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Series in Montreal: let’s stop forgetting Samuel Montembeault
David Kirouac-Imagn Images

Series in Montreal: let’s stop forgetting Samuel Montembeault

Originally posted on Dose.ca  |  Last updated Apr 18, 2025 12:09 AM ET

The Canadiens enter the playoffs with a 7-1-2 record in their last 10 games.

The end of the season seemed much more tumultuous and complicated than that, but the numbers don’t lie. In this good end to the season, Samuel Montembeault had his say despite more difficult starts. Since the Four Nations Tournament, he has only had three losses in regulation time. And the three losses in 60 minutes, he had them against teams that will be in the playoffs.

Anthony Martineau published a very interesting statistic tonight and it shows how underrated Monty is. We talk a lot about Nick Suzuki and Lane Hutson (with reason), but we must stop forgetting Samuel Montembeault.

The statistic in question says that the Habs were 30th in the entire NHL for expected goals allowed since the break with 91.46. But for the goals that were actually counted, Montreal finished eighth.

In hockey, there are statistics that are not reported, or at least, that have less importance. If there is a statistic that does not lie about a goalie’s dominance, it’s this one.

Note that Jakub Dobes had his say on these numbers in Nashville and Toronto, but apart from these games, he hasn’t necessarily been a brick wall in front of the net…

The Quebecer, who also received praise from Renaud Lavoie earlier in the evening, finished the season with a goals-allowed average of 2.80 and a save percentage of .902. That’s good, but he also finished fifth among all NHL goalies for the number of goals saved above expectations (24.6).

A certain Logan Thompson comes in third in this category.

Even if the Capitals’ goalie had a good season (31 wins in 43 games), Monty has nothing to envy him.

When the Habs’ goalie was selected to represent the Canadiens at the Four Nations Tournament, many wanted to see the Capitals’ left-hander in his place. Starting Monday, two of the top five Canadian goalies in the world and two of the most underrated will face off in an intense seven-game series.

I’m looking forward to seeing the masked man from Washington, who hasn’t played since April 2. Will he be a bit rusty at the start of the series? We hope so.

I’ll put his numbers right here:

(Credit: Hockeydb )

Overtime

– A 897th point for Alexander Ovechkin.

– He’s still excellent.

– Only two points for Emil Heineman in 2025. [NHL.com]

– A small glimpse of what Juraj Slafkovsky will look like.

– Wow.

– No question of rebuilding in Boston.

This article first appeared on Dose.ca and was syndicated with permission.

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