(Ottawa) The Canadian was unable to close the door on one of his pet peeves.
View the match summary
Drake Batherson scored in a shootout and the Ottawa Senators defeated the Montreal team 5-4 on Saturday night at the Canadian Tire Center
Batherson was the only player to move the strings in the shootout. He scored with a precise shot from the glove side.
The Canadian squandered four one-goal leads and finally suffered a ninth straight loss against the Senators, but a first in a tiebreaker during this stretch.
Cole Caufield scored twice to smash his career high with 27 goals this season. Mike Matheson and Newhook were credited with a goal and an assist each for the Canadian (30-36-14). David Savard accumulated two assists and Cayden Primeau stopped 40 shots.
Brady Tkachuk had two goals and an assist for the Senators (36-40-4). Shane Pinto and Thomas Chabot also hit the target, while Batherson, Claude Giroux and Jake Sanderson collected two, two and three assists respectively. Joonas Korpisalo made 21 saves.
The Senators lost forward Mark Kastelic early in the first period. He was hit in the side of the head by a shot from Johnathan Kovacevic.
Forward Jesse Ylönen was back in the Canadian lineup after being left out of the previous four games. Tanner Pearson gave way to him.
The Canadian will play his last two games of the season against the Red Wings, Monday in Detroit and Tuesday in Montreal.
After signing his rookie contract with the Canadian on Friday, defender Lane Hutson will join his new teammates on Sunday in Detroit.
The cat and the Mouse
The Canadian opened the scoring 9:11 into the first period. Matheson thwarted Korpisalo with a nice feint during a shorthanded breakaway.
Tkachuk responded with 6:52 left in the first period. He deflected a shot from the blue line by Sanderson and scored on his own return.
The Canadiens’ head coach, Martin St-Louis, contested the goal, believing that Tkachuk had obstructed Primeau. NHL video officials did not agree with St. Louis.
Caufield gave the Canadian a 2-1 lead 1:37 into the second period. He took advantage of a comeback after a point shot from Jayden Struble.
The 23-year-old American almost scored again about a minute later. He went for it twice after receiving a cross-ice pass from Juraj Slafkovsky, but the puck traveled along the goal line behind Korpisalo before being cleared by defenseman Jakob Chychrun.
Pinto tied the game 2-2 at 8:36 on the power play. Giroux joined him in the slot and he scored on a one-timer.
Caufield came back with 6:55 left in the second period, on the power play. He scored with a precise shot into the corner from the top side of Korpisalo’s shield.
Tkachuk imitated his rival by scoring his second goal of the game 47 seconds into the third period, again on the power play. He received a pass at the mouth of the net, then scored with a backhand shot.
Both goalkeepers preserved the tie thanks to good saves. Korpisalo stood out in particular on point-blank shots from Josh Anderson and Jake Evans. For his part, Primeau frustrated Ridley Greig.
It took a lucky jump for Newhook to give the Canadian the lead again with 4:11 to go. His throw to Joel Armia deflected against Chychrun’s skate before crossing the goal line.
Chabot, however, brought everyone back to square one with 65 seconds left in regulation, after Korpisalo had been replaced by an additional attacker. Installed in the slot, the Quebec defender deflected a shot from Batherson into the upper part of the net.
Nick Suzuki had the best chance to score in overtime, but the Canadian captain was unable to beat Korpisalo.
Batherson ultimately played the hero in the shootout.
In details
Matheson in pursuit of Chelios
Obviously not satisfied with his already extraordinary haul of 60 points, Mike Matheson added two to his record on Saturday. He first scored a beautiful goal while shorthanded: taking advantage of the confusion of the Senators at the CH blue line, he stepped on the accelerator and sped alone to Joonas Korpisalo, whom he beat with a clever feint. With this 11e goal, he also equaled a personal best. Then, it was he who handed the disc to Caufield on the striker’s second goal of the match, which gave his club a 3-2 lead. With 62 points, Matheson now ranks 14e rank in Canadian history for a defender in one season. With two games remaining, the team record of 85, held by Larry Robinson, is obviously unattainable. However, if he reached the 65 mark, Matheson would sign the best production of a Montreal guard in 35 years, since Chris Chelios’ 73 points in 1988-1989.
Misses short of a man
The Canadian’s numerical disadvantage was sublime on Thursday evening, completely handcuffing the massive attack of the New York Islanders. In Ottawa, things went a little less well: the Senators took advantage of six power plays to score their first three goals. Brady Tkachuk twice took advantage of loose coverage around the net from Cayden Primeau. And Shane Pinto completed a perfect back pass from Claude Giroux, while the Canadian’s defensive squad seemed disoriented. It was a night to forget for the duo of Jake Evans and Joel Armia, who were on the ice for all three goals. “We took too many penalties and we had trouble with their numerical advantage,” analyzed Martin St-Louis. There is, in fact, not much to add on this subject. Primeau took the blame for the Senators’ goals, all scored with an extra man – the last one was scored six against five. “The goalie is supposed to be the best player on the penalty kill,” he said. This is a harsh criticism. But it’s not wrong that he didn’t save his club either.
Waiting for Lane Hutson
Martin St-Louis was cautious on Saturday morning in his remarks towards Lane Hutson. The young defender, dominant on the American college circuit, signed his first professional contract on Friday, and he will meet his new teammates on Sunday in Detroit. Even if his coach has not commented on his participation in Monday’s game against the Red Wings, we can bet that the new number 48 of the Habs will experience his NHL baptism that day. Many fans are excited to see this offensive prodigy make the jump to the Canadian, but at 5’10” and a little over 160 pounds, he will have his work cut out for him to compete against older and, above all, older players. tougher than him. “So far, he has proven at all levels that he has what it takes to have an impact in a match,” agreed St-Louis. There, we will have to see if he is capable of continuing to do that at this level. » The pilot, moreover, claims not to have had much time to study Hutson’s game. “What I see is a little bit of his highlights. It’s sure it’s fun to watch, but I like seeing the whole match. »
Simon-Olivier Lorange, The Press