Newhook’s overtime goal sends Canadiens to Conference final

Let’s be honest: it no longer matters what happens from this point regarding the Canadiens. The Canadiens are one of the final four NHL teams standing in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Nobody thought this young, rebuilding, exciting and resilient team would get this far. Nobody believed they could overcome Saturday night’s devastating 8-3 pounding administered at the Bell Centre by the Buffalo Sabres. It has been a successful season for a club that continues playing with house money; its confidence growing exponentially. Let’s be honest:

the Canadiens weren’t the better team Monday night. For the second consecutive game they squandered a two-goal first-period lead. For the third consecutive game they were badly outshot. Montreal had no business winning this game. And yet, the Canadiens are off to the Eastern Conference final, against Carolina, thanks to Alex Newhook’s overtime goal at 11:22, carrying the visitors to a 3-2 win in the seventh and deciding game of the Atlantic Division final. It’s hard to believe. A star is born: Newhook certainly has

a flair for the dramatic. He scored the winning goal in Game 7 of the first-round series against Tampa Bay. And now this. Newhook scored six goals against Buffalo in this series. Through 14 playoff games, he has a team-leading seven goals. He also has added two assists. All is forgiven: Anyone who might have been doubting Jakub Dobes following Saturday’s debacle — he allowed six goals on 33 shots and was replaced in the third period — learned a valuable lesson. Dobes stopped 37

shots in this game. He stopped all nine shots in the first period. He faced 14 shots in the second period, and allowed one goal. He faced 10 shots in the third period, and allowed one goal. Then he stopped six more in overtime. His save percentage was .949. Dobes was brilliant. As usual. But wait, there’s more (Part I): Dobes joined Ken Dryden (1971) as the only rookie goalies in NHL history to win multiple Game 7s on the road. Dobes also improved to

6-0 in the playoffs following a loss with a 1.77 average and .942 save percentage. Sieve of the night: Give Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen credit for this much: After Zachary Bolduc scored in the 15th minute of the first period, Luukkonen blanked the Canadiens for slightly more than 56 minutes. But after Bolduc scored on Montreal’s 11th shot, Luukkonen faced only 14 more. Newhook’s harmless-looking shot from the left-wing circle beat the netminder to the glove side and over his left pad. Yes, the puck was fluttering

and Rasmus Dahlin might have interfered with Luukkonen’s view. But it was only the third shot Luukkonen faced in overtime. His save percentage was .880. But wait, there’s more (Part II): The winning goal began with a Tage Thompson turnover. News you need: The Canadiens have yet to lose two consecutive post-season games. They improved to 17-9 in franchise history in Game 7, including 8-1 since 2004. Buffalo, meanwhile, is now 1-7 all-time in Game 7. Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff has never won Game

7 with Buffalo. He’s 0-4 behind the bench and 0-1 as a player. Strange, but true: In their rich and storied franchise history, the Canadiens had never won Game 7 in overtime on the road. For what it’s worth: The Canadiens won all three regular-season meetings against Carolina — including two games on the road — while outscoring the Hurricanes 15-8. Carolina has yet to lose in the post-season, sweeping both Ottawa and Philadelphia. The Hurricanes have been idle since May 9. The conference final

begins Thursday night in Raleigh, N.C. Best goal off the skate: Phillip Danault, with his first post-season goal, opened the scoring after only 4:30. Best goal scored on one knee: Bolduc. Hit of the night: In the final minute of the opening period, Jordan Greenway caught Newhook with his head down — and rocked him. Death, taxes and Josh Anderson not scoring on breakaways: We never will have a bad word to say about the Canadiens’ rugged winger, who was built for playoff hockey. He

failed to score on a second-period breakaway. He failed again in the third period. Anderson also hit the post in overtime. Faceoff of the night: Ryan McLeod beat Danault to the draw. Six seconds later, Dahlin scored the tying goal at 6:27 of the third period. Great moments in officiating: Jason Zucker barrelled into Dobes in the third period while the goalie reached behind him for a loose puck. Incredibly, no penalty was assessed. Buffalo scored the tying goal not long after. NHL commissioner Gary

Bettman continues to maintain that his league’s officials are “the best in the world.” Where’s the desperation?: The Canadiens were held to two third-period shots through 18 minutes. Thanks for showing up: Buffalo’s Alex Tuch, a potential unrestricted free agent this summer, scored four goals and three assists in the opening round, against Boston. But he failed to produce a point against the Canadiens and had a goal differential of minus-8. He had five shots on Monday. Quick stats: While Cole Caufield failed to score,

he had five shots and three hits. Newhook had two shots and three hits. Kirby Dach had four hits. Alexandre Carrier, who set up Newhook’s goal, blocked five shots. Kaiden Guhle had four blocks and three hits. Mike Matheson played 31:28 — 11 seconds more than Lane Hutson. Arber Xhekaj played 1:52, and never got on the ice following the second period. Oliver Kapanen, who returned for the first time since Game 4 vs. Tampa Bay, played 4:45. The Canadiens won 46.4 per cent of

their faceoffs but outhit Buffalo 28-21. Montreal blocked 22 shots. They said it: “Obviously that’s a hell of a team on the other side,” Dobes said in Buffalo. “They were really good today. We just got luckier. We’ve got to stay humble. The test is going to get harder. Carolina is a hell of a team, too. Enjoy this tonight, but we’ve got to reset. “A lot of things go through my head and I try to check every box,” he added. “Obviously OT was

one of them. My mindset was just telling myself ‘not now. Not this time. They won’t score. Nope’. That was my mentality for I don’t know how many minutes. … I could play 40 more (games).” “A lot of emotions for sure,” Newhook said. “It was a group effort all series long. We had a lot of guys step up at different moments. We found a way tonight and we’re moving forward. It’s exciting. “We didn’t have our best in the second and third,” he

added. “They brought it to us a little bit. To be tied 2-2 in Game 7, we tried to flip it and look at the situation we were in. We would have taken that at the beginning of the year. “It was a great play by (Carrier) to get it to me on the far side,” Newhook said of the winning goal. “I remember (Jake Evans) driving to the net. I just tried to pull (the puck) in. I tried to back up (Dahlin) and

shot it though the legs, I think.”

Montreal Canadiens, Buffalo Sabres, Alex Newhook, Jakub Dobes, Eastern Conference final, Carolina Hurricanes, Atlantic Division final, Game 7, overtime