After a last minute goal against the Anaheim Ducks cost the Montreal Canadiens a point, they were looking to bounce back against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night. It was the final game of a three-game road trip in California and they were in search of their first win.
The Canadiens were able to do just that with two goals in the third period after the Kings took a 3-2 lead earlier in the period. It was a much-needed win for them as they try to keep pace in the Atlantic Division and these are three takeaways from the win on Saturday night.
Juraj Slafkovsky with two goals when the Montreal Canadiens needed them most
In the game against the Anaheim Ducks, the Canadiens shuffled their lines a bit, and one of those moves was to put Juraj Slafkovsky on the top line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. The returns were almost immediate as he had two assists against the Ducks and somehow got even better on Saturday with three points.
It was not just the two goals that Slafkovsky had, but when he had them that helped Montreal gain some momentum. The Kings had the first goal of the game and took a 1-0 lead into the second period before Jake Evans was able to tie the game with a goal in the middle period.
Later in the period, Slafkovsky would give the Canadiens their first lead of the game with an assist from Nick Suzuki. While the Kings would score two straight to retake the lead, Slafkovsky once again came up with a big-time goal later in the game on the power play that would tie the game.
It was a pivotal goal and didn't allow the Kings to extend their lead. The top line helped secure the victory less than a minute later when Slafkovsky found Nick Suzuki for the game-winning goal. The early returns from this line change have been great, and there is no reason the Canadiens should move away from it for the rest of the season.
Jakub Dobes has a bounce-back performance against the Kings
One of the biggest concerns on this road trip has been the goaltending as Dobes allowed six goals against the San Jose Sharks in the first game before Sam Montembeault allowed five against the Ducks. The fact that the Canadiens didn't address the position before the trade deadline was certainly a risk, given how inconsistent the performance has been as of late from these two goalies.
On Saturday, though, Dobes got back on track with a solid performance as he had 36 saves on 39 shots. According to Natural Stat Trick, Dobes had an Expected Goals Against of 5.86 based on the shots he faced, which is a remarkable difference from the 3.00 Goals Against Average.
It was a great performance from Dobes, but the biggest thing is stacking some of these games now. The Canadiens don't necessarily need their goalies to be perfect with the offense they have, but they can't allow five or six goals and expect to win much.
The Canadiens are set to return home with their next game on Tuesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. It will be a tough week with four games over six days as they have the Ottawa Senators right aftter the Maple Leafs with another back-to-back on the weekend against the Sharks and Ducks.