Jacob Fowler didn’t help himself yesterday

Charles-Alexis Brisebois
Jacob Fowler didn’t help himself yesterday
Credit: Getty Images

Yesterday, the Canadiens hit a wall. The Sabres of 2026 are clearly nothing like the Sabres of recent years.

In a 5-3 loss for Martin St-Louis' men, it's clear that there were elements that contributed to the setback. In some respects, the Habs shot themselves in the foot.

Cursed indiscipline, for example, was one of them.

But let's face it: yesterday, Jacob Fowler wasn't up to the task. He didn't have a great game in front of the Canadiens' net… or behind it, for that matter. He didn't always play the puck well.

Renaud Lavoie(BPM Sports) is also right to point out that the four goals the American allowed were on the blocker side. The Sabres had done their homework in this respect.

We agree that at times, the man-to-man system looked poorly applied on the ice (say hello to Lane Hutson on the fourth goal) by the Montreal defense. We also agree that the Habs' numerous penalties put pressure on Fowler.

And we'll certainly agree that some shots were virtually unstoppable.

But still: Fowler didn't necessarily inspire confidence last night. He left some holes to shoot at, and the Sabres, the NHL's club of the hour, couldn't have asked for more.

The result? The Canadiens lost.

(Credit: NHL.com)

Of course, one wonders whether this game will convince (or help convince, at least) the Canadiens to send the goalie back to the AHL soon.

The young goaltender has won just one of his five games since the holidays. He has, however, faced some big clubs on a regular basis, in his defense.

(Credit: ESPN)

He's looked good more often than not, but the idea of playing him in Laval is certainly up for debate. And without a two-games-in-two-nights sequence between now and March, having three goalies becomes less of a necessity, let's say.

Let's see which Jakub/Jacob the Habs send to Laval next.

But it's not just the goaltender's outfit that's to blame for the Canadiens' setback. Several players on the ice also had their say, for good and bad reasons.

What do I remember from yesterday's game?

1. The Canadiens' indiscipline has to stop. Since January 1, the Canadiens have had the most shorthanded goals in the NHL (31).

Yesterday, the Sabres had four powerplays and the Habs sent six different guys to the penalty box. The home team couldn't have asked for more, having capitalized twice in similar circumstances in the first period.

2. Speaking of the power play: bringing back Lane Hutson (two assists) and Ivan Demidov (one goal) on the first power play paid off.

The Habs even scored at five-on-three, when Ivan Demidov mistook himself for… Tage Thompson.

3. The Habs' youngsters didn't lead the club to victory. But in fact, they have more often than not this season. And just yesterday, they tried.

As a result, the Habs became the first NHL club to have four 40-point scorers this season.

4. The good news? Martin St-Louis liked his players' effort. Execution wasn't always up to scratch, of course, but the coach didn't think the guys were dragging their feet.

Phillip Danault's line, in particular, didn't have it easy when it came to execution.

5. At one point, the Canadiens thought they had tied the game in the first. Alexandre Texier, on the strength of his new contract, thought his shot had found the back of the net.

But it didn't. That could have changed the game.


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On this Friday, January 16, the Canadiens players will be skating in Ottawa at 1 p.m. The goal? To prepare for tomorrow night's big game in Ontario.

Will the Habs be relying on Samuel Montembeault for this duel? We'll see.

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