Here are my three takeaways from Montreal’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final.
1- A low-event game didn’t favour Montreal
After the chaos and madness we saw in Game 1, especially in the opening period, it felt pretty predictable that Game 2 would be the complete opposite.
The Carolina Hurricanes got back to the identity that made them successful all season and throughout these playoffs. Outside of the early goals and Andrei Svechnikov attempting a Michigan, this game was a complete snoozefest and not exactly the kind of hockey game you’d show someone who has never watched the sport before.
Carolina won’t care one bit about that.
Given their recent history in conference finals and the numbers surrounding teams falling behind 0-2 at home, the Hurricanes played this game almost perfectly.
They managed the puck extremely well, avoided unnecessary risks and completely limited Montreal’s ability to transition quickly through the neutral zone.
Very little was going right offensively for Montreal. Nick Suzuki couldn’t pull the trigger on a breakaway and Alexandre Texier completely lost his composure mentally at one point, spearing K’Andre Miller between the legs, even if it somehow only ended up being called a slash.
The most concerning thing for Montreal was the lack of offensive punch for most of the night. The Canadiens only generated 12 shots on goal and Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen was barely tested after looking vulnerable in Game 1.
To Montreal’s credit, they did push in the third period and found an equalizer from Josh Anderson, who scored his second goal of the game.
But overall, the Canadiens found out very quickly why teams like Philadelphia and Ottawa struggled so badly against Carolina earlier in the playoffs.
Still, one thing Montreal has shown throughout this postseason is adaptability and they’ll need to adjust quickly if this is going to be the long series many expected.
2- Ehlers and Svechnikov shine
One of the criticisms surrounding Carolina for years has been the lack of a true game-breaking player up front. It’s not for a lack of trying.
Two years ago they acquired Jake Guentzel but couldn’t convince him to stay. Last season they traded for Mikko Rantanen, but the fit never worked and they pivoted quickly, eventually turning the situation into a positive by landing Logan Stankoven.
This off-season they took another swing and signed Nikolaj Ehlers to a massive deal.
He might not belong in that true superstar tier, but he’s an excellent player, an analytics darling and he made the biggest play of the night.
Ehlers attacked Lane Hutson one-on-one, pulled Jakub Dobes from left to right and beat him through the five-hole for Carolina’s second goal of the night in the second period.
Some people will say Dobes needs that save, but sometimes you simply have to tip your cap to a great offensive play.
It was then Ehlers again with the winner in transition, showing off great speed and beating Dobes on the blocker side.
The sequence leading to the goal will also drive the Canadiens coaching staff crazy.
Oliver Kapanen made an inexcusable soft play failing to get the puck deep, leading directly to Carolina transitioning quickly the other way. That’s such a dangerous area of the ice to turn the puck over because the other forwards have no chance to recover defensively and Noah Dobson and Mike Matheson were likely looking for a change.
The last time we saw a similarly brutal mistake was Kirby Dach in Round 1 against Tampa Bay. Martin St. Louis stuck with Dach afterward and it paid off. We’ll now see if Kapanen gets that same level of trust.
Andrei Svechnikov was also a force all night, even if he didn’t finish on the scoresheet.
He was physical, agitating, drew penalties, attempted a Michigan and finished near the team lead in shots. Svechnikov had a career year offensively this season but wasn’t nearly as impactful through the first two rounds. He looked like a man on a mission all night long.
3- The coaches couldn’t be more different
The contrast between Martin St. Louis and Rod Brind’Amour has been fascinating to watch and it may ultimately decide this series.
Both were tremendous players, Stanley Cup champions and ultra-competitive personalities.
But their approaches to coaching are completely different.
The Canadiens believe they can win playing different styles of hockey and so far these playoffs have proven that to be true.
While St. Louis has his “non-negotiables,” he’s flexible. He’s willing to adjust, try different ideas and constantly look for ways to attack a series differently.
Brind’Amour’s Hurricanes, meanwhile, do one thing and one thing only.
The numbers suggested Carolina tried developing more of a “Plan B” during the regular season with more offence generated off the rush.
But once the playoffs started, they went right back to being the same Hurricanes team we’ve seen for years: relentless one-on-one battles, pucks funneled to the point, volume shooting and completely sucking the life out of games once they get a lead.
That style consistently wins them playoff games. The problem is it still hasn’t gotten them past the conference final. We’ll see whether stubborn or flexible wins out in this series.
Mitch Gallo is co-host of ‘Campbell vs. Gallo,’ as well as Canadiens pre- and post-game coverage on TSN Radio 690 in Montreal. You can follow him on ‘X’ at @MitchyGallo.
