Lane Hutson: “It was a crappy game”

The Canadiens are dead. Long live the Canadiens!

Obviously, they aren't really “dead.” But let's just say that with three straight wins needed against the Hurricanes, the challenge seems completely insurmountable right now.

The way the Habs are playing, it's hard to see them making it to the Stanley Cup Final. And that's even though Martin St-Louis has already overcome a 1-3 deficit.

The people who follow the team are well aware of this. And that obviously includes the fans in the stands, who once again urged the guys to shoot.

You can't make this stuff up.

“Shoot the puck!” – the crowd pic.twitter.com/DEhKZsdzrl

— TVA Sports (@TVASports) May 28, 2026

After games with 12 and 13 shots, the Habs had 18 shots yesterday. That makes a total of 43 shots in three losses… and the Hurricanes had no fewer than 43 shots on goal yesterday.

The Canes don't have Patrick Roy in net. Challenging the opposing goalie might be a good idea.

In the third period—the one where the players should have shown a bit more sense of urgency—the Canes led 19-3 in shots. And that's why making a comeback, as St. Louis mentioned, is an… unlikely scenario.

There are limits to running out of gas in the tank.

The skaters didn't step up (Jakub Dobes isn't a skater—he's a goalie) during the game, and Lane Hutson wasn't afraid to say so at the press conference.

He said it was a shitty game. And he's right.

Lane Hutson didn't mince his words when asked about the Habs' performance in their Game 4 loss. #StanleyCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/DKfeVpxFBm

— BarDown (@BarDown) May 28, 2026

We saw the Canadiens' management not liking what they were seeing from the press box. We also saw Martin St-Louis not being the most impressed of the men behind his bench at certain moments during the game.

The atmosphere is heavy, and you can feel it.

At least the players know what they need to work on moving forward. And the experience of a semifinal series will help the Habs' core as they move forward.

So there are positives… but not really in the short term.

overtime

The Canadiens won't practice before heading to Carolina for Game 5, which takes place tomorrow night. The guys won't hit the ice there either.

At 4:30 p.m., at the hotel in Carolina, there will be a media availability.