It’s been a great story

Maxime Truman
It’s been a great story
Credit: YouTube (capture d'écran)

I feel like Patrice Roy on the night of a provincial or federal election this morning.

“If the trend continues, the Canadiens will be eliminated by the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday or Sunday night.”

Or like K-Maro, back in the LMDS days.

“It's a beautiful novel, it's a beautiful story.”

Let's be honest: the Montrealers are running on empty. Jakub Dobes was the only one who seemed in game shape yesterday at the Bell Centre.

It felt like I was watching the same game as Saturday night—it was a carbon copy…

Can we beat the Hurricanes? Absolutely! We did it three times during the regular season and repeated the feat in the first game of the series. But can we do it three more times in the next four games, when the Canadiens have played six more games than the Hurricanes since April 18? I don't think so. The circumstances just don't seem to be in our favor right now.

It looks like it's all over, as they say.

For the first time in ages, the Canadiens have just lost two consecutive games—in overtime, which is often tough on team morale—but more importantly, they lost two games they didn't deserve to win, in which they managed only 12 and then 13 shots on the opposing (very average) goalie. You can't expect to win many games playing like that.

For the past two games, the Habs have been clearly outplayed in shots on goal, scoring chances, and hits… Rod Brind'Amour made adjustments after Game 1, and neither Martin St-Louis nor his players were able to find a response to them.

Delivering three times as many hits as the opponent, dominating the neutral zone, being aggressive without the puck, making quick passes, taking a ton of shots… the Hurricanes (10-1 since the start of the playoffs) have found the recipe for success. They won't be changing it.

127-65: those are the check totals for each team over three games. I'll let you guess which one has 127…

Even with the latest lineup change and the support of the Montreal crowd, the Canadiens can't keep up with the Canes. Last night, it should have ended 5-1 (according to expected goals).

Last night, I felt like blaming Lane Hutson (he gave the puck away to the opponent in his zone during overtime), Cole Caufield, Jayden Struble, Kirby Dach, Kaiden Guhle (he may have played his worst game in a Canadiens uniform: -2, several turnovers, and two minor penalties), Joe Veleno, Alexandre Texier, Alexandre Carrier, Noah Dobson, the referees—you name it…

But above all, I told myself: we have to give credit to the Hurricanes. They impose themselves, dominate, know how to adjust, are willing to pay the price, and have come this far in their process. I hope, for the 567th time, that Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton are taking notes and that they'll add some muscle to their roster this summer. Playoff hockey isn't the same as regular-season hockey. Just ask Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson, who were hit in the head without a penalty being called…

The Habs are 2-5 at the Bell Centre in the playoffs: will they be able to give some positive excitement to the fans who will pay a fortune to cheer them on tomorrow night?

To do so, Guhle and Carrier will need to play better than they did yesterday, in particular.

A week ago, I predicted on Qub Radio that the Canadiens would win Game 1, followed by a series win for the Hurricanes. Unfortunately, that's exactly what we're seeing right now.

The Canadiens in the 2026 playoffs—it's been a great run, but I'm afraid the team's coffin is ready. That said, I hope we'll still celebrate the “passing” of the CH when it happens. Because the departed has given us some wonderful, unifying moments together.

No, potentially replacing Jayden Struble with Arber Xhekaj or Adam Engstrom isn't going to change everything… but at this point, why not give it a try?

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