First period
- The Blue Jackets need these points more, and they’re playing like it early. The Canadiens are getting caught off guard, and now trail 1-0 on a goal by Boone Jenner.
- After he gave the puck away to set up the offensive-zone time of Columbus, Mike Matheson then gets his hand on Kirill Marchenko’s hip to take a holding penalty.
- The power play is killed, but shots are 9-0 Columbus after four minutes of play.
- Montreal’s best shift is put together by the second line, with Ivan Demidov setting up Alexandre Texier for a shot.
- After the line change, Cole Caufield finds Juraj Slafkovský in a bit of space, but the Slovak’s bid for 31 clanks off the post.
- It appears the Habs have started playing now.
- The Blue Jackets complete a tic-tac-toe passing play right through the duo of Noah Dobson and Matheson and take a 2-0 lead.
- The Canadiens are back in it. After frustrating Nikita Kucherov all night on Thursday, Josh Anderson completes a nice passing play from Lane Hutson and Jake Evans to reduce the deficit to one.
- Hutson almost has his second assist of the period as he threads the puck through to Demidov’s stick at the top of the crease. As the defenceman regained the puck and carried it around the top of the zone, he was cross-checked down by Erik Gudbranson, sending the Canadiens to their first power play.
- Montreal needs to power play to get going. It didn’t even get set up this time.
- The Canadiens get a last-second shot looking to tie the game, but Jet Greaves makes a glove save.
- Kirby Dach and Dante Fabbro get coincidental roughing minors as the period end with a scrum around the Columbus crease.
Second period
- Not coincidental penalties, the game is at four-on-four. I don’t know what determines which strength the game will be played at when a penalty is called on each team at the same time.
- Ivan Provorov uses Dobson as a screen and sends the puck in over Dobeš’s shoulder. Columbus’s two-goal lead is restored.
- It’s 4-1 Columbus as Sean Monahan scores. It’s the first time the Canadiens have allowed four goals since holding a meeting about the defence following back-to-back losses to San Jose and Anaheim over a month ago. They just aren’t interested in putting the effort into this game.
- Montreal is gaining possession of the puck, and then shoving it up the ice right back into the clutched off the Blue Jackets. The crowd is beginning the boo the effort it’s seeing.
- It feels like Xhekaj is going to hit 25 minutes tonight. He’s playing a lot as focus shifts to resting the top players, and to his credit he has been the Canadiens’ most noticeable player.
- A loud cheer from the crowd as the Habs carry the puck out of the zone.
- Hutson gets tripped as Montreal’s attempts a breakout. If nothing else, there’s another chance to work on generating something from the power play.
- This time they get set up, and put several shots on Greaves. It will go back to work when the third period begins.
Third period
- We’ve entered “set up Nick Suzuki” mode.
- Minutes after the Canadiens announce that Dobson won’t return to the game, Anderson goes down awkwardly in the corner on a cross-check from Jake Christiansen.
- Tired of how nonchalantly the Habs are approaching the power play, Caufield speeds onto a pass and rips a shot from right at the bottom of the circle into the 13-hole to make it a 4-2 game.
- Nick Suzuki registered point number 99 on the play.
- Matheson punches Adam Fantilli in front of his net, and will watch the Blue Jackets go to work on the power play.
- A big hit by Xhekaj leads to a two-on-one for Anderson and Phillip Danault. Anderson cuts to the middle and forces Greaves to make a glove save.
- Dobeš makes a save and holds the puck on his pad, but several whacks from the Blue Jackets knock him off balance and the puck comes free. The initial call on the ice was a goal, but after a conference among the officials, the call is changed to goalie interference to take the goal off the board.
- Demidov takes a cross-check in the shoulders and falls head-first into the boards without the puck being in his vicinity. A vicious hit from the Blue Jackets’ best player will give Caufield another two minutes with some open space.
- Demidov has to go to the room to address the bloody nose he got on the hit.
- Suzuki gets a shot that dribbles off the glove of Greaves and continues off its path, but slides just wide.
- A too-familiar two-on-one versus Montreal’s power play leads to holding call on Alexandre Texier, who had taken Demidov’s spot on the top unit.
- The Habs are starting to complain about every call, so I think that means they’ve engaged themselves in the game now.
- With the power play now in their favour, the Blue Jackets convert to make it 5-2.
- Demidov winds up an blasts a one-timer from Hutson that needs a lunging save from Greaves.
- It looks like everyone wants their last shift to be a good one, so the Canadiens put the pressure on for the final two minutes.
- Montreal will end its home schedule with a 24-15-2 record.
- Not the send off the team or the fans were hoping for, but the Habs will return to the Bell Centre in a week or so, when the energy will be a playoff levels for everyone involved.
- The Canadiens will head to Long Island for a game tomorrow night, before heading to Philadelphia for the season finale on Tuesday.
EOTP 3 Stars
3) He just needs an apple a day the rest of the way
2) It might be for the best
1) He’s going to be a nuisance for whoever has to face him
