Josh Anderson Gives the Montreal Canadiens a Chance to go to Tampa for a Game 5
After being on the brink of elimination with one man down in overtime, Josh Anderson scored the biggest goal of the playoffs for the Montreal Canadiens, giving his team a chance to play a Game 5 in Tampa.
After many lineup changes made by head coach Dominique Ducharme, the most productive one against the Tampa Bay Lightning last night seemed to be the Anderson, Nick Suzuki, and Cole Caufield line.
Not only did Anderson score the overtime winner, but he also opened the scoring for the Canadiens in the first period. The Lightning had gotten the first goal in all three previous games. But not last night. The Canadiens scored the first goal and were finally rewarded with a victory against the defending champions.
I expect the lineup to stay the same for Game 5, as these new lines seem to give a spark back to a Canadiens’ lineup that really needed it.
Another important factor as to why Anderson works so well with the Suzuki-Caufield duo is his speed along with Caufield’s. Notice how the rookie was able to match his speed for that game-winning goal. If it weren’t for Caufield trying to shoot the puck, Anderson would probably not have been able to find the puck, but Caufield allowed him to find the rebound and score, ultimately winning the game 3-2.
He also adds physicality to the line. While Suzuki and Tyler Toffoli both aren’t shy about laying hits, Anderson takes it to another level, and it is refreshing to see him with the two youngsters.
Add Suzuki’s play-making skills, patience with the puck, and defensive play, and it’s an almost-perfect line for the Canadiens.
If they can keep this line hot, it should be enough to be able to come back and play a final game in Montreal on Friday, and possibly a seventh game on Sunday. The Canadiens have shown that being hot at the right time is more than enough to win, and that’s all they can hope to be right now.
They’re also not new to trailing in a series. Although they had not been down 3-0 in this postseason, that’s now in the past, and the present is them being down 3-1, which they have been in the first round against the Toronto Maple Leafs. They still managed to win it in seven.
This team is resilient, and one win could be what they needed to boost their confidence and come back stronger.
This Canadiens team knows how important it is to always believe and never give up, and if they can keep doing that, it will be more than enough, no matter what the outcome end ups being.
They played great last night, and maybe they could’ve played better earlier in the series and won another game or two then, but that’s not what happened.
The reality is that they are down 3-1 and need to win three consecutive games against the defending champions to be able to hoist the Stanley Cup for the first time in 28 years.
Next. Five Takeaways Following Game 3 of Stanley Cup Finals. dark
Does it sound impossible? Sure. But is it impossible? No. Because there is no such thing as the impossible.