The Montreal Canadiens entered their final game of 2025 looking for a win in Florida. Somehow, the Canadiens beat the Stanley Cup champions four straight games the previous campaign, and they came through again Tuesday with a 3-2 comeback overtime win.
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Sam Montembeault knew he had to change his fortunes against the Panthers. Montembeault had one of the worst goals saved above expected (GSAE) and save percentages in all of the NHL when he was sent to the minors. It couldn’t continue because he knows he is running out of chances.
Montembeault didn’t have to steal the game, but he had to stay in it. He had to give Montreal a chance to win. Early, it was clear that he was focused. It was 25 seconds between the whistle and the faceoff early in the first, and Montembeault remained fixated on the next draw. He wouldn’t even look at anything else but the faceoff dot.
On the nine saves he made in the first period, it was clear that he was concentrating on his form. He tried to get absolutely square to the shot. He didn’t have any truly difficult shots, but it looked like when he faced a high-danger chance, he would be ready for it.
In the second period, he did face two such chances late when the Panthers were given back-to-back power plays, and Montembeault was ready for it. He was square to the puck. He deserved to make the stops.
However, he didn’t have any scoring help, so in the third period, he knew he still had to be perfect. As good as he had been, nothing was settled in his favour. Every save had to be made. He finally broke down on a perfect shot from Brad Marchand off the post and in.
He followed that by letting in the type of goal that is a weakness of the reverse VH technique. It’s the established technique, but from a bad angle, a great shooter can target the top of the net and the goalie just can’t get tall enough.
It looks like a bad goal, but coaches have analyzed the numbers. They figured out that allowing that spot for the perfect shot is higher percentage goaltending than the old style of standing up to allow the easier low shot to possibly score. It’s all about math, but that doesn’t change a goalie looking bad when he allows it.
Montembeault’s night was strong with a save percentage of .933 and a GSAE of 1.09. Those are outstanding numbers, but more than that, in his head, he’s got something to build on to find the form of previous seasons.
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Another change, besides the return of the goalie who led the Canadiens to the playoffs last season in his 62 games, was Alexandre Texier joining Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield on the first line. Suzuki’s line with Zachary Bolduc was having an awful time.
Usually, Suzuki’s line spends most of its time in the opposition zone, but recently, they have been getting caved in. In the first period, Texier had two quality chances. The first was from 20 feet and the second from only five feet. Neither was converted, but it was a positive start.
In the second period, Texier was in front of the net taking punishment, but he persevered enough to have a third quality chance on a pass from Lane Hutson. Texier was doing the good work, and the hard work.
In the third period, justifiably, it was that line that scored. Caufield was outstanding on the tally for his 19th goal of the season, moving in from the blue line to beat everyone.
With the goalie pulled, the Canadiens continued to pour it on. Ivan Demidov won the puck behind the net. He fed Suzuki, who tied it with his 12th of the season. The Canadiens bench erupted. Another late comeback for Montreal.
The first line had a 78 per cent expected goals share in the first period and kept that going throughout the night, finishing with an 81 per cent share. That’s a marked improvement from the abysmal totals of the last two weeks. The change to Texier definitely worked.
That brought us to overtime, when the Canadiens earned a power play. Hutson faked a shot, but passed instead. It’s not talked about enough, but at the NHL level, you can’t just be better than them, you also have to fool them. The goalie bit on the Hutson shot that wasn’t. Hutson passed to Suzuki, who had a tap-in for his second of the game.
Suzuki scored the overtime winner on Tuesday, and on Wednesday, will likely have a career-defining moment being named to Canada’s Olympic team.
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It’s easy to have ScoreVision watching the Canadiens down two late, forgetting the actual tenor of the game. Florida didn’t get its first shot in the second period until less than eight minutes remained. The Canadiens spent the second period in the Panthers’ zone, until they had penalty trouble.
Overall, they look like a team very much on the rise with an improved first line with Texier, a second line exploding onto the scene, and a third line stabilized with Phillip Danault on it.
Remember, too, that important players are on the injured list, like Kaiden Guhle, Alex Newhook and Kirby Dach. Other teams should start getting afraid of the Canadiens. This is very much a team on the rise, moving the puck at a lightning pace, creating chances that are leaving defenders looking like turnstiles.
When they’re down two, forget the score. Watch the hockey. These are not your dad’s Montreal Canadiens.
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While Michael Hage is close to the best forward at the world junior championship, another Canadiens prospect is also shining brightly in Russia.
Alexander Zharovsky has added to his remarkable draft-plus-one year with perhaps his best game of the season. Zharovsky only counted the one assist Tuesday. However, more important than the point total is the fact that Zharovsky has definitely earned the coach’s favour with his busiest game of the year.
It is interesting to see any forward with 20 minutes of ice time in any game, but a rookie in the KHL with 20 minutes is a stunning show of confidence from the head coach.
Zharovsky deserves the love, with a stunning 29 points in 33 games. It is a points-per-game total far higher than any 18-year-old in KHL history by a wide margin. Zharovsky has a points per game of .879, while next up among 18-year-olds is Eeli Tolvanen at .735.
Zharovsky is also getting hotter as the season continues, not slowing down. Zharovsky has 14 points in his last 13 games. He missed eight games early in the season due to injury, so he won’t shatter Ivan Demidov’s rookie record of 49 points, but he is on pace to break it with 56 points.
It was expected that the fifth pick overall, like Demidov, would have some measure of success at the KHL level, but it is quite unexpected that the 34th pick overall a year later would accomplish this.
Actually, it may be unexpected to mere mortals following the game, but not head scout Nick Bobrov. He and the management team of Kent Hughes, Jeff Gorton, Martin Lapointe and the rest of the scouting team are amassing shockingly high draft hit rates.
To find success with the first overall pick and the fifth pick is one thing, but to find success at the 21st pick for Hage, 34th for Zharovsky, and 62nd for Hutson is like a lottery ticket landing for a million dollars.
Well done to all of them, who are causing this rebuild to be quick and also powerful.
Brian Wilde, a Montreal-based sports writer, brings you Call of the Wilde on globalnews.ca after each Canadiens game.
