The Montreal Canadiens faced all odds down 3-0 to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Despite taking one game at home, they were unable to win another as Tampa Bay would win 1-0 in Game 5 to become the first team since the Pittsburgh Penguins did it in 2016-2017 to win back-to-back Stanley Cups.
Here are the final five takeaways from Game 5 and the Canadiens postseason run.
1. Could Not Score First – Negative
One of the things that made the Canadiens so successful in the playoffs was their ability to score first. However, against the Lightning, they were only able to score first and it happened to be the lone game that they won.
In Game 5, you could tell early that it was going to be a tough night for the shooters as both goalies were locked in. Ross Colton scored the game-winning goal with just over five minutes left in the second period and the Lightning were able to neutralize the Montreal forwards. It seemed all postseason that the Canadiens were two different teams. The team that scored first seemed more confident and were able to ease into their style of play. While the Canadiens team who failed to score first, always felt behind the 8-ball and because of that they were always chasing the game.
2. Andrei Vasilevskiy Proved To Be Too Much- Negative
Heading into the series a lot was being talked about the two Vezina winning goaltenders. Price took home the hardware in 2015, while Vasilevskiy won it in 2019. Two of the best goalies in the league were also in the top tier of how much they make.
Vasilevskiy proved to be much harder to solve than Price was, letting just eight goals over five games. He also went on to win his first Conn Smythe trophy ever as the top performer in the playoffs.
Anyone with hockey knowledge knows that without Price the Canadiens never get to Cup Finals. He was tremendous for three rounds and then admittedly struggled for the first few games before returning to the goalie we know in Games 4 and 5. Even with some of those struggles the team in front of him failed to score enough goals in the final series, however, Price still takes the onus on himself.
"In the end, I don't think I played well enough at the start of the series," says Carey Price before Shea Weber interjects and says, "I don't think that's true. We didn't play well enough in front of Carey." Weber credited the Lightning for being the special team they are.
— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) July 8, 2021
It seemed fitting that captain Shea Weber came to the aid of Price who was feeling terrible after the loss, but it was not his fault. He and the Canadiens just lost to a better team and a goalie who for the last two years has been outstanding.
3. Costly Turnover Costs Team The Cup- Negative
As I have mentioned in a few of these takeaway articles from the Cup Finals, the Canadiens had too many turnovers. What’s even worse, is that those turnovers almost always turned into Lightning goals.
One of the stats I brought up was that the Lightning had scored 11 goals within 10 seconds of a Montreal turnover. That numbered increased by one as the game-winning goal was off a turnover. Eric Staal had a good chance to get the puck out but could not. He was then pinned by Steven Stamkos and a few other players in a puck battle. Stamkos was able to win the puck battle and pass it to Ryan McDonagh who made a pass to David Savard and then from there, it went of Colton’s stick in and that was it.
Tampa Bay is an incredible team. Not only are they perfectly structured in terms of their roster, but they are also well-coached and they make teams pay on the power play and on the rush. However, in this series, it was the small mistakes that led to 12 of the 17 goals they scored.
4. The Future Is Bright – Positive
These last two takeaways are retrospective. The Canadiens were the 18th ranked team and were the last team to qualify for the postseason. At that point, no one predicted the Canadiens to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs let alone come out of the North Division. Especially when they were down 3-1 to the Maple Leafs, people were expecting the Canadiens to roll over.
That did not happen as the Canadiens would string seven wins in a row to knock off the Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets, before knocking off the Vegas Golden Knights in six games. A lot of experts had Toronto and Vegas as cup favourites, and the Canadiens took down both of them. The combination of previous cup winners like Corey Perry, Tyler Toffoli, and Joel Edmundson alongside the youth and future of the Canadiens in Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, and Alex Romanov was something to watch.
Suzuki emerged as one of the best two-way players in the game at just 21-years-old. Caufield joined the team late and burst out of the gate with four goals and twelve points including three on overtime winners. The kid has not even played in his first full season. It was definitely heartbreaking to have gotten so far and come up short, but this is a Habs team that everyone can get behind and with the core intact you can expect them back in the finals sooner rather than later.
5. Where They Go From Here- Positive
This is the million-dollar question. The team was built for the playoffs with the additions of Josh Anderson, Tyler Toffoli, Corey Perry, Joel Edmundson, and Jake Allen. They went from a team that won a total of one bubble series in a span of five years to winning three rounds and making it to the Cup Finals.
General Manager Marc Bergevin has one year left on his contract but for the first time as the GM of Montreal, he has equipped a team that is ready to compete now and for many years to come. He has an absolute stud in Suzuki, has drafted well over the last few years, and has around $15 million in cap space. He will have some tough decisions with Joel Armia and Tomas Tatar as UFA’s and Jepseri Kotkaniemi and Artturi Lehkonen as RFA’s.
Either way, this is the first time in a very long time that fans of the team can get behind the core. Not only can they be a competitor but they are right on the cusp of winning the cup.