Losers of two straight in regulation, the Montreal Canadiens took to their home ice on Saturday night to face the Boston Bruins, hoping to end their home stand on a high note. That didn’t happen, as Boston escaped Montreal with a 3-2 regulation win, sending the Habs on their short one-game road trip still looking to figure out how they can get themselves back in the win column.
Squandering an infuriating amount of opportunities on the power play was, without a doubt, the main reason for this latest loss.
The Habs had a lot of time to capitalize on the 5-on-3 power play and only lost by one to the Bruins. 😬 pic.twitter.com/gVK6idMjgC
— BarDown (@BarDown) November 16, 2025
That isn’t a typo. The Habs had two separate five-on-three power plays, both rather long in duration, and had nothing to show for them. During the second one, the fans at the Bell Centre were audibly jeering them, begging for some shots on goal instead of their lackadaisical passing around the perimeter.
It was perhaps the most frustrating watch of the season, because it was one of the few games where they got just about every call they should have. Ever since some of them spoke out against the officiating in that Edmonton game, it has felt like the refs were keeping the whistles away on them a bit. After watching that game, one can’t help but wonder if those officials were simply trying to spare the fans from having to watch their utter futility with a man, or even multi-man advantage.
Finishing at five-on-five is still a problem, as they outshot and out-chanced the Bruins, but also failed to score in that setting. Still, they absolutely need some production from their power play, or they’ll continue to lose tight games like this one. They hilariously managed to get production out of their other special teams – a goal at four-on-four and one shorthanded – but you simply can’t squander that many opportunities and expect to win in the NHL.
It has to improve, and quickly. They will get a three-day break between Monday night and this coming Thursday, and that should be the primary focus of any and all practices between those dates.
Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes, also available wherever you get your podcasts. We’ll be back on Monday night to cover the one-game road trip to Ohio, where the Habs will meet the Columbus Blue Jackets.
