The Tricolore hadn't won against the Leafs since February 26, 2017...For 7 games, the Leafs had dominated always skating away with the 2 points. With that match-up, the Canadiens had a chance to draw the curtain on a rather positive season in the best possible way (when eliminated from the playoffs) with a win over the old enemy. While some were disappointed that Carey Price wouldn't be taking part in the game (not me, I felt he had done more than enough this season), all were looking forward to seeing what Ryan Poehling could do in his first professional game.
The game didn't start very well for Montreal, after just 8 minutes, the Canadiens were already down by 2 surrendering goals to both Zach Hyman and Jake Gardiner. Thankfully, it was only a temporary state of affair as Poehling and his 4th line teammates (Weal and Deslauriers) decided to take matters in their own hands which led to the youngster's first NHL career goal. The St. Cloud alumni wasn't done though, he came out strong in the second frame to tie things up by scoring his 2nd goal not even 3 minutes in before Weal gave the Habs the lead on the power play 4 minutes later. It was to be a very short-lived lead though as less then 2 minutes later, Trevor Moore put Toronto back on equal footing at 3-3. The team than traded another pair of goals through Andrew Shaw and William Nylander before the end of the period, setting us up for a tight finish.
The Leafs threw a cold shower on the Bell Centre when they regained the lead just before the halfway point of what should have been the last period had it not been for the hero of the day; Ryan Poehling. The newcomer completed his hat-trick a little over 2 minutes before the final buzzer sending the 21 000+ fans in attendance at the Bell Centre to their feet and even some of us watching on TV. The game might have been without meaning standing wise but pride wise? It was another story. The OT treated us to end to end action but the score couldn't be settled and off to a shootout we went.
Tatar, Drouin and Weal were the first 3 players to shoot by Claude Julien and the Quebecer was the only one to get the puck behind Frederik Andersen while only Auston Matthews managed to beat Lindgren. Julien, clearly a fan of "hollywoodesque" endings, then selected Poehling to take the fourth shot and what do you know, he scored yet another goal on the Leafs' goalie. Everything now rested on Kasperi Kapanen's shoulders but he couldn't find a way to beat Lindgren and just like that, for a few hours, Habs fans forgot about the fact that they were out of the playoffs and celebrated not only a win over the Leafs but a spectacular NHL debut for their 1st round pick in 2017.
Some will say that the game meant nothing and that Poehling just had it easy because this was a game in which the Leafs didn't give their all but if you're honest, you'll admit that Babcock and co. really seemed to want to finish on a high and not on a bum note.
This final game was a delight to watch and I did really enjoy the Bob Cole tribute, I don't know about you but as they were showing clips of the spectacular plays he had called over his stellar career I got goosebumps many times... But to me, one call will forever be special:“And now a 24th banner will hang from the rafters of the famous Forum in Montreal! The Canadiens win the Stanley Cup!” Who doesn't remember that?
Over the coming days, weeks and there will be plenty of analyzing what went wrong and what went right this season, speculating over who will or won't be back and if, for once, the Habs will manage to get in the action during the free agents frenzy. We'd all would have like to bear witness to drive for 25 but it just wasn't to be....yet.
The Habs brass will be holding its exit interviews on Tuesday when the players flock to the Complexe Sportif Bell one last time to empty their lockers. Should the weather allow, I'm planning to make the drive down to Brossard to go autograph hunting and have one last morning with fellow Habs die-hard fans.
I truly hope that you've enjoyed the rebirth of this team as much as I have this season. They might have come short of the playoffs but they improved a great deal and showed us a much more entertaining brand of hockey. I look forward to seeing a fresh batch of new faces at the next training camp but until then, I'm sure there will be plenty of Habs headline to keep us busy!
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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