Canadiens Game Day: ‘Playoffs are the best time of year’

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“Playoffs are fun … playoffs are the best time of year as a hockey player,” Eric Staal said after the Canadiens held their morning skate Sunday in Brossard. “Everybody says it every single year. It’s just different, it’s just amped up. All the details matter. No one cares who scores, who does what. Everybody cares about wins and that’s the best feeling after games. So I’m having a blast, it’s been fun. We want to continue this. We’re still a long ways to go, but this is the type of hockey you love to play and love to be a part of.”

The Canadiens won again Sunday night, beating Winnipeg 5-1 to take a 3-0 lead in the North Division final with a chance to sweep the Jets Monday at the Bell Centre (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio). The Canadiens have now won six straight playoff games after never winning more than three in a row during the regular season.

Joel Armia scored twice for the Canadiens Sunday night (both short-handed and the second into an empty net), while Corey Perry, Artturi Lehkonen and Nick Suzuki added singles. Carey Price made 32 saves, improving his playoff record to 7-3-0 with a 1.97 goals-against average and a .938 save percentage.

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The new system that interim head coach Dominique Ducharme tried to put in on the fly during the regular season after taking over from Claude Julien now seems to have kicked into full gear.

“There was a lot to change,” Brendan Gallagher said after Sunday’s win. “It wasn’t just like it was little tinkers. I think Dom had an idea with the way he wanted us playing and as players we had to take quite a bit in. It was kind of tough to do on the fly and then you mix in injuries and many lines are juggling, defensive pairings juggling. There’s a lot going on. And then right before the playoffs we just had some time. We had some time to work on it and to really lock everything down. It’s been nice for us. We’re in a nice little rhythm right now.”

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But Gallagher realizes this series isn’t over yet, especially after the Canadiens came back from being down 3-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs in their first-round playoff series.

“I’ve been in this league long enough, played in enough playoff series to know the hardest game to win is the last one,” Gallagher said. “When you get a team up against the ropes they’re usually able to find a little bit of desperation. Obviously, no one wants to go home at this point. You start to get pretty hungry and it’s playoff hockey. They’re not going to go down without a fight. So we know how difficult this is going to be.

“It’s always difficult to put that team away,” Gallagher added. “We were on the other side last series. As soon as you get a sliver of hope, momentum starts to build and they can see it coming, coming. So we don’t want to allow them to get into that situation where we let them feel comfortable and give them hope. We have the advantage right now, but that can change pretty quickly if our effort changes. So for us to enjoy this win, but when you wake up tomorrow we got to put in another solid effort and find a way to do the same things that led to success tonight.”

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If the Canadiens eliminate the Jets, they will face the winner of the West Division final between the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche.

Rolling the lines

One of the things that has Ducharme’s system working so well in the playoffs is the ability to roll four lines.

Phillip Danault had the most ice time among the forwards in Sunday’s game with 17:23, while Cole Caufield had the least with 13:01.

The fourth line of Eric Staal between Armia and Perry has been a force, combining for three goals and five points with Perry opening the scoring at 4:45 of the first period.

“I love to play with those two guys,” Armia said. “I think they’re really easy to play with. They’re really good with the puck in the corners and hanging on to the puck down low. It’s a lot of fun playing with those guys.

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“I feel like somehow we’re kind of three similar type of players,” Armia added. “We’re all big boys and everybody can hang on to the puck and do the same kind of things. It’s a lot of fun playing with those guys. They’re such great players. … They’ve played a lot of games so they always have something to say. All the little tricks or plays we should try using. I feel like I just have to listen and learn (from) what they say.”

Lehkonen fits right in

Lehkonen had a team-leading seven shots while replacing the injured Jake Evans for the second straight game on a line with Phillip Danault and Gallagher.

“The change in linemates, it wasn’t really much because both Jake and Lehky I think play very similar styles,” Gallagher said. “They have an aggressive nature on the forecheck I think that fits into what me and Phil are trying to do. It’s kind of been nice to work them in. Lehky, specifically, is a guy that has such a good stick on the forecheck, create a lot of turnovers, create a lot of chances. You saw tonight. I think he had quite a few looks himself, was able to get around the net and score a big goal for us.”

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Evans suffered a concussion when he was violently checked by the Jets’ Mark Scheifele after scoring an empty-net goal in Game 1.

“Jake is a little bit better, but there’s no timeline there (for a return),” Ducharme said after Sunday’s morning skate when asked about the status of Evans. “It’s hard with that type of injury to predict when he’s going to be back. But good to see he’s a little bit better.”

Scheifele was suspended four games by the NHL Department of Player Safety for the hit. The only way Scheifele will play again this season if if the Jets can extend the series to a Game 6.

Things started to get chippy again Sunday night as the Canadiens continued to frustrate the Jets with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Andrew Copp taking cross-checking penalties in the third period.

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“We talk about controlling our emotions and funnelling that in the right way,” Ducharme said when asked about his team’s response. “We can play with emotion but express it on the ice in a way that will help the team and that’s where our focus is. We want to be winning and that’s the only thing we’re thinking about or we care about is winning and we’ll prepare for tomorrow and we’re going to have the same mindset.”

Petry injured

Defenceman Jeff Petry suffered what the team called an upper-body injury during the second period and didn’t return to the game.

While being check by the Jets’ Paul Stastny, Petry got his right hand stuck in the hole in the glass that is cut out for the camera of photographers shooting the game. That’s how Petry’s injury appeared to happen.

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“We’ll have more news tomorrow morning,” Ducharme said when asked about Petry. “He’s going to get checked out again. We’ll see tomorrow what we’re going to do depending on his situation and take decisions from there.”

Staal providing points

Staal picked up an assist on Perry’s goal and now has 1-6-7 totals in nine playoff games, trailing only Armia (4-3-7) and Tyler Toffoli (3-5-8) in team scoring.

In 21 regular-season games with the Canadiens after being acquired from the Buffalo Sabres, Staal only had 2-1-3 totals.

“Whatever role I’m playing I’m going to do the best I can to help us win games,” Staal said after Sunday’s morning skate. “Don’t really care what happens otherwise as far as numbers and points go. It’s about getting the wins and putting ourselves in a position to be there at the end. It’s been fun, I’m playing with some good players. This is a good group of guys, great team. I’m just focused on what I can do to help us in the win column every single game.”

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Staal is one of six players with Stanley Cup rings that GM Marc Bergevin added to the Canadiens this season for their experience. The others are Corey Perry, Tyler Toffoli, Joel Edmundson, Jake Allen and Michael Frolik.

Armia has impressed Staal as a linemate.

“I think the part you appreciate when you play with a guy like that is the finer points,” Staal said. “A lot of stuff that he does on the ice gets, I would say, overlooked at times. But his skill level is real high, he’s got a great stick, good speed, great shot. A lot of tools that are top-notch. Smart player, too. So it’s been fun to play alongside him. Great kid, good person and someone that you like to be out there with because he does a lot of the detail work that sometimes goes unnoticed, but in playoffs that stuff gets noticed. He’s been key for us and hopefully he keeps it going.”

The schedule

Here’s the rest of the schedule for the North Division final between the Canadiens and Jets:

Game 4: Monday, June 7: at Montreal, 8 p.m.
x-Game 5: Wednesday, June 9: at Winnipeg, TBD
x-Game 6: Friday, June 11: at Montreal, TBD
x-Game 7: Sunday, June 13: at Winnipeg, TBD
x-if necessary

scowan@postmedia.com

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