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NHL: Stanley Cup Playoffs-Buffalo Sabres at Montreal Canadiens
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

MONTREAL — It feels like every hour features more Montreal Canadiens news, and we’re all bound to miss a story or two. On Sundays, we recap the relevant NHL news you may have missed, to help you stay in the Canadiens loop.

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Montreal Canadiens News And Notes

  • Now that the Laval Rocket have been eliminated from the AHL playoffs, the Habs have announced the recall of four black aces. Defencemen David Reinbacher and Adam Engstrom will join the fold, as well forwards Florian Xhekaj and Owen Beck. You’ll note they opted not to promote either Joshua Roy or Samuel Blais.
  • The Habs have received important contributions from a variety of players since the playoffs started, but none have matched the consistency of rookie netminder Jakub Dobes. He’s improved his statistics significantly, and there’s no need to change his style of play, as some suggested. [Jakub Dobes A Beacon Of Consistency For The Canadiens]
  • The NHL announced two fines following Game 3. The first was to Beck Malenstyn, who decided it would be a good idea to run Dobes at full speed. The second was to Habs defenceman Arber Xhekaj, who also participated in violent incident, punching Sam Carrick at the final whistle. [Canadiens And Sabres Players Fined Following Game 3 Violence]
  • It’s official. Dobes fever is taking over Montreal.
  • I didn’t see this one coming. The Centre Vidéotron in Québec City will be hosting a watch party for Game 5. Many moons ago, this would have been a terrible idea, as the Nordiques fans outnumbered Habs fans by a wide margin, but it appears that the rivalry has finally started to cool. [TVA]
  • Game 5 of the playoff series between the Montreal Victoire and the Minnesota Frost has been postponed due to an issue related to illness.
  • Wait. Are they remaking a modern version of the classic movie Twins?
  • Believe it or not, several key players are yet to score a goal at 5v5 in the playoffs. Okay, if you’ve watched the games, I’m sure you believe it, and you probably know we’re discussing Juraj Slafkovsky, Cole Caufield, and Ivan Demidov. On the bright side, if they do start scoring at 5v5, the Canadiens will be in great shape. [The Most Surprising Statistic From The Habs Playoff Run]
  • The Canadiens dropped Game 4 by a score of 3-2, but they had ample opportunities to not only tie the game, but win it on the powerplay. They managed to muster a single powerplay goal in seven opportunities, while the Sabres found the back of the net twice on the man advantage. [Canadiens Highlights: Weak Powerplay Sinks The Habs]
  • Yes, the Habs lost, but netminder Jakub Dobes offered a save-of-the-year candidate late in the third period.
  • Former Canadiens captain Guy Carbonneau was the Stanley Cup winner who got the ball rolling at the Bell Centre on Tuesday.
  • The Centre Vidéotron has already sold 12,000 tickets for Game 5, in Québec City. For those of you who are a little too young to remember the Nordiques rivalry, this is a sign that the times, they are a-changin’.
  • Dobes fever continues to grip the city of Montreal. It’s very similar to the Halak-mania back in 2010.
  • For the record, this was posted before Game 4, but it’s encouraging to see the Habs among the most active passers in the slot.
  • Victoire captain Marie Philip-Poulin only does two things: score goals and crush gourmet salad’s from Mandy’s. And she’s all out of salad. With the Poulin goal in Game 5 versus the Minnesota Frost, Montreal advanced to the Walter Cup final for the first time in their history, and will face the talented Ottawa Charge.
  • The Habs have managed to outshoot the Sabres in the first four games of the series, and they’ve also outscored them by a wide margin at 5v5. Special teams will play a key part in the final three games, but it’s safe to say the Habs are in a relatively healthy situation, despite the Game 4 loss. [Canadiens Hold Destiny In Their Hands Versus Sabres]
  • Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff remarked there were some instances of Canadiens players falling a little too easy in Game 4. Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis responded by asking if he was talking about the Sabres as well. In all honesty, the Canadiens may have gotten a few calls in their favour in Game 4, but it’s also fair to say the Sabres had the same discipline of a bunch of drunken pirates that finally broke into the rum store on a ship that is lost somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. High-sticking players every few shifts makes life very easy on the referees. There’s no debate involved, they were, for the most part, blatant and useless penalties.
  • New York Islanders defenceman Matthew Schaefer took home the Calder Trophy, beating Canadiens rookie Ivan Demidov in the process. It’s not a surprising result given that Schaefer is an 18-year-old defenceman who scored 23 goals, but it must be said that Demidov had a very solid freshman season nonetheless. He led all rookies in scoring, with 62 points in 82 games. This led to Demidov finishing second in voting. Netminder Jakub Dobes finished fourth. [Two Canadiens Among Top Four Calder Votes]
  • Rather than practicing in Brossard, the Habs decided to cancel their morning skate. They simply made their way to Buffalo a little earlier than expected instead.
  • It must be said that Montreal’s results are quite confusing. The team that scored at will during the regular playoffs is having a hard time finding the back of the net, while their usual shambolic defence has become a stalwart presence. It’s a complete reversal of their usual strengths. Sports!
  • The Habs have managed to outshoot the Sabres in the first four games of the series, and they’ve also outscored them by a wide margin at 5v5. Special teams will play a key part in the final three games, but it’s safe to say the Habs are in a relatively healthy situation, despite the Game 4 loss. [Canadiens Hold Destiny In Their Hands Versus Sabres]
  • Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff remarked there were some instances of Canadiens players falling a little too easy in Game 4. Canadiens head coach Martin St-Louis responded by asking if he was talking about the Sabres as well. In all honesty, the Canadiens may have gotten a few calls in their favour in Game 4, but it’s also fair to say the Sabres had the same discipline of a bunch of drunken pirates that finally broke into the rum store on a ship that is lost somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. High-sticking players every few shifts makes life very easy on the referees. There’s no debate involved, they were, for the most part, blatant and useless penalties.
  • New York Islanders defenceman Matthew Schaefer took home the Calder Trophy, beating Canadiens rookie Ivan Demidov in the process. It’s not a surprising result given that Schaefer is an 18-year-old defenceman who scored 23 goals, but it must be said that Demidov had a very solid freshman season nonetheless. He led all rookies in scoring, with 62 points in 82 games. This led to Demidov finishing second in voting. Netminder Jakub Dobes finished fourth. [Two Canadiens Among Top Four Calder Votes]
  • Rather than practicing in Brossard, the Habs decided to cancel their morning skate. They simply made their way to Buffalo a little earlier than expected instead.
  • There are still three games left to play in the series, but it must be said that Montreal’s results are quite confusing. The team that scored at will during the regular playoffs is having a hard time finding the back of the net, while their usual shambolic defence has become a stalwart presence. It’s a complete reversal of their usual strengths. Sports!
  • The Canadiens found themselves in a hole early versus the Buffalo Sabres in Game 5, but as has been the case throughout the year, they were at their best once they had to face a little adversity. A dominant effort by the Habs secured an exciting 6-3 win in Buffalo. [Canadiens Highlights: Comeback Kings Crush Sabres]
  • Seeing as defenceman Arber Xhekaj played fewer than 4 minutes in Game 4, there was talk that he would be replaced by Jayden Struble in the lineup for Game 5. All things considered, the third pairing isn’t a considerable issue. More than anything, depth defencemen need consistency to find their rhythm. [Canadiens Defensive Situation: Xhekaj Or Struble]
  • With all due respect to Lindy Ruff, the diving accusations from Game 4 aged like fine milk.
  • They weren’t the worst cases of embellishment in the NHL history, but there’s an adage about stones and glass houses that comes to mind.
  • Regardless of the result from Game 5 on Thursday night, it’s always interesting to hear Martin St-Louis’ calming and straightforward approach to coaching hockey.
  • The Victoire are also known for their fair share of late-game drama. Montreal tied Game 1 of the PWHL Final in the dying seconds of the third period, and proceeded to win it in overtime when a puck deflected off Abby Roque’s head.
  • Game 6 is scheduled for 8 pm on Saturday night, an odd start time to say the least. And now have a different start time for Game 7, if necessary. The final game of the series, scheduled for Monday, has been pushed back from 7 to 7:30 pm ET.
  • Former Hab Brett Kulak is clearly a lucky charm. Following his trade to the Colorado Avalanche, the stalwart defender is heading to the Conference Final for the fifth time in just six years.
  • I have to admit, this is the first time I’ve seen this aquatic pre-game ritual between Xhekaj and the athletic therapists.
  • Tage Thompson was right to suggest the Sabres needed to take fewer penalties in Game 5. For what it’s worth, the Sabres avoided penalties for more than 40 minutes on Thursday night.
  • And they say sports are supposed to be fun!
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By Marc Dumont
Marc has been covering the Habs for over a decade. He previously worked for Journal Metro, The Athletic, The ... More about Marc Dumont

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