For the second series in a row, the Montreal Canadiens are moving on in the NHL playoffs after a thrilling late goal in a Game 7.
After going up 2-0 in the first period over the Buffalo Sabres, the Canadiens conceded two goals to the Sabres. In the third period, Buffalo nearly took a lead, but the tap from Beck Malenstyn came a fraction of a second after the referee blew the whistle, making it no goal.
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That call led to a tense sudden-death overtime, with both teams taking close shots in an attempt to take the series. Then, just under halfway through the overtime period, Canadiens forward Alex Newhook sent in a long shot that slipped past Sabres goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and sent Montreal to glory.
This is Newhook’s second time playing Game 7 hero for the Canadiens: The centre scored another late goal in the decisive game of the first round against the Tampa Bay Lightning two weeks ago, with his third-period shot giving Montreal the win.
It also cemented a strange trend in this series, as the Canadiens pick up the thrilling victory on the Sabres’ home ice. In the seven-game series, only two games ended with the home team getting the win. The rest of the matchups seemed to have no sense of home-ice advantage: Buffalo forced Game 7 by smacking the Habs at home in Game 6, scoring seven unanswered goals a 8-3 win.
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Those topsy-turvy results quickly triggered the superstitions of the home team: The Sabres even went so far as to spend the night in a hotel on Sunday in order to simulate an away environment. Unfortunately for Buffalo, the unconventional decision didn’t end up paying off.
Montreal, though, will revel in surviving two seven-game series in a row, even after dropping the lead in both cases. The Habs are vying to become the first Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup since 1993; as the only team from Canada still left in the postseason, it’s up to Montreal to break that overdue drought.
This story will be updated.
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