In the middle of a tense night at Prudential Center, the Devils Vs Canadiens meeting became less about a fast start and more about recovery. Montreal built a 3-0 lead, saw it erased, and still walked away with a 4-3 shootout win on Saturday in Newark, New Jersey.
Cole Caufield had two assists and extended his point streak to five games, while Oliver Kapanen finished the job in the bottom of the fifth round of the tie-breaker. For the Canadiens, it was their eighth straight win, and for both teams, it was a game that shifted from control to survival.
How did the Canadiens turn a three-goal lead into another win?
Montreal opened the scoring when Jayden Struble buried a wrist shot from the left face-off circle at 15: 58 of the first period. Ivan Demidov made it 2-0 on a power-play one-timer in the second period after a Caufield cross-ice pass, and Lane Hutson pushed the margin to 3-0 with a wrist shot from the high slot at 9: 28.
That cushion disappeared. New Jersey answered with three straight goals, and Timo Meier tied the game at 17: 45 of the third period on a snap shot with Jake Allen pulled for an extra attacker. The Canadiens, though, stayed with the game long enough to claim it in the shootout.
Montreal coach Martin St. Louis framed the night as proof that strong teams still have to absorb rough patches. “I think we’re a good team but it’s not because you’re a good team that it’s going to be perfect all the time, ” he said. “It’s not because you’re a good team that you’re not going to slip in some areas. We’re just trying to stick with our process and talk the truth about where we are. I feel tonight wasn’t our best, but we found a way. ”
What did this result mean for Montreal and New Jersey?
The win moved the Canadiens to 45-21-10 and 100 points, a mark they reached for the first time since 2016-17. It also gave them their second-longest win streak in the past 30 years, behind eight-game runs in 2016-17 and 2005-06. They have now won nine straight only once in that span, in 2015-16.
Jakub Dobes made 35 saves and won his fifth straight start for Montreal. He described his state of mind as steady and comfortable, saying, “I felt like my confidence was always there; it’s just feeling comfortable, feeling good, and playing good hockey with the team. ”
For New Jersey, Jack Hughes and Meier each finished with a goal and an assist, and the team moved to 39-34-3. Jake Allen made 26 saves in his second straight start and summed up the ending bluntly: “Overtime is a crap shoot; there’s no theories, no structure, no nothing. ”
Allen added that the game gave the crowd value, saying, “There were great chances at both ends. I think the fans got all the price of admission. ”
What stands out in the Devils Vs Canadiens rematch?
The Devils Vs Canadiens matchup now shifts to Bell Centre on Sunday for the second half of a home-and-home. Montreal enters that game two points behind the first-place Tampa Bay Lightning in the Atlantic Division and tied with the Buffalo Sabres.
Dobes said the focus remains on position, not just milestones. “I feel 100 points is good, but we’re trying to get the best possible position for us to start the Stanley Cup Playoffs at home, ” he said. “We’re trying to finish first; that’s the main focus right now. ”
That is the larger meaning inside a game that swung hard in both directions. Montreal got the kind of result that strengthens a run, but the final minutes also showed how quickly a lead can disappear. In the opening scene in Newark, the Canadiens were trying to hold a night together. In the end, they did just enough to leave with another win — and a reminder that even an eight-game streak can be built one unstable period at a time.
Image alt text: Devils Vs Canadiens ends with Montreal celebrating a shootout win after recovering from a three-goal lead and a late New Jersey push.
