A completely gassed Montreal Canadiens roster rolled into Tennessee on Sunday, looking to keep building their lead on the final playoff spot in the East. Awaiting them were the Nashville Predators, who have already been eliminated from playoff contention, and have nothing left to play for but pride, and the role of spoilers. The Habs found a way to get it done, edging the Preds 2-1 to maintain their hold on that final spot.
As mentioned, they were gassed, so this win was authored by none other than their backup goaltender, Jakub Dobeš.
Not sure Jakub Dobes is getting quite enough credit for that win last night pic.twitter.com/QelM7c7LnW
— Matt Drake (@DrakeMT) April 7, 2025
The fatigue argument when it comes to back-to-back games in the NHL often falls on deaf ears. Personally, I’m of the opinion that most professional athletes should be in the kind of shape that allows them to perform for these, but you have to give some consideration to the fact that we’re 77 games deep into the season, and this wasn’t just a back-to-back, it was their third game in four days. It was obvious from the start that the Habs were completely out of gas, and up against a well-rested Preds team that hadn’t played since last Thursday.
Dobeš completely neutralized that advantage. There was an element of chaos to his performance – allowing some concerning rebounds throughout the night – but he battled hard in his crease, and gave the Habs the saves they needed. He was undoubtedly the MVP in earning two points that turned out to be extremely important with Detroit winning their game against Florida. It kept their lead on the final wild card spot exactly where it was earlier in the day, and this before their final meeting with Detroit on Tuesday.
It is good to know that he has performances like this in him, despite the fact that most of the action of late has been given to Samuel Montembeault. Dobeš will certainly be asked to try and pull this off again, as the Habs are not done with back-to-backs – they’ll have one this Friday and Saturday, which is part of a season-ending stretch where they’ll play four games in six days. How many wins they need in that stretch will depend on what happens with the teams chasing them, but knowing their backup can step up like that should give them some confidence to get the job done.
The playoffs are within their grasp, and all they have to do now is finish the season as strong as they can.
Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes, also available wherever you get your podcasts. We’ll be back for what might be the most important remaining game on the calendar, as the Detroit Red Wings will visit the Bell Centre on Tuesday night.
