Canadiens hope to seize momentum in do-or-die Game 5 vs. Capitals

Montreal Gazette

29-04-2025

Montreal Canadiens
By
In his first playoff series as a head coach, and with his team facing elimination for the first time, Martin St. Louis said he won't have anything profound to say to his players Wednesday night.
Instead, his message will be succinct:
'One word — momentum. You need to grab the momentum. Obviously it would come with a win,' St. Louis said after Tuesday morning's practice at the CN Sports Complex in Brossard. 'It starts with all the actions that come during the game that help you keep the momentum and steal it back when you lose it.'
The Canadiens' predicament couldn't be any clearer heading into Wednesday's Game 5 (7 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN Radio-690, 98.5 FM) of their opening-round series against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena.
Win or go home.
With a bounce here or there, or another goal or two, the Canadiens could easily have been tied with the Capitals or even be leading 3-1, as St. Louis suggested on Monday. Instead, following Sunday's 5-2 loss at the Bell Centre, Montreal has dug itself a 3-1 hole, its margin of error razor thin.
The status of numerous players remains uncertain heading into the game, although it's virtually certain the Canadiens will continue without goaltender Samuel Montembeault, who sustained a lower-body injury Friday and has been listed as day-to-day. Defenceman Alexandre Carrier also wasn't on the ice Tuesday following the devastating hit administered by Tom Wilson in the third period on Sunday.
Also missing were defenceman David Savard and forwards Josh Anderson and Brendan Gallagher (maintenance days). But winger Patrik Laine, who has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, practised on Tuesday.
Should Carrier, as expected, miss the next game after likely suffering a concussion, he'll be replaced by Jayden Struble. No player will be recalled from AHL Laval, according to St. Louis. The Rocket is in Cleveland, preparing for the start of its best-of-five series Wednesday night.
'We're confident in (Struble) if he has to come in,' St. Louis said. 'He's a good player who has played some really good hockey for us this year. We'll see what happens. At this time of the season, you have to be ready for anything. ... You just have to go out there and try to get the job done.
'Winning in the playoffs comes at a steeper price,' he added. 'The physicality. There's got to be some kind of courage, probably a little more involved. Collective courage in the playoffs. You don't get to live that without going through it. That's what we're doing.'
When defenceman Kaiden Guhle was playing junior in Prince Albert, his team had a 3-1 lead against Vancouver in the 2019 Western Hockey League final. While the Raiders won the title, they were stretched to overtime of the seventh game.
'We definitely felt a bit of tension when we lost the fifth game,' Guhle said. 'You're so close, but you're still far. It's a different feeling for sure. We have to win one game, come back to Montreal, win another game and all of a sudden you're at Game 7.
'I'd say the team that's up has more pressure,' he added. 'Especially if we go there and take one (Wednesday). The tension will probably be a little bit higher in that room. For us, we have nothing to lose right now. Play like it's your last game of the year and see what happens. Three to one is a tough lead to keep.'
Six players — Gallagher, Anderson, Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Jake Evans and Joel Armia — remain from Canadiens' run to the 2021 Stanley Cup final. Montreal overcame a 3-1 deficit against Toronto in the opening round that year.
'We could have won every game (against Washington),' Guhle said. 'The past two games definitely have been our best of the series, looking at the full 60 minutes. It could be our last game of the season. Everybody knows that.'
While forward Alex Newhook didn't join the Canadiens until a June 2023 trade, he won the Cup the previous season with Colorado. He knows as well as anyone how quickly momentum can switch in a game and series, and the emphasis is on Montreal to seize the opportunity. He said the Canadiens must play with desperation.
'It feels like our backs have been against the wall a lot of times during the season,' Newhook said. 'We've had to come back and win some pretty important games down the stretch. We have to bring the same mentality, draw back to how we approached those types of games with a little bit of extra added intensity.
'That's what it comes down to — winning one game on the road. We still believe we can win this series.'