Canadiens need point vs. Hurricanes to clinch spot, avoid Blue Jackets taking control
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It all comes down to this.
After losses in their past three games, the Montreal Canadiens need a point against the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday to avoid losing control of their playoff destiny.
The Canadiens rode a six-game winning streak from the end of March into the beginning of April that should've locked up the final wild-card slot in the Eastern Conference.
However, a 5-2 dismantling at the hands of the Ottawa Senators and two overtime losses in their last three have allowed the Columbus Blue Jackets - who are riding a five-game winning streak of their own - to surge back into contention.
Montreal let a 2-0 lead slip away in an eventual 4-3 overtime loss to the lowly Chicago Blackhawks on Monday when a regulation win would've secured a playoff spot - this despite the stellar debut for top rookie Ivan Demidov, who scored a goal and added an assist.
“Came up short,” winger Cole Caufield said after the game. “Pissed off about the result.”
“At the end of the day, it's still a big point,” head coach Martin St. Louis said. “And we're going to keep going.
The Canadiens are trying to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since falling in the Stanley Cup Final in 2021 to the Tampa Bay Lightning. They've endured three eighth-place finishes in a row in the Atlantic Division since.
Many of the top contributors on this Canadiens team were either not involved with the team that went to the Stanley Cup Final four years ago, or played in minor roles. St. Louis thinks that may be a part of the struggle to find wins in pressure-filled moments.
“They're going through a time as a young team here where you don't get to practice these feelings of wanting something that's so close we can almost touch it,” he said. “When you want something so bad, you're working so hard, can you calm the mind through the storm?
"Can you calm the mind through the storm so you can make reads and execute? I feel like it's a little bit clouded right now with what's at stake.”
Montreal has a 4-0 win against the Hurricanes in February this season, but they also struggled in a 4-1 defeat on March 28. Now they need to find a point in any way possible.
Red-hot Blue Jackets riding unlikely performance
The Blue Jackets have won five games in a row in regulation, and have allowed just one goal in their last three victories.
A main reason behind their hot stretch has been the play of backup goaltender Jet Greaves, who was recalled from the AHL's Cleveland Monsters on Thursday to replace the injured Elvis Merzlikins.
Greaves has been unbelievable in that time frame, winning all four starts and allowing just three goals.
Over his past 11 periods in wins against the Buffalo Sabres, Washington Capitals (twice) and Tuesday's 3-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers, Greaves has stopped 114 of 115 shots faced for an unfathomable .991 save percentage.
“He might be the hottest guy in the NHL right now,” forward Adam Fantilli said after Tuesday's win. “He has one goal against in the last three games, and it’s (Alex Ovechkin). That’s pretty good. There’s not much else you can say.”
Greaves picked up the first two shutouts of his NHL career in wins over Washington and Philadelphia, and his game on Tuesday was just his 20th career start in the NHL.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Greaves said Tuesday. “It’s always great to be playing important games this time of the year, and I think we’re enjoying that, just enjoying every day. … It’s pretty cool."
"Obviously growing up, you always think about playing those games at the important time of the year and hopefully winning them. Just try to keep that going."
If Montreal loses in regulation to the Hurricanes, the Blue Jackets can clinch the final spot in the playoffs with a win in regulation against the New York Islanders on Thursday.