(police siren)
(crowd noise)
(in English): Six on five Carolina.
Stankoven plays it ahead, taken away, for the empty net.
- Put it in!
- Mike Matheson misses that!
And that'll go for icing with 1:59 remaining.
- It's gonna be a timeout call by Carolina.
- So, the guys that's in the middle or the forward,
try to take them if he's just underneath you,
you know what I mean?
- Who's going out?
- What's that?
- Who's going out? You? Suzi or Armi?
- I'll go out.
- Armi goes out?
- Alright, here we go.
It's the final minute of the last game of the season.
The Habs are clinging to a one goal lead.
They need a win to make the playoffs.
- Earlier in the season,
we struggled in third periods mainly,
and I think at the end of the year,
we were probably, we were one of the best teams
in the third period,
cause we had that confidence and we had that belief
in each other.
(dramatic music)
(sticks clash)
- Off the face off, Evans wins it away,
tries at the empty net and he SCORES!
(crowd cheering)
(fog horn)
Jake Evans has sealed it for Montreal!
- That is one of the biggest goals of the season
for the Montreal Canadiens.
- I can't speak as to whether it's the biggest goal
he's ever scored, but it's probably the biggest goal
he's ever scored in my time here.
And yes, you know, that's, okay, we can breathe and move on.
(fog horn)
(in French): Canadiens fans, you now have cause to believe,
and to celebrate!
(in English): Finally! The X will be next to the Canadiens,
they have clinched a playoff spot.
- Woohoo!
- We're going! We're going! We're going! We're going!
- Atta boy, Savy!
- Yeaaaahhh!
- Let's keep going, man!
- Oh, we don't stop now! - Let's keep going!
♪ Olé, olé olé olé ♪♪
- In the history of the franchise,
the Montreal Canadiens have never missed the playoffs
more than three seasons in a row.
And thanks to an improbable, odds-defying run
up the standings, playoff hockey will return
to the greatest hockey city in the world.
(in French): That's a weight off the coach's shoulders!
A lot of things run through your head.
I thought of my father, and of my mother.
My dad was a big Canadiens fan.
It's a win for everyone: the province, Canadiens fans,
the entire organization.
I'm very proud of being a part of this team.
You want to know if I'm pleased with this?
It doesn't matter if I'm pleased.
Our job...
is just to keep going.
We wanted to play for Savy,
so his career would end on a good note,
so that he would make the playoffs.
(in English): We just had to find a way, and the pieces just
fell into place at the right time, and we capitalized.
(in French): We kept the suspense going until the very end.
It took us four games to qualify.
But, in the end, we did it.
And we did it at home, so it's even more special.
(in English): How many teams, three and a half years after
they start a rebuild, make the playoffs?
There's some teams that rebuild for eight, ten, twelve years
and they're still bad.
You know who ends up making the playoffs three and a half
years to four years after starting a rebuild?
The best organizations in the world.
And the Canadiens just did something that the best do.
(in English): Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
Go Habs Go!
(narrator): The Montreal Canadiens,
hockey's most iconic franchise.
- Expect a war out there.
(narrator): 24 Stanley Cups, and millions of fans,
waiting for their return to glory,
in this new season of
The Rebuild.
- Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
(slapshot)
- This moment right now,
all the stuff that you put in, makes everything worth it.
You know? And now, we're gonna go on a journey together again.
Now we flipped the switch, it's on. Okay?
And that stress that we had lately, that stress is gone.
Cause we just flipped the switch, it's on.
The number one guy that always believed,
and I think you guys see him in the room,
and behind closed doors, the same thing,
he believed the whole time.
So the game puck tonight,
and the first playoffs for Marty!
(cheering)
- The regular season is all over, but the journey continues
for the Montreal Canadiens.
They will get Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals
in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
♪ Olé, olé olé olé ♪♪
(in French): It's something we haven't experienced in years. It's quite special.
It's in our blood!
I'll definitely be back for the playoffs.
Every single game.
- What's your prediction? - We beat Washington in 6.
(in English): Happy days!
- Bravo, bravo!
- Why you gotta come down on me like that?
- Oh, no!
- Welcome, officially, in the playoffs!
- Thank you! - Your first playoffs as GM.
-Yep. - Fantastic. How's the feeling?
- Great! I said, hopefully not the last,
but I'm kind of of the, let's go get ready
right now for Washington.
- I was very focused right away on let's not be too high,
we got a lot of work to do.
That's just my nature, I guess? Like, think about next,
not celebrate today.
- This is like the shortest celebrations I've ever seen!
(laughter)
- I do have a beer in my hand!
(narrator): While there are celebrations inside the locker room,
for the team, there are challenges that need solutions.
- Guhles is fighting with 29, right?
- That was his job.
- I mean, first period, he was great.
First period, was a little...
(narrator): The real season is about to begin.
And a tough opponent awaits in four days.
- Once we won, um, now you have all these things that are
popping through your head, saying,
"Okay, here's what we're gonna do, here's what..."
you know, so last minute things.
So, you're always on to the next thing.
(laughter)
- Oh!
(in French): Jesus Christ! - The Legend is behind you!
Mr. Cournoyer!
(in English): Would you like a beer?
- Yeah yeah, you brought us good luck.
- Do you want a beer? - No, no, I'm good.
I don't drink, I have a game tomorrow!
(laughter)
- Oh yeah? - Oho!
(slapshot)
- That's the idea, just cup the puck a little more, cup it!
- Dave! Welcome to Skills!
Welcome to Skills, Dave! Skill guy!
Good, over to here, let's go!
- Bad drills!
- Yeah right! These are cooking!
- What are these drills?
- These drills suck!
(laughter)
(slapshot)
- Yeah! - Great drill!
- Yeah, that's Mike, get that ice, yeah!
- That's a great drill!
- Thank you, Savy! Here we go!
(narrator): Practice resumes in Brossard.
- Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
- Fans show up in numbers, from all over.
- We are from a city near Stuttgart,
in the south of Germany.
We went yesterday to the game, and it was incredible!
(whistle)
- Y'know, we've have had enough time as a group here to,
to decompress, get back to a level of focus that we need.
Preparation has been going on here for the last few days,
so it's exciting for the guys to be a part of.
(in French): It's exciting! Playoff hockey is faster and much more intense.
We just have to be ready for that.
(in English): See the guy on high ice, don't tip, try to separate.
(shot pings off post)
- Whoa! - Hey!
- Do you have an idea what it is for you,
being built for the playoffs?
- We'll see tomorrow night!
(laughter)
- The Habs were not supposed to be here,
they were not expected to be here,
it did not look like they were going to be here
four months ago.
But they are here, for Game number one of the conference
quarterfinals, as the Montreal Canadiens are in Washington.
(in French): Are you satisfied that you've carried out your primary mission?
When you clinch a spot in the playoffs, you're not hoping for a participation ribbon.
Of course, no one thinks of the Canadiens as serious Cup contenders.
It's a bit of a "David against Goliath" situation
since the Caps are more imposing physically
and that physical game is going to be a key point of the series.
(narrator, in English): They say the playoffs are a whole new season,
where experience matters.
And three Capitals veterans have most postseason games
than the entire Montreal roster.
- Six players in the lineup experiencing playoffs
for the first time, that's one out of every three players.
50% of your defence is experiencing playoffs
for the first time.
Will that lack of experience early in the series
cost the Canadiens?
- And then Ovie, sometimes they come there, rotate,
you gotta get on the top, and Karlsson would slide down,
and you would have either Wilson--
- I'm really, really confident going into the series.
We spent a lot of time working on what our gameplan was
gonna be, figuring out their lineup.
(in French): We knew it would be a difficult series,
that we'd have to give it everything we had to beat them.
(in English): I was just trying to treat it like it was any other game.
You know the stakes are high,
and I felt confident in our team's abilities,
and I think everyone in our locker room felt that.
- Okay, we had 82 practice rounds, boys.
Some rounds were good, some rounds were bad,
we're a way better player right now.
Habs are on the first tee right now,
Galley, what club are we hitting?
- Driver.
- We're hitting driver! Okay? My biggest advice boys,
is let it fly!
All together, let's go.
(applause)
(in French): The crowd at Capitol One is very active
and gets very involved in the games.
The Canadiens' only mission: take everyone by surprise.
(in English): Let's fly boys!
(in French): The visiting team is offered a suite.
In Montreal, we reciprocate that offer.
We can't wait to be back at the Bell Centre,
and show them how loud a crowd can be.
(in English): Let's go!
(screaming)
- These are the games you play for,
you play all season for an opportunity to try to win
the Stanley Cup.
And um, you know, these games are so fun to be in.
- Let's go Caps! Let's go Caps!
(in French): Kicking off this series: Dvorak, Gallagher, Anderson.
Here we go!
Have a good night and enjoy this series!
(dramatic music)
(in English): Hey!
(in English): From the opening faceoff,
the Caps gameplan is crystal clear.
- Here goes Guhle skating behind his own net,
takes a hard hit off the forecheck!
- The gameplan is gonna be try and hit the Montreal Canadiens
and their best players every chance they get.
- There's two seasons. There's the regular season,
and then there's the playoff hockey.
Be careful, behind you!
(crash)
I mean, we all know it's coming, but when it happens
and playoffs start, I think the initial reaction is,
"Oh, here we go!" It's a different kind of game.
(in French): A post-whistle fight breaks out. The referees intervene.
(in English): We felt very confident going in,
into the matchup against Washington.
Obviously, you know, having the greatest goal scorer
of all time, you have to know when he's on the ice.
(slapshot)
(crowd cheering)
(fog horn)
(dramatic music)
- Come on, boys! Short shifts!
All over 'em!
- Obviously the speed, the physicality.
(crash)
The relentlessness, the momentum swings,
it was, not completely different, but it was just,
the stakes were higher and everything was faster.
(in French): It's as if the Canadiens get gut-punched from the very start.
(slapshot)
(crowd cheering)
The Capitals have clearly established their authority.
As far as forechecking goes, the Canadiens are being bulldozed.
Montreal has little room to maneuver,
and the smaller guys get checked aside, which makes their job very difficult.
(in English): D-zone, they're gonna get first touch on their forecheck,
whatever, we gotta arrive inside. Okay?
We have to do that, you're gonna have to defend this period
if you're gonna win that game, we gotta do it surgically.
Okay? They're gonna sit on top of our D2, we round the net,
you hit the guy right in the nose,
probably skating backwards.
Does that make sense? Okay, if it's not sitting on D2,
you can hit D2, now D2's gonna be your call.
If you hit the middle, you hit the anchor, okay?
We got everything we need to get back in this game, alright?
Let's go, boys!
(applause)
- Come on, boys, come on!
- Let's go Caps! Let's go Caps!
(in French): van Riemsdyk dodges Anderson's check.
Gallagher shoots.
(in English): And we just stuck together as a group,
and found a way to, you know, crawl back into that game
after, you know, not having a good start.
(crash)
(in French): Gotta get something in the net. Here we go...
Intercepted. Caufield shoots.
Second shot on net.
Thompson makes the save, but he drops it.
(crowd groan)
(in English): Here goes Suzuki, right side with a shot, sharp blocker save.
(dramatic music)
(in French): Top left to Hutson, right circle, his shot is deflected
Puck in the slot. SCORE!
(in English): Come on, boys!
- There wasn't a lot happening in the first two periods, right,
they weren't giving us much. But somehow in the third period,
we started coming after them, and pushing the pace.
(in French): Habs closing in... The puck is behind the net.
Carrier shoots. The goalie stops it.
It's in the slot... Suzuki shoots and SCORES!
(in English): Yeah!
- Let's go!
(in French): The game is now tied!
(in English): The Canadiens needed their captain to stand up
with less than five minutes to go in period number three,
who tied the game? Suzuki.
With poise, unbelievable poise, like only he has
in front of the net.
- Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki send us off into sudden death.
(narrator): In overtime, a fraction of a second
is all it takes to lose track
of the greatest goal scorer in hockey history.
- Could've went either way, and um, you know,
at the end of the day, those are the things that
keep you up at night.
(in French): The Canadiens' comeback unfortunately ends in defeat.
(narrator in English): In the coaches room, it feels like the game's still going.
Some decisions are being second guessed.
- Ovie's on for this guy. That's too many men on the ice.
- When he touches it, he's got his foot over the boards.
He's been on the ice, but they kind of let you shoot.
- During the playoffs, you have a, you know, a series
supervisor that you're going to discuss issues with,
so we wanted to be able to look at different things that were
or weren't called.
It's just so that I have appropriate information.
- Okay, Ovie's in, the guy's still in the neutral zone.
- But you're allowed to like--
- It's three feet.
(in French): During the long 82-game regular season
you can't always allow yourself to be that emotional.
You have to pick your spots.
But during the playoffs, every minute counts
and you can never let up. That's how it goes.
(narrator, in English): The Habs leave Washington down two games.
- We're going to see all of our show elements,
so that includes projection,
the rings around the Bell Centre,
everything on the scoreboard.
- We've seen the projection, we've seen the renderings of it,
but to hear it in full, to see it on the big screen,
to see the projection first time.
- Three, two, one. Go full black.
(in French): In our house... we were born with a stick in our hands.
(in English): So we're keeping it fairly tight and punchy.
Kind of speaking to the pride of being here at home in Quebec.
(in French): Back in the playoffs...
(in English): For the first time, in front of 21,000 fans since 2017,...
(in French): We're playing "in our house".
(in English): That's cool, looks good so far.
And we're reintroducing the torch in kind of an original
way for this year.
Generally speaking, we know that fans like the torch.
- The torch is back, then.
- The torch is back. We're trying to bring it back in a way
that will both please the people who say that it's boring
if we do it the same say,
and then we're obviously bringing it back for the people
who like it in the first place.
(in French): Carey Price was the last one to take us to the playoffs,
so it's fitting that he'd pass the torch on to the team.
This year, for the first time, the flame comes from the locker room.
(in English): Things kind of shut down a bit more when the playoffs start
around the team, so we're letting them do their thing.
They'll hear it, for sure. Like, I've heard
Brendan Gallagher said before, that like, you can actually feel
the building move in the dressing room when people
are moving their towels and using that energy.
- Cause we know the atmosphere's gonna be incredible,
and we want the fans to keep the energy going from hopefully
what we're bringing here in the opener,
to the puck drop and the start of the game.
(slapshot)
- Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
- Everybody's talking about Game Three tonight.
How the Canadiens can get back in this series.
(screaming)
(in French): We need more brawn.
They're talented, but they need brawn.
Without Xhekaj, our whole team was smaller.
There's Xhekaj!
Adding Arber to the line-up would be good.
The crowd wants him.
So do we.
The fans are what's been missing in this series.
With us, they could've won those two games.
(narrator, in English): Game Three, back on home ice.
Crowds gather outside the Bell Centre.
A lot of people, and a lot of emotion.
Security is taking every precaution.
(in French): Whoever's at this station, I want you to see their belongings.
They go to your side to set their things down.
The walk-through detector also acts as a physical barrier.
When they recover their belongings, they know they must go to your right.
This will allow us to keep an eye on everyone who enters.
- Good for everyone? - Yes.
Thank you very much.
(in English): Showtime!
(narrator): They want to prevent any overflow.
The owner feels the buzz, too.
He's been at the Bell Centre all day.
(in French): I wanted to be here to see what was happening around the Bell Centre,
but I also wanted to avoid traffic.
When it's a big game, I try to avoid that extra stress.
I would say that between 2018 and 2021
we had higher expectations, but we didn't meet those expectations.
We've rebuilt our team.
We've lowered our expectations,
while enthusiasm has gone up with each year.
(in English): We want the Cup! We want the Cup!
We want the Cup!
(in French): And now, things are moving along quickly.
We've improved greatly so far and we're not done.
(in English): Empty your pockets, please!
- Wooo!!
(suspenseful music)
(narrator): Victor Findlay
and his analyst JP O'Connor head to the booth.
And just like the players, they're having firsts, too.
- Yeah. First ever playoff game here at the Bell Centre.
- Yeah, man.
- It's a special night?
- Yeah, yeah, till the game's over!
Like, I've never been a part of something like this before,
and the whole season has been one surprise after another,
and it's like, it feels like anyways, tonight,
that the stage is set for anything to happen.
I don't think there's many people that were standing around
here in December thinking that this was gonna be the situation
we were in come April 25th, but we are here.
- We're gonna be nervous, cause we're calling the game.
Marty St. Louis is gonna be nervous, because it's his
very first playoff series.
The guys who are the most calm in the whole building
are the players, cause they know what to do.
- I think home ice advantage for Montreal means more to the Habs
than it does to any other team.
So I think they have to use that as a weapon
against the Washington Capitals to win.
(in French): It started very early, we got a lot of requests.
We've done quite a bit already.
Actually, I should make myself available for the other networks' camera crews.
They'll be moving around.
(narrator, in English): Chantal Machabée and her team are dealing with the surge
in media requests. The traffic needs to be managed.
(in French): Will they be coming this way?
We need to mic up players and head coaches.
We want to shoot Martin St-Louis's pre and post-game speeches.
We've been on the go since this morning.
It's intense, but fun.
But that's the playoffs for you! It just gets crazy.
(in English): The Canadiens have scored three goals in two games.
Let's bring in Arbor Xhekaj to fix that.
- Xhekaj, being a rookie and in his first playoffs,
probably gets penalized. - 100%!
- 100%, I don't know why people want Arbor Xhekaj
going out there, just taking bad penalties.
- I understood the logic, right? Xhekaj's a minus player,
there's a risk that he could take some penalties.
They don't call anything in the playoffs,
or hardly anything, you don't have to worry about that!
- One word.
One word I use, the last 36 hours.
Momentum.
That's all we're after, is momentum. Okay?
But there's nothing else that's gonna help you more
than 20 guys, five at a time, that understand
what we're after. Okay?
It's coming in waves and understanding the momentum
is the most important thing, and we're gonna get it
with a collective game, and a pack mentality.
Okay? One shift at a time. Momentum. Stevie?
(cheering)
(applause)
- Okay, everyone's going.
We got me! (all): Hey!
- Newy! (all): Hey!
- Demi! (all): Hey!
- Guhles! (all): Hey!
- Laner! (all): Hey!
- Monty! (all): Yeah!
(in French): Washington, you are in our home...
(crowd cheering)
(in English): The crowd, the city, waited a long time
for a kind of a moment like that.
(in French): I was nervous and excited.
The Bell Centre was so loud. It was crazy.
(crowd cheering)
(in English): I know everybody in the room just, you know...
the excitement was surreal.
(in French): Ladies and gentlemen...
(in English): Ladies and gentlemen!
(in French): let's welcome our Canadiens!
(in English): The ice is on fire! Let's go!
(crowd cheering)
- The crowd reaction was a 10 on 10,
so the crowd reaction was awesome! Uh, they "popped"
as we would say, when we wanted them to.
Fans loved it, hopefully, so that's all that matters.
- No place we'd rather be tonight, as we drop the puck
on game number three, the Montreal Canadiens start out
with Alex Newhook, Jake Evans and Ivan Demidov.
- Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
- Bell Centre, no surprise, is so loud this evening already,
everybody so excited to be back in.
- Here with Josh Anderson, right past Dubois.
Up the middle with a shot, first save of the game
made by Thompson.
- What's up, Laner, good battle, good battle.
(narrator): The opening moments
belong to the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.
(crowd groan)
But the visitors want to silence the crowd.
- Into the Montreal zone across, Rasmus Sandin with a shot
that got through, that's stopped. Rebound, he scored!
(cheering)
And the Capitals snag the early one-nothing lead.
- Well, that is a real tough pill for the Canadiens
to swallow.
- We gotta manage the game, we're doing good.
Alright? All good. All good here.
(suspenseful music)
- They say that you're not in trouble until you lose a game
on home ice. The Canadiens haven't lost a game
on home ice yet, they lost Games One and Two in Washington.
And here we are now, Game Three is coming up,
why don't they start doing this?
Why don't they give the Washington Capitals a taste
of their own medicine?
(crash)
(crowd groan)
Some are saying, "Well, because the Capitals have more players
that can play that kind of game,
it all comes down to a willingness,
it all comes down to heart.
It all comes down to believing.
(crowd cheering)
(in French): If you're not sure there are three of you, back out.
I couldn't.
(in English): Carrier is a great example of a playoff type player, right?
He's not the biggest guy, but he's got a huge heart,
and he's giving more than he's taking.
(in French): Last minute in the first period.
With less than one minute to go, we were down by one.
(in English): Back to the line it goes, Carrier rips it off the boards.
(in French): Throughout the season, we had our ups and downs.
But we're resilient, we always manage to come back.
It was good timing for us.
(slapshot)
(in English): Carrier scores!
(crowd cheering)
(fog horn)
(cheering)
(in French): Scoring the first goal at the Bell Centre during the playoffs felt amazing.
It'll be hard to beat.
(in English): Scored by number 45, Alexandre Carrier!
(crowd cheering)
(in French): Mentally, you feel better heading back to the room
when the game is tied than if you're down.
(in English): We're putting it in deep, working their D, boys.
They're getting frustrated too, you can tell.
Every time we come off to pinch in,
they're cross checking you guys.
Don't get involved.
- I think the two teams are equal, just you know,
we just need a couple of good bounces,
and uh, the last two games, we could have easily won
both of those games, and-- - Yeah.
- Could have been two nothing going the other way,
so we just have to keep at it, we're in the game.
- Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
- Hey! Hey!
- The puck goes back for David Savard, he'll wrist it in.
He took a hit from Duhaime,
and the referee's arm is in the air!
- Hit him right in the chin.
- And it looks like the Canadiens are going back
to the power play!
(crowd cheering)
- I think anytime you can get the power play going,
it's uh, it helps to lift the five on five game.
- Suzuki lines up for the faceoff.
Across to Slafkovsky, scores!
(crowd cheering)
(fog horn)
Nick Suzuki!
(crowd noise)
(narrator): Into the second, Montreal takes the lead.
But between the pipes, bad luck strikes.
- Duhaime comes out in front, Alexyev with a chance,
pad save made by Montembeault.
(in French): I suffered an injury at the top
of the second period on the tenth shot of the game.
(in English): Passes over, here's Chychrun. Hard shot, and he scores!
(in French): I turned with my left leg and felt my right leg crack.
I knew something was wrong.
I tried to stay in the net, but I couldn't move.
(in English): What's going on?
- He looks hurt, got Dobes going in.
(narrator): It's Montembeault's first taste of playoff hockey.
And understandably, the injury hurts
- both physically and mentally.
(in French): I almost never get injured.
During my eight-year career, this was the third game I've missed.
It wasn't easy.
(in English): JP, we got a goaltender change,
and it's not for Washington. Jakub Dobes is on the ice
in the Montreal net.
(in French): Do you remember what you told him?
Yes, I said, "Good luck."
"You're a beast, you got this."
I knew he could get the work done too.
(in English): You try to get ready, or you try to get on the same,
I guess, emotional level as the guys, because it's hard.
Like, because for a hockey player, when you get
to the game, you're kind of in like the killer, like, of zone.
Like, you just wanna play, you wanna hit people
and stuff like that.
So it's hard to switch right away.
- Tonight, right? We've got a lot of young players doing,
playing really well. And in a crazy environment.
Uh, in front of 21,000 crazy people
starved for playoff hockey for years,
so, um, I'm really encouraged.
Tonight, we have no bad players, everyone's on board.
- The three things that totally affect the outcome of the game:
penalties, faceoffs, changes, okay? You control a lot of that.
Know what you're gonna do if we lose the draw,
know what you're gonna do if we win the draw,
we're gonna change accordingly, and don't let the emotion -
let 'em get, they're hot right now. Let 'em stay hot,
stay in control. Momentum, let's go.
(applause)
20 minutes of work and let's enjoy it!
- Come on, boys! Come on, boys! Let's go!
- Go Habs Go! Go Habs Go!
- Sam Montembeault has not returned to the crease,
so it'll be Dobes the rest of the way.
- If it's Ovie, it's Matty, Carsy, okay? Ovie, Matty, Carsy.
- Trevor van Riemsdyk passes through.
- Oh no, no way!
- Brought in on the right side, Dylan Strome passes over
and they score!
Alexander Ovechkin!
And the game is tied at three.
- Keep going, boys! Keep going, boys! It's coming!
It's coming!
- This season, um, it sort of became part of our personality
to sort of take the other teams punches and uh,
we had enough character, we have enough skill to, you know,
come back in these third periods and there was a lot of them.
- Savard wraps it around the boards for Dvorak, scores!
(crowd cheering)
(fog horn)
Given away at centre to Yuray Slafkovsky.
Cole again, off to Slavkofsky in front, scores!
(cheering)
It's a multi-goal lead for Montreal!
- What a play by Slafkovsky, as he collects a turnover.
- We're getting our first playoff win, just the crowd,
how great they were, and yeah.
It's for sure something that I'm gonna remember,
and something I wanna see and hear more and more.
♪ Olé, olé olé olé, olé olé ♪♪
- These fans have waited almost eight years,
to the day, for something like this in the post season
in Montreal again.
And tonight, nobody in Montreal leaves disappointed.
Six to three the final score for Montreal!
- The goalie hug! The goalie hug.
- Still, I remember after the game,
I still, I was like shocked what happened.
But it was, it was cool, we won, so it was nice.
(in French): It was reassuring for the Canadiens' leadership
to know that in addition to Samuel Montembeault,
they have another goalie who's young, but also a fighter.
(laughter)
(in English): How was that?
- Ovie!
(laughter)
- What a game!
- That's what we do!
- Ah, bravo!
- Yes, big win.
- What a performance, eh? Great job, guys.
(crowd cheering)
(narrator): A night of celebration in Montreal.
The dream is still alive for the Habs.
- We want the Cup!
(narrator): But one big hit changes the series momentum.
- I go back to Game Four, where um, we had the lead,
we're in the third period.
(crash)
- Big hit from Tom Wilson, as he throttles Alex Carrier.
And Carrier slow to his feet at centre.
Now lobbed back into the Montreal zone.
Picked up, Duhaime the shot, rebound in front, they score!
- It didn't go our way, we didn't get the win,
I think it was pretty hard on our group.
Um, so now to go to Washington down three games to one
is much different.
- It is Game Five between the Montreal Canadiens
and the Washington Capitals.
(♪ Sun Leads Me On ♪ by Half Moon Run)
- This is really gonna be a test of character
going into Game Five, because once you have an opportunity
to close off your opponent, in front of your fans,
you're supposed to do that.
So, not a good feeling for the Canadiens.
- We can't accept a loss, we're gonna win, so Go Habs Go!
(crowd cheering)
(in French): They've run us through a gamut of emotions, and we love them no matter what.
(in English): As the Capitals start with a faceoff win at centre,
into the Montreal zone they go.
Around it comes for Demidov, right side. Back up top,
here's Hutson far side. Caufield to Demidov, out in front!
Fanning on the shot is Nick Suzuki!
- First period, we started pretty good, and then...
(slapshot)
(crowd cheering)
...Ovechkin scores, and sort of, we kind of, you know,
I think emotionally, we took a little dip there.
- Out in front for Chychrun, he scores!
(crowd cheering)
(crash)
Far side, ripped in by Noel Armia. And he scores!
(cheering)
One last gasp for the Montreal Canadiens,
the season comes down to this!
(screaming)
Caufield, Hutson one time shot is blocked in front.
Capitals to centre, breakaway, Duhaime...
puts this one away for good.
This incredible rollercoaster of a season
has brought its twists and turns, its ups and downs,
and the ride comes to an end tonight.
(narrator): And for the warrior, number 58, it's come to a close.
David Savard can't hide his emotions on the ice.
- I'm happy for him, he's, he's won in this league,
he got to play for his hometown.
He's had an amazing career, and I'm glad that he has
the opportunity to spend some time with his family now
and see his kids grow up.
(in French): All the time we spend together, whether in planes, during our trips,
over dinner when we're on the road,
we become a family. We take care of each other.
Not being around them is going to be hard.
- Dave's probably the best representation
of a hockey player, of a human, of a pro that you can get.
I think everybody kind of learned,
and has a little Dave Savard in them now.
(crowd cheering)
- A lot of promising things coming up for the Canadiens,
I'm sure that none of them would be interested
in hearing that right now,
would much rather be bringing this back to Montreal
for Game Six.
But nonetheless, a lot of exciting stuff coming up
here in Montreal, on the ice of the Bell Centre.
- Well, I think it's been a great season
for a lot of people.
- Ah, it just sucks.
Um, you never want it to end, and yeah, I mean,
it just keeps us more hungry.
- Ahh. We all wanted to keep playing, you know.
All those games were so, so close,
that it could've went our way,
and then we wouldn't be sitting here and we would've been
still playing.
(in French): We adjusted, we evolved,
and I'm happy about where we are,
but what's the next step?
(in English): We don't have contracts from this season,
so yeah, there won't be any questions about that.
- Yeah. - Okay, let's do this.
- You're still here, eh? We got media today, or no?
- No. - No?
- So Cole, you go on the left, Nick, on the right.
- Got it.
(narrator): The final official day of the season.
Today, the players face the media.
And maybe even more intensely, sit down with team leaders
to debrief.
- You're the star of the show today!
- Ha! - Eh?
- Same as last year. - Yeah.
- Could you close that door?
Talk to me about your season as Slaf, not the team yet.
- I don't know, next year I need to show up in October.
I don't know, I don't know what was, what was I thinking
or doing the first couple months, but I didn't like it,
and I feel like more I didn't like it, it was only getting
like worse at some point, and then like--
- I think it's cause it's not natural, it's not what you and I
have talked about--
- Exit meeting is a little bit of everything.
You're reviewing their season, but our reminder to most players
is it's gonna be harder, right?
It was hard this season to get in, it's gonna be hard to get in
again and stay there. So what are we gonna do, you know?
What does the summer entail for you, how can you get better,
how can you make us better? Some guys handle feedback
better than others, and so just try to give that too.
- How much time do you spend thinking about
the beginning of the year, and why it wasn't going your way?
- I think I was in my head way too, way too long.
- Yeah.
- More it wasn't working, more in my head I was,
and then, the break. Yeah, the break helped.
I got, I got away and then came back with a fresh mindset
and just, just decided to play how I should play.
- Like, your venting is, you play a bad game,
so you tell the media, "I sucked today!"
(laughter)
- yeah, that's--
- But, that's not gonna help you either, right?
- That's, I gotta stop with that.
- Yeah.
- Did you see the impact Tom Wilson had in that series?
- Yeah. Well, that's who I wanna be. I wanna have an impact.
- You could have killed him!
- There are all kinds of teams that make the playoff one year,
and then fall back.
And that, that's part of the messaging to our current
and existing players about what kind of offseason
they need to have, and the mentality we need
to have when we arrive.
And, I know you want to be good, it's having the discipline
to do the things that need to be done to help you be,
when I say good, be 100% or 95% of what your potential is.
- Really focus this summer on, on coming back ready. Right?
I know physically, you're always ready.
But mentally, be ready for a strong start.
- Yeah, I'll try to get as much better as I can.
- We'll see you tonight!
- Thanks, Slaf. - Thanks.
- Well, expectations are for sure gonna be for us
to make the playoffs, and I feel like that's gonna be our goal
as well, and uh, and we want more.
- Now, we're a young group, and just this experience
that we've gained over this year is, it's gonna be instrumental
for, you know, what we can accomplish
and moving forward, so.
- I don't care if there's, there's a lot of pressure
and expectations, um, I would much prefer that.
(in French): It's important for us to be "in the mix"
from the very beginning.
We have a lot of young talent, and you know, being a fan myself,
I'm excited for our fans.
(in English): And I think hopefully we can put together
more wins than last year.
Keep it going.
- The obvious progression after being in the mix?
Let's get the fanbase a little bit more excited,
and let's just say we wanna take the next step.
The real work starts now.
- Next season, we're gonna put together a hockey team,
and be ready to play in September, so stay tuned!
- Here goes Suzuki down the right side,
as it's given away, Hutson out front, scores!
(crowd cheering)
- I could see a Demidov Calder, could go back to back,
that'd be cool.
(in French): Look who's got the puck! Demidov! SCORES!
(crowd cheering)
"The Rebuild II", is the number going to change?
(in English): We're gonna have to have a Part Three, then!
(laughter)
- I have to bring you back!
(in French): Bye, thank you! - Have a nice summer!
(in Engish): I mean, I think everyone's rebuilding
until they win, right?
(flicking light switches)
(slapshot)
(theme music)
Subtitling by difuze