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Canadiens @ Flames: Getting Desperate | HABS RECAP

Rick Stephens

Montreal Canadiens vs Calgary Flames Game Recap: Habs Line-up, Score, Statistics, Highlights, Post-game Interviews, NHL Three-Stars

FINAL | Game 46, Away Game 24 | Saturday April 24, 2021
Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, AB

CANADIENS

Montreal

2-5

FLAMES

Calgary
(Photo by Gerry Thomas/NHLI via Getty Images)

Canadiens Lineup

Forward lines

Tyler Toffoli – Nick Suzuki – Corey Perry

Tomas Tatar – Phillip Danault – Josh Anderson

Artturi Lehkonen – Jesperi Kotkaniemi – Joel Armia

Jake Evans – Eric Staal 

Defence pairings

Ben Chiarot – Shea Weber

Joel Edmundson – Jeff Petry

Alexander Romanov – Jon Merrill

Erik Gustafsson

Goaltenders

Cayden Primeau – Jake Allen

Scratches

Brett Kulak 

Taxi Squad

Michael Frolik, Cole Caufield, Xavier Ouellet, Charlie Lindgren

Injuries

Brendan Gallagher (hand), Carey Price (concussion), Paul Byron (lower-body), Jonathan Drouin (illness)

Game Report

Full credit to Darryl Sutter and his Calgary Flames. After giving up the opening goal to the Canadiens midway through the first period, Johnny Gaudreau scored the tying goal with 31 seconds left. An early second period marker gave the Flames a lead that they would never relinquish.

Calgary took the lead by capitalizing on Canadiens breakdowns then simply clogged the neutral zone to lockdown the win. With Montreal focused on protecting their 21-year-old goaltender, there was little energy left for creating offence.

The Habs kept the Flames to the perimeter for the entire first period allowing just one high-danger scoring chance. And that was the wrister from Gaudreau that beat Cayden Primeau.

In his post-game media availability, Primeau admitted that he had a sloppy start to the game, giving up rebounds, but then settled in. In all, Primeau faced just five high-danger scoring chances over three periods.

It wasn’t a bad outing for Primeau but it is quite evident that he is a considerable time away from making the jump to the NHL. A minimum of two more seasons at the AHL level would be best for his development.

Jeff Petry is simply a shell of his former self. The point production dried up a long time ago but even more concerning is Petry’s defensive play. He has become a defenceman that opposition forwards routinely target and Petry typically rewards them with a turnover or a bad defensive play. 

With the confidence of Flames building, it is clear that the Canadiens must dial up desperation mode. Post-game coach Ducharme announced that Tomas Tatar is day-to-day with a lower body injury. 

Up Next

Calgary trails Montreal by four points in the standings while the Habs hold one game in hand. The Canadiens and Flames will be back at the Saddledome on Monday night for their final meeting of the season.

Plus

▲   Tyler Toffoli, Nick Suzuki, Jake Evans

Minus

▼  Jeff Petry, Jon Merrill, Corey Perry, Jesperi Kotkaniemi

Game Preview

Check out the game preview here: Canadiens @ Flames: Looking to Rebound

The Numbers

Game Statistics
CANADIENS   FLAMES
30 Shots 34
52 Face-off % 48
1-for-3 Power Play 0-for-2
6 Penalty Minutes 8
22 Hits 15
43 Corsi For 31
Scoring Summary
FINAL 1 2 3 OT SO T
Canadiens (20-17-9) 1 1 0 – – 2
Flames (21-23-3) 1 2 2 – – 5
Scorers Goalies
  • MTL: Suzuki (9), Toffoli (24)-PPG
  • CGY: Gaudreau (16), Lucic (9), Gaudreau (17), Ritchie (3), Andersson (4)-ENG
  • MTL: Primeau (L) 0-1-0
  • CGY: Markstrom (W) 17-16-2

Stars of the Game

Official NHL Three Stars
  1. Johnny Gaudreau CGY
  2. Christopher Tanev  CGY
  3. Derek Ryan  CGY

Watch

Video Highlights

What Did They Say?

Post-game Quotes

Dominique Ducharme

  • “I don’t think we were lacking a sense of urgency in the first period. We were pressuring their defensemen. They had trouble getting out of their own zone. We had scoring chances. I thought we were executing better. I don’t think they outclassed us in terms of the way they played. We made costly mistakes.”

Tyler Toffoli

  • “It’s that time of the year. I think everybody knew that it was going to come down to certain teams fighting for position. It’s not just us fighting for positions, it’s teams fighting for first and second and third. We’ve got to find a way, we’ve got to regroup, and Monday is a big match.”

Cayden Primeau

  • “Any goal you let in, you kind of want back. I would definitely maybe want to do something different, but it’s easy to say after the play has happened. I would have liked all four goals back.”

Quotes courtesy of NHL.com

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