Habs Struggle to Close Games Despite Hot Start

The Montreal Canadiens were victorious on Tuesday night in overtime in Seattle. While the win will grab most of the attention, the Canadiens continue to have a glaring issue despite starting the season 8-3.

And that issue is maintaining third-period leads.

It was a problem for a young Habs team last season, still in the midst of a rebuild. This season, however, with higher expectations and the playoffs within reach, the Canadiens need to get it under control.

With 11:03 remaining in the third period against the Kraken, the Canadiens held a 3-0 lead and had dominated the game. For a team with playoff aspirations, there was no reason the game should have gone into overtime.

After surrendering three consecutive third-period goals, the Canadiens have now allowed 18 goals in the third — over 50% of their total goals allowed this season (33).

This problem has been especially apparent on the road trip: the Flames tied the game in Calgary, the Oilers scored three straight in Edmonton, the Canucks scored one (and the Canadiens were lucky they didn’t tie it), and now in Seattle, the Canadiens collapsed again, allowing three goals.

The team seems to become complacent with a sizeable lead, stopping their forecheck, playing with less energy, and creating practically no scoring chances. Common traits for a young team, but ones that must be discarded if they want to compete in the playoffs.

While it hasn’t fully backfired — except in Edmonton — this formula isn’t sustainable. If it continues, it’s bound to cost the Canadiens valuable points.

Half of the Canadiens’ eight wins have come in overtime. While any points are useful, last season showed the value of regulation victories. As the playoff race tightens in April, regulation wins could become a crucial tiebreaker.

Closing out games in 60 minutes is essential. On the road, it’s even tougher: one goal by the home team energizes the crowd, swings momentum, and with the home team having the last change, it forces the Canadiens into unfavorable matchups.

The absence of Kaiden Guhle has been magnified in these late-game collapses. He is Montreal’s best shutdown defenseman and would likely be logging heavy minutes in these situations instead of Jayden Struble or Alexandre Carrier.

Luckily, the Habs have managed to secure multiple two-point efforts in his absence, but this cannot become a habit. Martin St. Louis must address this before Saturday’s high-energy matchup against the Ottawa Senators.