Led by defenseman Kaiden Guhle, the Montreal Canadiens delivered their best effort of the preseason but were sunk by shaky goaltending and a lackluster power play.
GAME RECAP | Toronto Maple Leafs vs Montreal Canadiens
Canadiens Lineup
Forward lines
22 Cole Caufield 14 Nick Suzuki 15 Alex Newhook
49 Rafael Harvey-Pinard 77 Kirby Dach 20 Juraj Slafkovsky
24 Lias Andersson 86 Riley Kidney 51 Emil Heineman
55 Michael Pezzetta 61 Philippe Maillet 57 Sean Farrell
Defense pairings
21 Kaiden Guhle 64 David Reinbacher
84 William Trudeau 26 Jonathan Kovacevic
59 Mattias Norlinder 52 Justin Barron
Goaltenders
35 Sam Montembeault
75 Jakub Dobes
Out of the lineup
Scratches: Josh Anderson, Joel Armia, Owen Beck, Jake Evans, Brendan Gallagher, Sean Monahan, Tanner Pearson, Jesse Ylonen, Jordan Harris, Gustav Lindstrom, Logan Mailloux, David Savard, Arber Xhekaj, Jake Allen, Cayden Primeau.
Injuries: Christian Dvorak (lower body), Carey Price (lower body), Chris Wideman (upper body), Mike Matheson (lower body)
Game Report
The Toronto Maple Leafs came to Montreal and recorded rare back-to-back road victories. For each game, the Canadiens dressed a far more talented lineup than the visitors but could manage just a single goal.
Alex Newhook added speed and spunk to the Canadiens top line. Playing on the wing, Newhook sparked the play of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, making theirs the most dangerous line for the Canadiens in this game.
But the lack of success with the man advantage continued for the Montreal snipers. The most used members of the Canadiens power play in this game — Suzuki, Caufield, Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Kirby Dach and Mattias Norlinder — could get nothing going. For the two games in Montreal against the Leafs, the Habs power play was 0-for-11.
Kaiden Guhle was a bright spot for the Canadiens, scoring the team's only goal and leading the team with four blocked shots. Guhle also served as an anchor for David Reinbacher who continues his difficult adjustment to NHL style of play. Reinbacher remarked that he was "really grateful to Guhle" and called Kaiden one of the smoothest skaters he had seen.
Jonathan Kovacevic also played a strong game serving as an on-ice mentor to William Trudeau.
In goal, Jakub Dobes delivered another solid effort coming into the game in the third period for a struggling Sam Montembeault. In two games, Montembeault has not looked at all like the goaltender who is capable of challenging Jake Allen for the number one position giving up multiple soft goals.
The Canadiens have dressed far superior lineups for four games at home and have managed just one win. Special teams have been an issue, particularly the power play. If a prospect hadn't made any progress in three seasons, what would be done? Perhaps Alex Burrows knows.
Game Statistics
Canadiens (1-3-0)
Shots: 34
Face-off %: 61.4
Power play: 0/5
Penalty minutes: 8
Hits: 20
Blocks: 13
Maple Leafs
Shots: 22
Face-off %: 38.6
Power play: 1/4
Penalty minutes: 10
Hits: 20
Blocks: 26
Scoring Summary
Canadiens Scorers
1st period: No scoring
2nd period: No scoring
3rd period: Guhle (1)
OT: n/a
SO: n/a
Maple Leafs Scorers
1st period: Knies (2)
2nd period: Minten (1)-PPG, Robertson (1)
3rd period: No scoring
OT: n/a
SO: n/a
Goaltenders
MTL: Montembeault (L), Dobes
TOR: Jones (W)
Canadiens Players of the Game
Kaiden Guhle
Jonathan Kovacevic
Alex Newhook
Video Highlights
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDuCnyd4nQQ[/embed]
Post-game Quotes
Marty St. Louis: "We had a few chances in the first, but then we forced plays and we didn't generate enough chances."
Game Preview
Check out the game preview here: A Chance For Saturday Night Redemption | PREVIEW: TOR @ MTL
Roster News
Following the game, the Montreal Canadiens announced that Jakub Dobes, Riley Kidney, Sean Farrell and William Trudeau have been loaned to the Laval Rocket. David Reinbacher has been loaned to the HC Kloten in Switzerland.
Earlier in the day, Canadiens management made two sets of cuts placing four players on waivers and assigning 26 players elsewhere.
When the day began, 68 players were in camp but by the time Sunday arrived, only 33 remain. This will be a much more manageable number as the Canadiens prepare for their two final preseason games.
Up Next
The Montreal Canadiens continue their preseason schedule on Monday night in Toronto to play the Maple Leafs for the third consecutive game.
Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 pm ET on Monday, October 2nd at Scotiabank Arena.
Be sure to bookmark THN.com/Montreal for year-round coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, Laval Rocket, and Habs prospects playing in leagues around the world.
