The Montreal Canadiens aren’t slowing down with their hot pace. On Friday, the team took a 3-2 overtime win over Washington in a visit to Capital One Arena.
The Canadiens (20-18-3) have now won three straight, all in overtime or shootouts, six of their last seven and nine of their last 11. They have the best record in the NHL since Dec. 17. In this stretch, they have allowed the third-fewest goals in the league, averaging 2.27 goals per game.
«I was a little nervous until we got to overtime because I really wanted to get a point off these guys,» Montreal goaltender Jakub Dobes said. «When we got to overtime, I felt a little bit calmer. It’s more like I really focus on securing points, so when we got the first point, I was pretty happy. When we got the two, I was excited. So it was a good game today (Friday).”
Dobes made 15 saves to improve his record to 3-0-0 to start his NHL career. He became the second goalie in franchise history to allow three goals or fewer in his first three career starts, following Bob Perreault (three goals allowed from Dec. 17-20, 1955).
The game-winner was scored by Nick Suzuki. The Montreal captain scored with 1:15 left in overtime. Suzuki’s pass to Cole Caufield on a 2-on-1 play was deflected by Capitals forward Dylan Strome, but the puck bounced in front of the goal, where Suzuki lifted it over Capitals netminder Logan Thompson.
“We’re still a young team and we’re learning how to win over the last few years,” Suzuki said. «We’ve discovered the recipe that works for us, and every win gives us more confidence to go out and do it again.»
Suzuki has tallied points in each of his last 12 games against the Capitals (17 points; eight goals and nine assists) dating back to Nov. 24, 2021. Suzuki became the first Canadiens player to have a streak of that length against a single opponent since Saku Koivu, who racked up 15 straight games against the Lightning before his streak ended on Dec. 13, 2003.
Additionally, the captain became the fifth player in franchise history to score an overtime goal in two consecutive games, joining Caufield (two games from May 1-3, 2021), Alex Galchenyuk (two games from Feb. 27-28, 2017), Max Pacioretty (two games from Jan. 3-4, 2017) and Pit Lepine (two games from Jan. 30-Feb. 1, 1927).
«I think when you start winning games, that confidence builds and you see us moving up the standings, being in a playoff spot or close to it, that belief starts to come in a little bit more than when we were at the bottom of the Eastern Conference,» Suzuki said. «It’s just a learning curve for us, being in those positions to fight for big points in games, and it’s been fun.»
Caufield also scored a goal for the Canadiens, extending his scoring streak to five games. The right forward tied the longest streak of his career.
«We’re very committed to our process,» Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis said. «We’ve given ourselves a chance every game this past little while. I feel like we’re a tougher team to play against.»
On the other hand, the Capitals (27-10-5) extended their point streak to six games (3-0-3) and their home point streak to ten (7-0-3), although they haven’t won consecutive games since Dec. 20-22.
«It’s good to get points, no doubt, and good teams find ways to score points even when they’re maybe not at their best,» said Washington center forward Lars Eller. «But you also have to be aware that there are things that aren’t good enough, and sometimes points can mask that a little bit. So we can’t fall into that trap. We have to keep pushing ourselves to be better, and I know we will.»
Alex Ovechkin went scoreless for the third straight game after scoring in three of his first four games following a 16-game absence due to a broken leg. The Capitals captain is 22 goals shy of Wayne Gretzky’s record as the all-time NHL scorer.