The Montreal Canadiens look to even their Stanley Cup first-round series when they host the Washington Capitals in Game 4 on Sunday night.
The Canadiens scored three straight third-period goals Friday night in front of a raucous home crowd to pull away for a 6-3 win in Game 3.
Both teams face goaltending questions heading into Game 4 – but not due to the number of goals scored in Game 3.
Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault left the game at 11:39 of the second period with an injury and did not return. Backup Jakub Dobes, making his playoff debut in relief, stopped seven of eight shots over the final 28:21 to claim the win.
Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said Saturday that Montembeault was still being evaluated and has not been ruled out for Game 4. The 23-year-old Dobes posted a 7-4-3 record with a 2.74 goals-against average and .909 save percentage in 16 regular-season appearances.
Capitals goalie Logan Thompson left after a collision with teammate Dylan Strome on Juraj Slafkovský’s goal with 6:37 remaining. Thompson was unable to put weight on his left leg and was assisted off the ice.
Washington coach Spencer Carbery did not have an update on Thompson after Saturday’s practice. If Thompson can’t go, Charlie Lindgren would make his first start in the series against his former team. Lindgren was 20-14-3 during the regular season with a 2.73 goals-against average and .896 save percentage.
“He’s done a great job; he’s a great goaltender,” Carbery said. “There’s no concern there of our group having a letdown or our staff having a lack of confidence. We got two great guys.”
Washington got some good news Saturday as forward Aliaksei Protas (30 goals in the regular season) was a full participant at practice and could play Sunday. Protas has been out since April 4 due to a skate cut on his left foot.
Cole Caufield and Alex Newhook each had a goal and an assist in Game 3 for the Canadiens, who are the Eastern Conference’s second wild card.
Montreal scored in the final minute of the first period to tie it 1-1 and then took a 3-2 lead when Caufield scored at 19:51 of the second period.
“The end of the second period, we put ourselves in a good spot,” Montreal forward Nick Suzuki said. “It was kind of emotional; a lot of physicality there. We came into the room and just kind of reset.”
Alexander Ovechkin tied it 3-3 early in the third, but the Canadiens regained the lead for good less than two minutes later when Christian Dvorak’s shot deflected into the net off the stick of Washington’s Brandon Duhaime in front.
“I thought we played to our identity tonight,” said Montreal forward Josh Anderson. “Everybody was going from the beginning. We fed off the crowd; they were unbelievable. We’ve got to bring that Sunday.”
Connor McMichael and Jakob Chychrun also scored for the Capitals, who are the No. 1 seed in the East. Ovechkin and McMichael each have three goals in three games.
“(We) know that it’s going to take our absolute best from the Washington Capitals to win the series,” Carbery said. “I know that for a fact, so we are going to have to be at our best for Game 4, Game 5 and the rest of the series in order to win the series. That’s just a fact.
“So, we weren’t at our best tonight, and we need to get to that level in Game 4.”
