It’s usually a letdown to go from a tough Stanley Cup challenger game on Hockey Night in Canada during the postseason to an Eastern Conference afterthought team that has only won four of its previous 17 games on Tuesday night.
They are referred to as trap games, the kind that a team may sleepwalk through for fifty-five minutes, exerting sufficient effort to secure two points before facing a more formidable opponent.
Alternatively, they could all fall asleep and be attacked. Either way is possible.
Fortunately, the Montreal Canadiens and their supporters invaded Rogers Place, with about half of the audience dressed in red, white, and blue. As a result, there was a noticeable buzz inside the arena rather than the normal zzzs that accompany a team that is ranked 26th overall in the NHL stretch drive.
Sadly, Edmonton’s intensity was only matched by the opposition, who rallied from a 2-0 third-period hole and forced overtime before a four-minute, high-sticking power play resulted in a 3-2 victory for Edmonton.
Leon Draisaitl won it with a patented one-timer with 15 seconds remaining in the double-minor to Joel Armia for drawing blood on Adam Henrique, averting a total catastrophe.
“We’ll take it because we persevered and were fortunate in overtime,” Draisaitl remarked. They are a highly skilled crew with little to lose. Although we would have like to manage the third quarter more effectively, things don’t always work out that way. We’ll accept it.
