Tut, tut, tut, not right away!

TORONTO – We thought they were dead and (almost) buried. Tut, tut, tut, not right away! The Montreal Canadiens saved their skin by defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in overtime at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday in the fifth matchup of the first-round series between the two longtime rivals.

Nick suzuki scored after a two-way breakaway against the goalkeeper Jack campbell, at the 59th second of the overtime.

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Cole caufield intercepted a cross pass from Alex Galchenyuk to his blue line and scrambled with Suzuki, who smashed the disc after a rally of a few passes.

“The ice was not of very good quality. You shouldn’t pass too much, but they did that well, ”commented the center player. Phillip danault, giving Caufield a lot of credit for his great defensive play.

Suzuki said he expected to receive the pass even though Caufield is a maverick.

“It’s not easy, two-on-zero breakaways,” he began by saying. “We are both capable of scoring or making plays. I felt like I had a good shooting angle on landing, as a right-handed person. He made a great touch of the puck to return it to me. « 

Joel armia, twice, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi were the other scorers for the Habs.

Zach Hyman and Jake muzzin, twice, provided the replica of the Maple Leafs, who closed a three-goal deficit.

Carey Price still had a big say in the victory of his team with 32 saves. At the other end, Jack Campbell made 26 saves.

“We showed a lot of strength,” commented Price. It wasn’t easy having the right approach to start overtime after giving up two goals in the third period. The guys were laid back and in control during the intermission. « 

The beast regains its strength

The beast had been dragging its feet for three games, so the Maple Leafs let it regain its strength. They will have a second chance to finish him off in Game 6 on Saturday.

The Canadiens could not let down the more than 2,500 fans, who will have the chance to fill the stands at the Bell Center for the first time this year. They put their shoulder to the wheel from the start, taking a 2-0 lead in the first 10 minutes of play.

Armia and the two elders on the attack Eric Staal and Corey perry paved the way for both goals. Price took care of the rest.

Armia first took advantage of Perry’s fighting spirit, which caused the rookie defender to lose the record Rasmus Sandin along the strip, to beat Campbell with a wrist shot, at 5:13. The Finn then took advantage of the relentlessness of his teammates in front of the net, at 8:18.

Just before, Price had stood in front of Mitchell marner, who shot on reception after a redundant run with Hyman.

The star goalkeeper put it back to William nylander, in the last moments of the engagement.

« They were much hungrier than us in the first half, it was obvious, » said the star striker Auston matthews. “They quickly took the lead, but I’m proud of the way we fought to give ourselves a chance to win. « 

CH even solved the riddle of the cursed second period and led 3-1 before entering the third period.

Kotkaniemi even tripled his team’s lead early in the second period, at 4:52. The young Finn stole the disc from Sandin, near Campbell, before placing it under the goalkeeper. A goal not very clean, as the Habs had been drooling for three games.

Video: The Habs win 4-3 in overtime and survive

“Jack was not at the top of his game,” conceded coach Sheldon Keefe. “He had been playing at a very high level since the start of the series, but he had a difficult night, like the rest of the team. He has earned our trust, and we know he will come back stronger. « 

Hyman started the comeback with a goal similar to Kotkaniemi’s at 6:32.

Written in the sky

In third, it was written in the sky that the Maple Leafs would open the machine. Price stopped Hyman on a breakaway, then the Canadiens gave them their first power play. The Maple Leafs didn’t score, but the unexpected Muzzin found the back of the net from a distance just after, at 6:52.

We thought for a moment that the CH would break, but no, it just bent. Muzzin added more at 11:54, barely touching the puck Galchenyuk sent towards the net.

The table was set for a first overtime in the series. It only lasted the time of the roses.