Alex Newhook’s Overtime Goal Lifts Montreal Canadiens To Conference Finals
Alex Newhook came through hugely in Game 7 of Round 2 of the Eastern Conference, scoring an overtime goal for the Montréal Canadiens to advance them past the Buffalo Sabres in a long series.
Game 7 Goes To Overtime
The whole series between the Canadiens and the Sabres had been nothing like Game 7, as that was hard-fought until the end in terms of scoring. It was the only game in the series to go to overtime.
As per the usual pattern in the series, the Canadiens jumped out to a 2-goal lead, which was then cut down to 2-1 in the second period. Rasmus Dahlin tied the game for the Sabres in the third, sending the game into overtime. Newhook had previously scored the game-winner in Game 7 against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the third period.
In overtime against the Sabres, the home team misplayed the puck, and Newhook was able to score with an assist from Jake Evans. It was his seventh goal of the season. He is just the 14th player to score two game-winning goals in Game 7, and just the second to do so in a single postseason.
“I wasn’t sure if Jake touched it, so I kind of looked at him to see if he was going to celebrate or not,” Newhook said. “Great to see you find the back of the net. And there’s no better feeling celebrating with your teammates after a win like that.”
The Sabres walked away disappointed with the overtime loss in front of a home crowd. “It hurts. I told the teams, it hurts,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “The pain will go away. But I won’t let this one game define the season we had. I told the players how proud I was of them.”
Buffalo is now 1-7 in Game 7 in the playoffs, and 1-3 in overtime Game 7’s. It’s been basically two overtime series for the Canadiens, as they’ve played 14 games this postseason. Their opponents in the Eastern Conference Final, meanwhile, are the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Hurricanes historically swept Rounds 1 and 2 of the Eastern Conference, fighting hard but getting a total of 12 days of rest before the first game of the Conference Final. They beat the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 4 back on May 9. Game 1 against the Canadiens is on May 21.
Player Rankings Before Round 3
In overall player rankings, Tage Thompson from the Sabres sits in a tie for 2nd with 15 points, teammate Dahlin has 14 points, and is tied for 6th with Montréal’s Lane Hutson. Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki is tied for 8th with 13 points.
Newhook’s overtime goal raised his tally to 7, and he’s tied with the Hurricanes’ Logan Stankoven for 3rd. Thompson is tied for 9th with 5 goals. Hutson sits alone in 2nd with 12 assists, while Thompson and Dahlin are tied for 6th with 10 assists, and Suzuki and Carolina’s Taylor Hall are tied for 9th with 9 assists each.
Among goalies, Frederik Anderson from the Hurricanes has been nearly impossible to get past. His GAA (1.12) leads the NHL, as does his SV% (0.950). His 2 shutouts put him in a tie for 1st as well. Jakob Dobes of the Canadiens is 9th in GAA (2.52), with Alex Lyon of the Sabres sitting 10th with 2.59.
The Sabres were driven by defensemen, as evidenced by the rankings. Dahlin and Hutson are tied for 2nd with 14 points, and Dahlin’s teammates Bowen Byram and Mattias Samuelsson are tied for 9th with 7 points. In goals, Dahlin and Byram are tied for 1st with 4, Samuelsson has 3 and sits 7th, and Hutson has 2 goals and is tied for 8th. Hutson’s 12 assists give him the lead among defensemen, Dahlin is 3rd with 10, and K’Andre Miller from Carolina is tied for 5th with 6 assists.
Ivan Demidov from the Canadiens has 7 points to lead all rookies. His 2 goals have him tied for 2nd, and he also leads in assists with 5. Noah Ostlund and Konsta Helenius of the Sabres each have 2 points and are tied for 6th. Helenius has 2 goals, putting him with Demidov in 2nd place, and Ostlund’s 1 goal ties him for 7th. He is also tied for 5th with 1 assist.
Canadiens Have a Huge Ask Ahead
The Canadiens have a bunch to celebrate with Newhook’s overtime goal, capping off their series win. However, they tended to throw quick starts away and struggle to score on power plays against the Sabres. The Hurricanes are a balanced, quick team that will score on every opportunity that you give them, and are great at killing penalties and scoring on power plays. It will be key for the Canadiens to play cleanly and continue to score early.
The Canadiens don’t tend to take many shots, but are able to score much more often than other teams. That’s a clear strength of theirs, though with Anderson in the goal, that trend may be hard to keep up.
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