The Canadiens join the Sabres at the top of the division

Raphael Simard
The Canadiens join the Sabres at the top of the division
Credit: DansLesCoulisses.com

For the second time in 23 hours, the CH faced a big game against a Metropolitan Division team in the thick of the playoff race.

Jacob Fowler was back in net for the first time in a week.

Here are the lineups:

David Reinbacher was paired with Arber Xhekaj for his first NHL game.

The best chance of the first period went to Juraj Slafkovsky.

He was unable to capitalize.

In the second period, the Habs woke up.

They scored three goals in 55 seconds. On the first goal, Nick Suzuki recorded his 100th point of the season.

On the second goal, he set up Ivan Demidov, who scored his 19th goal.

101st point for the captain.

And on the third goal (by Alex Newhook), David Reinbacher recorded his first NHL point.

And in the shadow of these impressive milestones, Lane Hutson tied Larry Robinson for the most assists in a single season by a Habs defenseman.

Last year, Hutson had 66 points. This season, he has 66 assists.

The Islanders cut the lead, denying Jacob Fowler a shutout.

But it was too little, too late.

Final score: 4-1 Canadiens, who added a late goal courtesy of Bolduc. The Islanders are officially eliminated. In fact, none of the three New York teams will make the playoffs.

Martin St-Louis's squad will wrap up its season on Tuesday in Philadelphia. They'll need to earn at least one point to have any hope of finishing first in the division.

Keep in mind that they don't hold the tiebreaker against either the Sabres—who face the Blackhawks and the Stars—or the Lightning—who face the Red Wings and the Rangers.


Overtime

– Oh, really? He was on the ice for a few seconds, but unfortunately, he didn't find the back of the net.

– Good to hear.

– Jacob Fowler played well tonight. He may have lost his shutout, but he still stopped 31 of the 32 shots he faced.

– It's definitely different.

– Note to self.

– A hard hit.

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