(Washington) The Canadian’s key players made us forget the departure of Sean Monahan and the team quickly found good feelings upon his return to work.
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Nick Suzuki scored twice in a 57-second span in the first period and also had an assist, Samuel Montembeault stopped 37 shots and the Montreal hockey club defeated the Washington Capitals 5-2 on Tuesday at Capital One Arena.
Both teams looked rusty at times as they returned to action following their bye week associated with hosting the NHL All-Star Game.
The Canadian could have looked bad, weakened by the departure of veteran Monahan, traded to the Winnipeg Jets on Friday. Instead, he took advantage of the Capitals’ generosity to take control of the game, before clinging to a three-goal lead.
“It was good to finish the first period with a 3-0 lead. It made us realize that we would be OK, said head coach Martin St-Louis, referring to Monahan’s departure. The league continues and we continue too. »
PHOTO GEOFF BURKE, USA TODAY SPORTS VIA REUTERS CON
Washington Capitals goaltender Darcy Kuemper (35) makes a save on Montreal Canadiens right winger Cole Caufield.
Juraj Slafkovsky also scored twice in a game for the first time in his NHL career.
“He (Slafkovsky) always works on his throwing in training and he has improved it a lot since the start of the season,” said Montembeault. He used it well tonight and scored two big goals. »
Michael Pezzetta also scored for the Canadian (21-21-8). Mike Matheson had two assists.
Alex Ovechkin and Rasmus Sandin responded for the Capitals (22-19-7), while Dylan Strome had two assists. Charlie Lindgren allowed three goals on nine shots before giving way to Darcy Kuemper after 13:07 of play. Kuemper made 15 saves.
Quebecer Brandon Gignac played his first game with the Canadian, and his second career in the NHL. He was deployed in the center of Josh Anderson and Joel Armia and was used for 14:26 of play.
“It was good. I felt comfortable on the ice,” said Gignac. I was playing with two very good players and it was easy to adapt. »
On the blue line, Jordan Harris was left out, while Arber Xhekaj was back in the lineup.
The Canadian will play his next two matches in the afternoon this weekend. It will host the Dallas Stars on Saturday, then host the St. Louis Blues on Sunday.
Ideal start
PHOTO NICK WASS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Michael Pezzetta (55) and Rafael Harvey-Pinard (49)
Suzuki struck for the first time 6:42 into the first period. He took advantage of a nice lifted pass from Cole Caufield to score with a one-timer at the end of a three-on-one attack.
On the sequence, Caufield collected a point in a 10e match in a row.
Suzuki came back at 7:39. Xhekaj hit the post with a long throw. The puck then went to Suzuki, who threaded the needle despite the difficult angle.
Pezzetta then ended Lindgren’s night of work by beating him with 6:53 left in the first period. Rafaël Harvey-Pinard set the table with a pass from behind the net.
The second period was the affair of the Capitals, who had a 16-5 advantage in shots on goal.
Ovechkin finally got his team on the scoreboard after 6:03 of play. He scored his 10e goal of the season and his 832e in career, shooting into an open net after a pass from Strome.
Defenseman David Savard came to Montembeault’s rescue during a Capitals power play midway through the middle period. Max Pacioretty thought he had a gaping cage in front of him, but Savard blocked the former Habs captain’s shot.
“I saw somewhere that someone called him ‘David Savior’! I’m going to owe him dinner after this game,” said Montembeault with a big smile.
Montembeault also allowed the Canadian to return to the locker room with a two-goal lead thanks to some good saves, notably against Nic Dowd and Martin Fehervary.
Slafkovsky widened the gap to three goals with 8:41 remaining, while the teams were playing four against four. Jake Evans drew two rivals, then joined the 19-year-old Slovak, who beat Kuemper with a high shot from the glove side.
However, the Capitals responded 22 seconds later. Sandin beat Montembeault with a powerful one-timer.
Sandin almost cut the lead to a single goal moments later. Montembeault stole a goal from Strome during a three-on-two attack, then frustrated the Swedish defender on the return.
Slafkovsky came back with 5:59 left in the third period, during a power play. This time, he beat Kuemper with a one-timer that was as powerful as it was precise.
“The second period wasn’t our best, but “Monty” (Montembeault) made some great saves, then we corrected our mistakes in the third period,” said St-Louis. We managed the match well, our lead, then we managed to distance ourselves. »
“When you can put the nail in the coffin on the power play like that, it helps,” he concluded.