Cole Caufield Goal Gives Montreal Canadiens Another Win

Four point weekend all but assures playoff spot

The Montreal Canadiens have not fared well in back-to-back games this season. It has been difficult for the Canadiens to sustain the energy and intensity needed. When they went down 2-0 early in the third period versus the Ottawa Senators, it looked like the same old song.

However, something clicked.

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Montreal rallied for two goals to force overtime. Tyler Toffoli, once again, played a primary role in both goals. His assist on the Jeff Petry goal was one thing but the power-play goal to tie the game was clutch. Thanks to Nick Suzuki and Corey Perry’s net-front presence, Toffoli was able to tie the game.

This was all behind an effort that Saw Montreal outshoot Ottawa 18-3 in the third period. That set up the overtime heroics.


2nd Period
14:52	OTT		Tim Stützle (9)	Artem Zub, Colin White
3rd Period
05:51	OTT		Thomas Chabot (6)	Evgenii Dadonov, Shane Pinto
08:12	MTL		Jeff Petry (12)	Tyler Toffoli
14:25	MTL	PP	Tyler Toffoli (27)	Nick Suzuki, Corey Perry
1st OT Period
02:25	MTL		Cole Caufield (1)	Jeff Petry, Jake Evans

Cole Caufield wins the game for Montreal Canadiens

Caufield was a bit rested for this contest. He wound up playing a hair for less than 12 minutes on Saturday night and was utilized in manageable situations. Remember, Dominique Ducharme had the luxury of last-line change. That proved to be important especially in the extra session.

Three-on-three overtime was tailor-made for players like the Montreal winger. The Ottawa Senators feature a speedy forward group with some puck-moving defensemen. Caufield is one of the few game-breakers on Montreal’s roster.

Caufield scored at 2:25 of overtime to give Montreal a vital 3-2 victory. Here is the goal err le but!

ET DE UN.

THAT'S ONE.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/aDov9SgGFc

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) May 2, 2021

A little extra French flavor on that goal from an American hockey player. Just a month ago, Cole Caufield was getting ready for the Frozen Four as a Hobey Baker Award winner for the University of Wisconsin. Now, his goal is a big reason why he will play in a playoff series this season.

The goal happened so fast because it was so simple. All Jeff Petry does is rush out wide. The puck-moving defenseman stretched the young Ottawa defense out. That allowed Caufield to rush up the middle of the ice unimpeded. He blows by the defender almost going offside. Once the winger is that far open, this was when Petry notices him on the ice. The timing was nearly perfect.

Still, Caufield had some work left. He had to get the puck on the net quickly. Again, the winger keeps things simple but quickly shovels the puck past Filip Gustavsson. The Ottawa goaltender has zero chance to stop a play that happened with that much pace. This was strictly a two-man play with three Ottawa players trying to backcheck. Ottawa had no chance to stop it.

Again, the significance of the goal cannot be understated for several reasons. Yes, it was Cole Caufield’s first career goal in the NHL. It was a game-winner in overtime. It was a game Montreal had to have. They took four points in a back-to-back for the first time in a long time.

It was all of that.