The Montreal Canadiens were set to finish the regular season on Tuesday night on the road against the Philadelphia Flyers. It was a game in which both teams were resting players, but Montreal had plenty to play for as a win still gave them the chance at home ice in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
However, the Flyers jumped out to an early lead with two goals in the first period and didn't really look back as they won 4-2. The Canadiens were able to cut it to a one-goal lead at the end of the second period with Jake Evans diving to tip in a rebound but Alex Bump scored in a 4v4 situation to extend the Flyers' lead back to two.
These are some of the takeaways from the game on Tuesday night for the Montreal Canadiens.
Jakub Dobes with another shaky start
Jakub Dobes got the start in the final game of the regular season and was looking to bounce back after a shaky start against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday when he allowed five goals. Unfortunately, it was more of the same as Dobes stopped 21 of 25 shots, and it is the first time since the beginning of November that he allowed four or more goals in consecutive starts.
The hope was that Dobes would be able to get back on track as he heads into the playoffs as the starting goalie. He should still hold onto that role, but the Canadiens might be open to the idea of going to Jacob Fowler if he were to struggle in Game 1.
Cole Caufield really wanted to tie Nathan MacKinnon in goals
Entering the final regular season game, Cole Caufield had one more thing left to accomplish after surpassing the 50-goal milestone. That was to be the first Canadiens player to win the Rocket Richard Trophy, which goes to the player who leads the league in goals.
Caufield began the game one goal behind Nathan MacKinnon, who has 52 goals on the season. Unfortunately, the Canadiens are going to have to wait one more season for the chance to bring the trophy to Montreal, as Cole Caufield was unable to score against the Flyers.
However, it certainly wasn't without trying, as he would set a season-high in shots in a game with 10. This surpassed his previous season high of eight, which was all the way back on November 20th.
Even though Caufield didn't catch Nathan MacKinnon, it was still an incredible season for the Canadiens forward.
Brendan Gallagher returns to lineup with a goal
Brendan Gallagher was a healthy scratch for the last four games but returned to the lineup against the Flyers as the Canadiens rested several players. The veteran made an immediate impact as he scored the first goal for Montreal against the Flyers to cut into the lead and get the score to 2-1.
It was Gallagher's first goal in 20 games and first point in nine games, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Martin St. Louis is going to have some tough lineup decisions going into Game 1 against the Lightning, and Gallagher is one of those players on the bubble. The performance on Tuesday night certainly helped his case.
Montreal Canadiens now set to open the playoffs on the road in Tampa Bay
The Montreal Canadiens were locked into playing the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round, but still had a chance to secure home ice for the opening round. However, they had to get the win over the Philadelphia Flyers, while the Lightning would have had to lose tomorrow night in their regular season finale.
With the loss, the Canadiens are now set to finish the regular season in third place in the Atlantic Division and will hit the road for Game 1 and Game 2 of the series. It also gives the Lightning an advantage as they now don't need to win for home-ice and can rest some players ahead of the playoffs.
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