The Montreal Canadiens find themselves in unfamiliar territory.
Sure, they will play their next game at home, but they will enter Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night having lost two in a row for the first time since March 14-15.
The Canadiens, who trail 2-1 in the best-of-seven series, also have lost three in a row at home and five of seven overall at the Bell Centre in the playoffs.
Unfortunately for Montreal, Carolina is 5-0 on the road and 10-1 overall.
“I expect us to show up,” Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis said on Tuesday. “We’re behind, but we’re not dead.
“… It’s hard as you keep advancing. We knew it was going to be that. I think going through that, you really realize it’s hard to keep advancing. You have to grind.”
Getting more shots on goal would be beneficial, too.
Montreal followed up registering 12 shots on goal in a 3-2 overtime loss in Game 2 on Saturday with 13 in a setback by the same score in Game 3 on Monday. Even the Bell Centre faithful were imploring the home team to “shoot the puck” during overtime on Monday.
“I think we could have been better (Monday) night. I think our execution was a little bit off. We just couldn’t find it throughout the whole game, it seemed like,” defenseman Kaiden Guhle said, per the Montreal Gazette.
“(On Wednesday) we definitely have to be better. We have to be desperate. We don’t want to be down 3-1 going back there (for Game 5 on Friday). Definitely, it’s a huge one.”
Andrei Svechnikov scored 14:06 into the extra session on Monday as Carolina improved to 5-0 in overtime during this postseason. The Hurricanes are now two wins removed from reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in franchise history.
“I think it’s the mentality of the team,” Svechnikov said of Carolina’s penchant of winning in overtime, per the Raleigh News and Observer. “We love tight games. Every time, we love that.”
Carolina also loves scoring first, as it has done in each game of this series and nine times in 11 games during these playoffs. Defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere opened the scoring on Monday and Taylor Hall also tallied for his team-leading 13th point this postseason.
Montreal defenseman Lane Hutson scored a goal on Monday to boost his postseason point total to 15 (three goals, 12 assists). However, the 5-foot-9, 162-pound Hutson also has picked up a number of other things — such as a swollen lip and a bruised nose — while being targeted with physical play by the Hurricanes.
Carolina holds a decisive 127-65 advantage in hits thus far in the series.
“I would say it’s a staple of our game,” Gostisbehere said. “Our forwards do a great job of sending a heavy forecheck. It’s to whoever has the puck, to be honest. Obviously, (Montreal’s) skilled guys, you want to get a piece of them any chance you get, don’t let them get up the ice. When you’re doing that all game, it gets annoying. You’re not going to want to get up the ice when you’re getting hit all the time or mentally knowing that you’re going to get hit.”
