Cole Caufield’s goal, a lifetime in the making
The Montreal Canadiens played the absolute biggest remaining game on their schedule Thursday night, hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning with a chance to pass them for second place in the Atlantic Division. It had every bit of intensity you would expect from a playoff game, and with good reason, as the odds that these teams will meet in the first round seem to strengthen by the game. The Habs controlled the play well through three periods, and though it was a very tight margin of victory, they found the goals they needed to take a 2-1 victory in regulation.
One goal took on a little more significance, of course, as Cole Caufield made modern Habs history by reaching the 50-goal plateau.
COLE CAUFIELD A 50 BUTS
COLE CAUFIELD HAS 50 GOALS #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/OdjYM9XHD2
— x – Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) April 10, 2026
The epic call from the legendary Pierre Houde describes the elite company Caufield has now joined: “From Maurice (Richard), to Boom-Boom (Geoffrion), to Guy (Lafleur), to Steve (Shutt), to Pierre (Larouche), to Stéphane (Richer), to Cole, the torch has been passed. Fifty goals.” Everything in Caufield’s career has led him to this moment; from early doubts due to his size, to falling in the draft for the same reason, to further doubts about his ability to translate his scoring to the NHL, to proving those doubters wrong but coming up short of even the 40-goal mark in his first four seasons. He has now accomplished something that many Habs fans have been longing for much longer than he’s even been alive.
I don’t want to make this about myself, but I think this will contextualize how big of a moment this is for some fans. My father and his brothers all grew up in Montreal during the 1970s. I therefore grew up on stories of Guy Lafleur and Steve Shutt torching the league every year. Stories from people who knew what it was like for a season without a 50-goal scorer to be stranger than one with two of them. I’ve been waiting my entire life to see just this one. The emotional high of that moment would have been enough for me last night, but the team also put together a strong performance to get a wildly important win and move into second place.
The Habs obviously wanted that moment for the team, for Cole, for the fans, and it seemed to be weighing on them ever since he hit 49. Now, that weight is lifted, and they can focus solely on their game for the remaining three contests they have before the playoffs begin. This milestone is important, but it’s not just about individual accomplishments anymore, it’s about how all of their individual accomplishments come together to make this team a contender.
And yes, I said contender. They may not be a favourite this year, but they’re building towards that. If anyone still thinks this team has no shot, and they’re just in the dance to get a feel for it, they should think again. They’re now fighting for the possibility of home-ice advantage, and still have a shot to take the most competitive division in the entire league.
Whether or not the Habs can win the Atlantic remains to be seen, but the last time they did was 2016-17; a team that stands in stark statistical contrast to what this year’s iteration is putting up. They had just one player eclipse the 60-point mark; Max Pacioretty with 67. They have five players over 60 this year, four of whom are already over the 70-point plateau. One of them is a sophomore defenceman in Lane Hutson who could still get to 80. Nick Suzuki has 98 points and counting. The rebuild brought some painful years, but it has blessed this team with offensive ability that many of us, myself certainly included, have rarely if ever seen in our lifetimes.
Maybe. Just maybe, they could accomplish something else that many of us have been waiting a lifetime to see again.
Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes. We’ll be back on Saturday night for the final Habs’ home game of the 2025-26 regular season, when they take on the Columbus Blue Jackets.
