta to push the puck deep into their territory. It was a simple game, and Poehling fired a good shot. […] They had a good time together tonight, ”admitted Ducharme.
The sky then fell on the head of the Bleu-blanc-rouge.
With less than a minute to go in the first engagement, Larkin tried to outflank Jeff Petry by rushing towards Allen. The Habs defender then gave a violent push in the back of the Red Wings striker, who ended his race by hitting the head of Allen. He then had to leave the game, being subject to the league’s concussion screening protocol.
In Allen’s absence, Montembeault started the second period in goal for the Canadiens. The Quebecer, barely warmed up, unfortunately gave in on the first two shots aimed at him – courtesy of Larkin and Suter – in an interval of 45 seconds.
The match had just changed. But the Canadian had not said his last word.
Artturi Lehkonen orchestrated a beautiful individual play that set the table for Wideman’s equalizer, at 2:33 of the third period.
The game ended up in overtime, and Larkin sealed the outcome of the game at 1:41 into extra time.
” He [Montembeault] answered well after [les deux buts concédés], he made some important stops. It’s another funny game, another situation we had never experienced before. But in general, I don’t have much to say. We would have liked to get the second point, which we deserved, but at the end of the day we didn’t, ”said Ducharme, visibly disappointed.
It was already the third meeting this season between the Canadian and the Red Wings. For the occasion, head coach Dominique Ducharme chose the status quo in terms of his squad compared to the last game against the Calgary Flames.
Cloakroom echoes
Chris Wideman doesn’t want to blame Dylan Larkin for the contact with Jake Allen:
“I know Larkin well and I know he’s not a bastard player. But it was a blow to our starting goalie. It’s hard to swallow. ”
Samuel Montembeault would have liked to have had a better start in the second period:
“It’s never easy to come home cold like that after being on the bench. The first pitch, of course, was precise, but I should have stopped it from an angle like that. Then it went well all the same. It was a two-on-one and I made a good save. I conceded two goals quickly, and it’s a shame, because we would have liked it to have a better outcome. ”
Ryan Poehling seemed relieved to have finally found the back of the net:
“It was special, obviously, because it had been a while [que j’avais marqué mon dernier but dans la LNH]. However, we all fell asleep in the second period, and that’s unforgivable in the NHL. Otherwise, we played well, especially towards the end of the game, but unfortunately it was not in our favor. ”