Jakub Dobes laughs off overtime mix-up in Canadiens’ game 1 win

While it was not Jakub Dobes' first career playoff game, the nerves seemed to have gotten the better of him when he skated back out onto the ice for overtime. After the intermission following the end of the third period, Dobes returned to the ice and immediately skated to the goalie crease. The only problem was that he skated to the Tampa Bay Lightning side of the ice. Once he realized he was on the wrong side, he quickly skated over to the other side of the ice, but the media made sure to ask him about his mishap in the post-game interview following the team's 4-3 win.

Sportsnet’s Kyle Bukauskas met up with Dobes following the game, and during his post-game interview, he asked him what happened. Dobes already had a big smile on his face before Bukauskas could finish asking him the question. All Dobes could do was laugh as he explained that he was just so locked in that he forgot which side of the ice the Montreal Canadiens were on. We did not get to see whether that little mistake had any effect on Dobes' game, as Juraj Slafkovsky found the back of the net just 1 minute and 22 seconds into overtime for the winner.

Dobes blamed being in the zone for skating on the wrong side of the ice to start overtime, but he truly was locked in from the very start of the game, and the Canadiens needed him to be to have a chance to win. Though it was the Canadiens who struck first in the game, it was the Lightning who had the majority of the scoring chances early. Dobes was aggressive from the start, challenging shooters and coming deep out of his net to cut off angles. No sequence showcased Dobes’ aggression better than his save on Tampa Bay’s defenceman Erik Cernak. Jake Guenztel found a wide-open Cernak skating into the slot for a clear goal-scoring opportunity, but Dobes was ready. Dobes flew out of his crease to challenge Cernak’s shot and made a stellar pad stop from the hash marks. Dobes was clearly in the zone.

The Canadiens were getting outshot 16-5 late in the second period, and while Dobes admitted during his post-game interview with Bukauskas that he felt he could have played better, he was the reason Montreal was still in the game.

It is tough to really blame Dobes for any of Tampa Bay’s goals. Two of Tampa Bay’s goals came on the power play, and the third goal (Lightning’s second of the game) was created from sloppy defending and a misplayed puck from Kaiden Guhle that found its way to Brandon Hagel in front of the net. Dobes finished with 20 saves on 23 shots and did not face any shots in overtime after his little mix-up before the frame started.

Game two against the Tampa Bay Lightning is set for April 21st at 7 pm, and the Canadiens will need Dobes to remain fully dialled in if they want to take a commanding 2-0 series lead before taking it back home to Montreal.

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