Hockey

Arber Xhekaj must play on Wednesday (because Jeff Gorton must learn from his mistakes)
Charles-Alexis Brisebois
Arber Xhekaj must play on Wednesday (because Jeff Gorton must learn from his mistakes)
Credit: Getty Images

You know the story of Jeff Gorton.

The former Rangers GM was fired because Tom Wilson injured Artemi Panarin in 2021 and the big boss (the owner) in New York didn't like to see his club so soft and so shuffled.

The Rangers didn't have what it took to strike back at Wilson. And it showed.

Now it's 2025. And once again, a Jeff Gorton team (the Canadian, this time) has seen Tom Wilson rule: yesterday, Jeff Gorton's club didn't play the way it's capable of playing because of the Caps player.

Mind you, we're not saying that Wilson completely annihilated the Habs. It would be disrespectful to Josh Anderson (playoff version) to say that Wilson has completely slowed the club down.

But without a doubt, he led his team in that style. And it took a while for the Montreal Canadiens to adapt and get into yesterday's game.

The CH playing catch-up field hockey? No, no, no…

Even though the club ended up pushing the game into overtime(before losing 3-2), you have to wonder what it would have been like if Martin St-Louis' men had been able to start the game on time.

Perhaps the result would have been different. Perhaps…

After all, if the club had been a little more protected, maybe all the guys would have felt a little bigger more quickly in the game and it would have produced different results.

And I'm not just talking about the officiating (although that's a factor): I'm talking about keeping the Capitals calm.

That's when we come back to Jeff Gorton and think he needs to learn from his mistakes by asking his coach to play Arber Xhekaj for Game #2 of the series.

When my colleague Maxime Truman wrote a piece called “Arber Xhekaj: the guy who may save Jeff Gorton's job” last October, he may not have known how right he was.

IF the Sheriff were to be in uniform tomorrow, the Capitals, by necessity, would be calmer.

Whether it's taking Jayden Struble or Emil Heineman (I doubt the CH wants to play with 11 forwards, though) out of the lineup, WiFi has to be there as a forwardfor Wednesday's game.

In the playoffs, everyone has to play their part (the famous ” do your job” of the champion New England Patriots has never been truer than in the playoffs) and do it to the best of their ability.

Not seeing Xhekaj reminded us of his importance – to fans, at least.

And yesterday, when we saw that the Sheriff wasn't there to do his job against a big team like the Capitals (and in a game where the referees had put away their whistles… and we'll talk more about that today), we saw that it really changed the game for the Habs.

But the more time passes, the more we wonder what the CH thinks of #72…

But hey. The absent defenseman isn't the only player we need to talk about.

What can I take away from Game #1 of the series, the first for the Habs since the 2021 final against the Lightning? Which players stood out for the Flanelle?

1. The Habs may not have an Alex Ovechkin, but one of the club's top scorers, Cole Caufield, managed to score his team's first goal when the club needed it.

And Nick Suzuki, who has done quite a bit for the CH this year, scored his first playoff goal as captain of the Flanelle. If only Juraj Slafkovsky could finish a little better…

2. In the end, the CH didn't look bad, even if the guys were nervous. It wasn't downgraded and it adapted… but it took a period of adjustment.

Lane Hutson is one who adapted quickly. Even though he's small and his game was shaky, he still found a way to pick up two assists in his first playoff game. It's a first for a defenseman in the club's history.

3. Mike Matheson has big responsibilities on the ice, but his defensive coverage isn't always up to scratch. And yesterday, it would have taken a little more from him.

It's been an issue for a few weeks now.

4. Samuel Montembeault was excellent in front of his net. He made good saves at the right times (especially early in the game) to keep his team in the game.

The two Canadian goalkeepers did their jobs well: Monty made 29 saves and Logan Thompson 33 on his return to action.

5. Alex Ovechkin is the kind of guy you don't see all game… but he scores the first goal of the game and finds the back of the net for the first time in his career in playoff overtime.

And all game long, he's been hitting.

6. Martin St-Louis is right: yesterday, his boys learned. Many of them had never played in the playoffs… the majority hadn't made the playoffs in years… and only two guys (David Savard, Alex Newhook) have a ring.

In the end, the coach can be proud of his boys, despite the defeat. It's going to take a quick win, but one thing at a time.


extension

The Canadiens must move on to prepare for Game 2 of the series. That's tomorrow, again in Washington. Winning this game would give them back home-ice advantage.

Martin St-Louis will lead a training session at 12:30 p.m. in Washington.

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