Canadiens Game Day: It’s time to put Cole Caufield in the lineup

Article content

Can Cole please come out to play now?

A lot of Montreal hockey fans will be asking that question after watching the Canadiens lose 5-1 to the Maple Leafs Saturday night in Toronto. The first-round playoff series is now tied 1-1 with Game 3 set for Monday night at the Bell Centre (7 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio, 98.5 FM).

Heading into this best-of-seven series the Canadiens and their fans would have happily taken a split of the first two games in Toronto. But the Canadiens scored only three goals in the first two games and if they can only average 1.5 goals per game this series won’t last very long. Especially not if the Leafs’ power play continues to click, going 2-for-6 in Game 2 after going 0-for-4 in Game 1.

It’s unfair to think 20-year-old Cole Caufield will be the saviour for the Canadiens, but you have to think he can help the offence and a power play that is 0-for-6 in the first two games after going 0-for-1 in Game 2. Caufield scored four goals in 10 games after joining the Canadiens late in the season, but was made a healthy scratch for the first two games of the playoffs.

Article content

“Possible,” Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme said after Saturday’s game when asked if Caufield could be in the lineup for Game 3. “Like everyone available. We have depth and we’re going to use it.”

Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who was a healthy scratch for Game 1, got the only goal for the Canadiens in Game 2, opening the scoring at 7:57 of the first period. After that this game was all Toronto, with the Leafs outshooting the Canadiens 34-23. Kotkaniemi replaced Jake Evans, who was injured in Game 1, and was at centre on the fourth line between Paul Byron and Artturi Lehkonen.

Jason Spezza, Auston Matthews, Rasmus Sandin (power play), William Nylander (power play) and Alexander Kerfoot (empty net) scored for the Leafs.

Article content

When asked after the game what gives him confidence that the Canadiens can score enough goals to beat the Leafs in this series, Ducharme said: “It’s one game at a time. Every game is different. I don’t think they’re going to be scoring five goals a night. Tonight was a different night.”

Former NFL coach Bill Parcells, who won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants, once famously said: “You are what your record says you are.”

On Saturday night, the Leafs looked like a team that finished first in the all-Canadian North Division with a 35-14-7 record and a plus-39 goal differential. The Canadiens looked like a team that finished fourth with a 24-21-11 record and a minus-9 goal differential.

You have to think Caufield can make them look at least a little bit better.

Article content

Bizarre video review

The Canadiens called for a video review for goalie interference after Sandin made the score 3-1 at 13:20 of the second period. The Canadiens believed Joe Thornton had interfered with Carey Price’s stick, but it looked very obvious that it was a good goal.

Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin obviously disagreed and was caught on TV cameras in his private loge standing in front of a giant screen and pointing at Price in the crease. An animated Bergevin was seen talking to John Sedgwick (the team’s vice-president of hockey operations and legal affairs), while Sedgwick was talking to someone on what looked like a walkie-talkie.

After video review, it was indeed ruled to be a good goal, with the NHL Situation Room simply stating: “Video review confirmed no goaltender interference infractions occurred prior to Rasmus Sandin’s goal.” As a result, the Canadiens were given a penalty for delay of game. Luckily for them the Leafs didn’t score on the ensuing power play.

Article content

After the game, Ducharme said video replay analyst Mario Leblanc, Sedgwick and director of goaltending Sean Burke were looking for one specific replay angle that showed Thornton interfering with Price’s stick.

“I have the last call always, but we were all in agreement we needed to challenge,” Ducharme said.

When Ducharme announced his starting lineup for Game 1 — making Caufield, Kotkaniemi and Alexander Romanov healthy scratches — he said that himself, assistant coaches Luke Richardson and Alex Burrows, Burke and Bergevin all agreed that the same 20 players should be in the lineup.

When everyone in management starts agreeing on everything, that’s not a good sign in any business. Too many “yes men” isn’t a recipe for success.

Article content

In this case, someone should have spoken up and said it was a good goal and maybe the Canadiens would have avoided an unnecessary delay-of-game penalty.

When Price was asked after the game about the video review, he said: “I haven’t seen the replay so I can’t really comment on it.”

Article content

Find the ‘No Excuses’ sign

The Canadiens should find the old “No Excuses” sign that former coach Michel Therrien had installed in the locker room and put it up again before Game 3 at the Bell Centre.

“They got a lot of power plays, so it took the momentum out of it and we had trouble getting scoring chances after that,” Phillip Danault said after the Leafs had six power plays and the Canadiens had only one.

Ducharme said he was surprised by the way the game was called by the officials.

“I think the term they used was they want to make it a war,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “If you’re going to do that, you’re at risk of getting penalties called against you.”

On social media a lot of Canadiens fans were blaming the referees for the loss.

Article content

But when your team can only score three goals in two games, that’s not the referees’ fault and blaming the refs is the oldest excuse in the book.

Is it also the referees’ fault that Tomas Tatar has zero shots on goal after two games and Nick Suzuki has only one? Brendan Gallagher and Joel Armia have three shots each and Tyler Toffoli has four. Is that also the referees’ fault? How about Corey Perry and Lehkonen having one shot each?

The three Canadiens with the most shots through two games are Shea Weber with eight, Jeff Petry with six and Josh Anderson with six. Weber and Petry are both defencemen.

That’s also not a recipe for success.

Can Cole please come out to play?

Article content

Four-finger salute

After scoring his goal, Kotkaniemi took off his right glove and held up four fingers while looking up into the stands.

What did it mean?

“We had a good week of practice with the (four) guys who didn’t play tonight, so we’ve been in the locker room before so that was our thing,” Kotkaniemi said after the game.

When asked how he felt on the ice after being a healthy scratch for Game 1, Kotkaniemi said: “I felt pretty good the first period. There was a lot of penalties in the second … I think that killed a little bit of the game for me and for the team a little bit. We can’t be in the box that much. Just keep it five-on-five.”

Good idea.

Article content

Long time coming

Saturday’s game marked the first time the Leafs have beaten the Canadiens in a playoff game since May 2, 1967 when they won their last Stanley Cup with a 3-1 victory in Game 6 of the final at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Ron Ellis, Jim Pappin and George Armstrong scored for the Leafs in that game, while Dick Duff responded for the Canadiens.

The next time the Canadiens and Leafs met in the playoffs was in 1978 with Montreal sweeping their semifinal series. In 1979, the Canadiens swept the Leafs again, this time in the quarterfinals. The Canadiens won the Stanley Cup in both of those years.

The two teams didn’t meet in the playoffs again until this year.

Article content

Some stats

The Leafs outshot the Canadiens 34-23 and won 66 per cent of the faceoffs, while Montreal led 44-36 in hits.

The Canadiens went 0-for-1 on the power play, while the Leafs went 2-for-6.

Joel Edmundson led the Canadiens in ice time with 22:35, followed by Petry with 22:33 and Weber with 22:00. Danault led the forwards with 19:29, followed by Suzuki with 18:13 and Toffoli with 16:38.

Danault had a team-leading four shots, while Petry had three. Byron had five hits, while Gallagher, Lehkonen and Weber had four each.

Ben Chiarot had five giveaways and finished minus-2. Byron and Lehkonen were also minus-2.

Kotkaniemi went 6-5 on his 11 faceoffs (55 per cent). Danault went 6-15 (29 per cent), Suzuki went 3-10 (23 per cent) and Eric Staal went 2-4 (33 per cent).

Article content

The schedule

Here’s the rest of the schedule for the Canadiens-Leafs first-round series. All games will be televised on CBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports and will be available on radio on TSN 690 and 98.5 FM:

Game 3: Monday, May 24, 7 p.m., at Montreal
Game 4: Tuesday, May 25, time TBD, at Montreal
Game 5: Thursday, May 27, time TBD, at Toronto, if necessary
Game 6: Saturday, May 29, time TBD, at Montreal, if necessary
Game 7: Monday, May 31, time TBD, at Toronto, if necessary

scowan@postmedia.com

twitter.com/StuCowan1