MONTREAL — Confidence couldn’t possibly be higher in the Montreal Canadiens locker room.
Seven games into Martin Louis' tenure as interim head coach, the Canadiens have found their first winning streak of the season. The team improved to four straight with a 4-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres Wednesday night at the Bell Centre.
St. Louis was glad with the “buy-in” that he’s got from his players in little time and their willingness to fight for one another.
“There are guys that take care of the team and you win a lot of games that way,” St. Louis said. “When you’re up 4-0 and you block shots with one minute left. It’s fun to see how quickly the culture progressed.”
Something that Sabres forward Alex Tuch witnessed first-hand less than two weeks after crushing the Habs 5-2 on Super Bowl Sunday.
“There's a lot more jam to their game, their work ethic was higher than the last game that we played against them,” Tuch said. “I thought it was a good character. I think it was 4-0 and you see Gallagher sellout for a block there at the end.”
“We need a lot more of that in our locker room. It's not there right now and we have to look upon ourselves to change that.”
Nick Suzuki scored twice while Cole Caufield added one goal and one assist. Jake Evans added the empty-netter.
Under St. Louis, Caufield scored six goals and notched 10 total points in seven games. For Suzuki, the change of scenery their new coach brought to their game has been refreshing.
“I think both of us are just playing with a lot of confidence,” Suzuki said. “Having fun out there. Each small play we’re making, we’re getting each other open and using our linemates well.”
“It's been a ton of fun over the last seven games and we want to keep that going.”
Samuel Montembeault clinched his very first NHL shutout in his home arena after blocking all 32 shots sent his way.
“I feel really good, especially to be able to get my first shutout here at the Bell Centre.” he said. “I think I’ll go speak with the time keeper because I think the time moved a lot slower in the third than in the other periods. But I’m really happy the guys did an exceptional job and we got the win.”
Montembeault added that it was difficult for him mentally before the All-Star break where we got pulled by former head coach Dominique Ducharme several times. He credited goalie coach Eric Raymond for helping him through a wrist injury that kept him from his best level.
“I felt those two games just before the break, I wasn't ready to go in and I had my injury a few games back,” he said. “I think mentally I was just thinking about that and I wasn't really focused on the game. So after the break, I was talking with Derek and just tried to put that aside and focus on the game.”
Josh Anderson left the game late in the second when he was hit in the head while trying to block a shot from Casey Mittelstadt. Paul Byron also didn't return to the game after suffering a hit in the first period. They were both taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons. The Canadiens did not give a timeline for their returns.
Craig Anderson allowed three goals but kept his team in the game with 25 saves. With the loss, the Sabres slump to a four-game losing skid.
The Canadiens scored the first goal for a fourth straight game following a treacherous giveaway by Cody Eakin in his own zone. Suzuki pounced on a loose puck in the slot and tapped in his 10th of the season.
Suzuki was awarded a penalty shot at 5:57 of the second period after the centreman intercepted the puck in the neutral zone and was hooked by Dylan Cousins. Suzuki started his attempt far on the right side, then patiently cut inside and beat Anderson with an upper right-hand corner shot.
Caufield gave the Habs a 3-0 lead when he pounced on Suzuki's faceoff and shocked Anderson with a wrist shot. Evans finally bagged the empty-netter from the neutral zone, clinching Montreal’s 4-0 win.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 23, 2022.
Tristan D'Amours, The Canadian Press
