Cowan: Canadiens simply outclassed as experienced Hurricanes strike with full force
It has become obvious that the Carolina Hurricanes are simply too good for the Canadiens to beat in a seven-game playoff series.
Just like the Hurricanes were too good for the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers, sweeping their first two series with a perfect 8-0 record.
The only thing that has been able to slow down the Hurricanes in the playoffs is the 11-day break they had before starting the Eastern Conference final against the Canadiens. After losing Game 1 by a 6-2 score, the Hurricanes have taken a 3-1 series lead following a 4-0 win over the Canadiens in Game 4 Wednesday night at the Bell Centre.
Game 5 is Friday in Carolina (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports) and with a win, the Hurricanes will advance to the Stanley Cup final against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Considering that the Hurricanes are 10-1 in the playoffs, while the Canadiens are 9-9, don’t expect there to be a Game 6 Sunday at the Bell Centre, where the Canadiens have a 2-6 record and have lost four straight home playoff games for the first time in franchise history.
Carolina has totally dominated the Canadiens the last three games — even though Games 2 and 3 both ended with 3-2 overtime wins by the Hurricanes. Carolina has outshot the Canadiens 108-43 in the last three games, including 43-18 in Game 4. The Canadiens set an NHL record for fewest shots over a three-game span of a playoff series.
The Hurricanes haven’t given the Canadiens any time and space when they have the puck. They took a 3-0 lead in the first period Wednesday night while outshooting the Canadiens 12-5. They sat on that lead in the second period while outshooting the Canadiens 12-10 and then slammed the door in the third period, when the shots were 19-3 for the Hurricanes, who got an empty-net goal from Andre Svechnikov.
Frustrated fans at the Bell Centre started chanting “Shoot the puck! Shoot the puck!” with seven minutes left in the third period.
“It’s not fun to hear that, but they’re not wrong,” Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis said after the game.
Captain Nick Suzuki finally got the Canadiens’ first shot of the third period with 2:52 left on the clock.
“They block shots, they bring a lot of pressure,” the Canadiens’ Alex Newhook said. “It’s not like we’re not trying (to shoot), but we’ve got to find a way to get some more through. There’s no shortage of work ethic. There’s no shortage of trying. It’s just they make it tough on us.”
There’s a reason why the Hurricanes have only one loss in the playoffs and are in the Eastern Conference final for the third time in four years.
“They’re in your face all the time,” the Canadiens’ Phillip Danault said. “They’ve always been like that, too. Just got to find a way to go behind those D. They’re playing well and they have energy.”
The 11-day rest certainly helped the Hurricanes, while the Canadiens look like they are out of gas after going seven games in their first two series against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres.
This is a veteran Hurricanes team that is in the playoffs for the eighth straight season. The Canadiens, in Year 4 of a rebuild, are the youngest team in the playoffs for the second straight season, and the Hurricanes are showing them that the rebuild is far from over.
No knock on Jake Evans — who plays his heart out every game — but if he’s your second-line centre, logging 18:29 of ice time like he did in Game 4 with Ivan Demidov as one of his wingers, there’s still rebuilding work to be done. Evans is a solid third-line or fourth-line centre on a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. So is Danault, who was the Canadiens’ third-line centre for Game 4, with Joe Veleno at centre on the fourth line.
The Hurricanes have also put targets on the Canadiens’ small, skilled players. Defenceman Lane Hutson has been hit 21 times in the four games and has one goal on the power play and no assists. Forward Cole Caufield, who scored 51 goals during the regular season while averaging 3.2 shots per game, has one goal and six shots in four games. The Hurricanes have outhit the Canadiens 157-95 in the series.
Nobody — including president of hockey operations Jeff Gorton, general manager Kent Hughes or head coach Martin St. Louis — realistically expected the Canadiens to reach the Eastern Conference final this season, and they are ahead of schedule in the rebuild. If there’s a bright side to this series, it’s that the Hurricanes are highlighting what the Canadiens need to look for this summer — a legitimate second-line centre and more size and grit.
Another bright spot is that the biggest reason the Canadiens are in the Eastern Conference final is the play of goalie Jakub Dobes, who stopped 39 of 42 shots in Game 4 for a .929 save percentage on his 25th birthday. In 18 playoff games, Dobes has a .912 save percentage.
“You’ve got to be mentally strong; you’ve got to believe,” St. Louis said about trying to come back in the series. “You’ve got to believe that you actually can do it. To me, I don’t doubt that I believe we can do it. It wasn’t our best tonight. We’ll put our best foot forward for Game 5 and we’ll be ready to go. And hopefully we can execute better, and we’ve been better on the road.”
The Canadiens have been better on the road with a 7-3 record in the playoffs.
But the Hurricanes are just a better team.
