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Hutson plays over 30 minutes in defeat

Hutson plays over 30 minutes in defeat

After being out of action since Monday night, the Montreal Canadiens showed great effort but fell short again, this time against the visiting Los Angeles Kings by a score of 4-1. The loss was also costly as it not only lost on the scoreboard, but also lost top defenseman Mike Matheson, who left the game early in the second period and did not return.

There’s a lot to discuss, so let’s dive into the highlights!

Decent start

Montreal (2-3-0) appeared solid on both ends of the ice early in the game. Sam Montembeault, making his third straight start tonight, appeared to have good vision after being tested a few times in the early stages. A little over seven minutes into the game, the Habs got on the court first when defenseman Justin Barron finished off a great individual effort, then wrapped the puck and pushed it past Rittich. Barron scored a career-best seven goals last year – and the goal was assisted by Cole Caufield and captain Nick Suzuki. With the point, Suzuki extended his point streak to three games (4 assists). And Caufield has shown that he can do more than just score goals with assists.

However, the Kings didn’t let up and created many chances in close combat against Montembeault, but it was actually the long-range shots that hit him. Late in the first frame, defenseman Mikey Anderson fired a point shot that got past the Habs’ screened tender, his first of the season.

However, there was a nice tribute just before the goal as the Canadiens faithful paid tribute to David Savard. The former third-round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2009 played his 800th career NHL game. His defensive brother Arber Xhekaj also played in a milestone night, his 100th.

The ice had barely been touched early in the period as the Kings took a 2-1 lead in the first two minutes of the game. Jordan Spence took another shot from the point for Los Angeles, this time it was deflected in by Alex Laferriere for the third time.

Moments later, Matheson suffered an upper-body injury, left the bench and the game and did not return. Phenom Lane Hutson was called up to the first power play unit but couldn’t muster anything. The Habs had opportunities to score with the man advantage tonight, but for the first time all season they were unable to score on the power play despite five attempts. Hutson still looked like a veteran as his ice time increased exponentially to over 30 minutes (30:05) due to the team’s shortened bench.

In the third period, both Montembeault and Rittich were seeing the puck well and it appeared the game would end with a single goal. However, just over seven minutes into the game, Huston gave Kings forward Kevin Fiala the opportunity to make a breakaway and was awarded a penalty shot. For Fiala it was the third penalty in his career, the previous two were goalless, and Monty had never taken a penalty in his career. The young goalkeeper from Quebec finally made the save.

Montreal probably had their best chance to tie the game with six minutes remaining when Alex Newhook was prevented from scoring by a last-second defensive play by the Kings. It would have been his second of the year, but it was all in vain. At least Kirby Dach looked great as he created the dangerous scoring opportunity.

Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks

The Canadiens had a lot of trouble against the Kings and didn’t get the royal reception they were hoping for. Los Angeles has won the last seven contests. A look at the Habs’ record books shows that the last time they had a win over these Californian visitors was on November 9, 2019, when then-captain Shea Weber scored two goals in a 3-2 win.

The Montreal Canadiens will be back in action on Saturday when they take on the New York Islanders. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET.