Patrik Laine wasted no time making his presence felt in his highly anticipated debut with the Montreal Canadiens.
Playing his first regular-season game in nearly a year, Laine scored a power-play goal and helped lift the Habs to a 2–1 overtime victory against the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Setting camp at the left faceoff circle on offense, Laine fired a shot over Ilya Sorokin’s shoulder to open the scoring in the second period putting the Canadiens ahead until Anders Lee tied it with a minute left in the frame.
Fans gave Laine a standing ovation, a moment the 26-year-old winger called “the most outrageous thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life.” Teammates were quick to celebrate his successful debut. Cole Caufield shared his reaction on an Instagram story, writing, “Jet pack joy ride” along with a photo showing him celebrating Laine’s goal with the winger. Meanwhile, Laine’s linemate Juraj Slafkovsky jokingly compared the crowd’s reaction to his own past highlights.
“Pretty good, but not better than when I scored a hat trick,” Slafkovsky said.
Nick Suzuki sealed the victory for Montreal in overtime, while goaltender Sam Montembeault stood tall with 30 saves.
“I think [Montreal] is the best place to play in hockey, and the ovation that [Laine] got for his goal was pretty special,” Suzuki said. “He was really excited to get in, and for him to get a goal was really cool to see.”
Laine’s journey to this point has been anything but smooth, however. He had been sidelined for nearly a year, first with a clavicle injury and later while prioritizing his mental health through the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. The Canadiens traded for him in August but his return was delayed following a preseason injury right before the start of the regular season.
On Tuesday, Laine logged over 17 minutes of ice time, recorded two shots, and two hits, and also won the lone faceoff he took.