Jack of all Saves
Round 1, Game 3: Leafs vs. Habs
Simon B
And so our series shifts to Montreal. Not that it matters too much, because fans are not a factor in this series just yet; Montreal only plans to allow fans in their building in game 6 (if it happens). Toronto was certainly on a high after the last game and Montreal was hungry for revenge.
Despite that residual energy, I was surprised that both teams took most of the first period to get up to full playoff intensity. But once they picked up the pace, both goalies stole the show. And for a low-scoring game, it was really fun to watch.
Leafs’ head coach Sheldon Keefe made only one lineup change for this game: Riley Nash was slotted into the lineup on the fourth line (which put Simmons on the third and Kerfoot on the second) because Nick Foligno is day to day with an unspecified injury. Foligno skated in warmups but didn't feel right so he watched this one from the press box.
The Good
One name: Jack Campbell. His night started off relatively easy because he didn't have to make many big-time saves. He stopped 13 shots of 14 in the first two periods and was having a relatively calm night in the net. Then in the third period alone he faced a ton of pressure and had to make 15 saves in the third to preserve the narrow 2-1 Leaf's lead. Especially with the goalie pulled with two minutes to go, Campbell stood tall and was calm and just made save after save until the final buzzer went. In his post-game media availability, Jack was doing his usual "Oh it was nothing. The boys really played well in front of me" which shows how much he understands that this is a team effort. As humble as he is, Jack was the reason the Leafs won last night and if Sheldon Keefe decides to keep his promise by "going with the hot hand in the net", then Campbell is the guy to turn to for game 4 tonight.
There were a few other good things on the Leafs' side last night. Once again Pierre Engvall was absolutely brilliant in his third-line center role. He was strong on the defensive end, backchecking and deflecting a few passes. Then on offense, he showed a ton of skill as he got shots off quickly and used his size to screen Carey Price a few times.
Morgan Rielly also played strongly. His game-winning goal in the second was huge but he was contributing offensively all night long as well. Jumping into the rush, he was the offensive defenseman we all expected him to be. As a plus, Rielly also got the first star of the game.
The Bad
Although we saw the Leafs' power play freshly awakened from a three-month hibernation in game two, it went right back to sleep in game three: the Leafs couldn't generate anything offensively any time they had the man advantage. They weren't even getting set up in the Habs zone. The main problem I have with this power play is its zone entry: the way opponents defend them is so simple, yet this high-flying offense can't seem to get past it. Montreal just lines up their 4 defenders on the blue line and waits there. It's so frustrating to watch because you just seem to see their brains short-circuit into back-passing until they have no more options and then just dump and chase. It brings back memories of the Mike Babcock days when their entire game plan was just to dump and chase the puck. Maybe this is a one-off but they'll need to get this power play going if they want any shot of going on a deep run.
Turning Point
It's hard to pinpoint one moment where this game shifted towards one team or the other so I'm just going to talk about the defining moment of this game: the third period. The shots were 15-2 in favor of Montreal. That pretty much sums up how the final frame went. I'm amazed that this game didn't go to overtime. In the last two minutes, Toronto was stuck in their own zone and they weren't able to get a shot at the empty net 200 feet away. Justin Holl came up huge with mere seconds remaining to block a shot by Cole Caufield that probably would've tied the game up. Campbell was outstanding and pulled the entire team across the finish line in the third period to give the Leafs the series lead.
The Wrap
If the Leafs win game 4, I think this series is over. The Leafs would be going back to Toronto with a chance to close it out with all the momentum in their favor. However, if the Habs can squeeze by with the W, it could really go either way. It's the Leaf's series to lose at this point so their destiny is in their own hands: it's up to them to see what they want to do with it. We do now know who the winner of this series is facing in round 2, as the Jets completed the 4-game-sweep of the Oilers last night in triple overtime to advance. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Game 4 goes tonight from "le Centre Bell".
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