Todd: Canadiens chart path to an exciting new era
The Canadiens finally ran out of resilience Wednesday.
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With 26 seconds left in Game 5 against the powerful Washington Capitals, Brandon Duhaime scored into an empty net.
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After several long minutes of sustained pressure around goaltender Logan Thompson failed to result in the two goals they needed to tie it, exhausted players bent over their knees, gasping for breath.
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As they have in almost every game since September, they had given it all they had. This time, they fell short. The ending that had been staring them in the face since mid-December had finally arrived.
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They made it this far because captain Nick Suzuki wouldn't let them give up, because a skittering water bug of a rookie defenceman named Lane Hutson reached heights no one believed he could reach. Because Cole Caufield became a more complete player and GM Kent Hughes made a deft trade for Alexandre Carrier, and Kaiden Guhle made an improbable return to the ice after his skate slashed a thigh muscle. Because Mike Matheson adapted to a totally different role and Josh Anderson played like a heat-seeking missile.
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They stormed back from the brink of nowhere, ran out of energy and slipped out of contention again, and came back a second time because Suzuki persuaded Hughes to refrain from trading key veterans to give them a chance. They ran out of fizz again with the season winding down and finally broke through in the last game of the season, after the arrival of the vast talent that is Ivan Demidov, a 19-year-old from Russia.
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Somewhere, I suspect, Canadiens fans will be talking about this season almost as long as we recall the miracle Cups in the spring of 1971, 1986 or 1993. It was emotional, it was exciting, it was discouraging at times and exhilarating at others.
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The fulcrum of the season (and one of the most successful rebuilds you will see) was the month of December, as chronicled by my mentor, Stu Cowan. From the return of Patrik Laine on Dec. 3 (and the eight power-play goals he scored in nine games after) to the low point of a 9-2 home defeat against a mediocre Penguins team to the acquisition of Alexandre Carrier on Dec. 18 and the promotion of young goaltender Jakub Dobes on Dec. 27, the surge began — at the oddest possible time.
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For years, that holiday road trip has been where seasons went to die. But Dobes shut out the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, 4-0, and the Canadiens were on their way.
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Globe and Mail
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Calgary Herald
3 hours ago
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Vancouver Sun
3 hours ago
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Edmonton Oilers return to the scene of their greatest heartbreak
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