Sabres, Canadiens Head to Game 7 in Buffalo After Series Tied 3–3
Written By Gina Anton
Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Second Round between the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens is set for Monday at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, with puck drop at 7:30 p.m. ET. Buffalo forced the deciding game with an 8–3 win in Game 6 on Saturday at the Bell Centre in Montreal, after trailing the series 3–2 and leveling it at three wins apiece.
Sabres forward Tage Thompson said several players are experiencing this stage for the first time.
“It’s going to be awesome,” Thompson said. “It’s a new experience for a lot of guys in this room… we knew going into this series it was going to be a long one… it’s just something that gets you excited. It’s another game that we get to embrace.”
The winner advances to face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final. Carolina swept the Philadelphia Flyers in the previous round and remains 8–0 in the playoffs.
Buffalo has played in seven Game 7s, with one win, an overtime victory over the Ottawa Senators in the 1997 Conference Quarterfinals.
“Forget about what’s happened up to this point and just play a shift at a time… focus on your job,” Thompson said about the team’s approach. “Sometimes when you feel like you need to be a little better, you try to make more plays… and sometimes that’s not the right answer. Sometimes it’s just to simplify it.”
Montreal is 16–9 in Game 7s and 8–6 on the road. The Canadiens won their most recent Game 7 against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the opening round of this year’s playoffs, and have won their last three road Game 7s and six of their past seven winner-take-all games away from home.
Several players on both sides have Game 7 experience. For Buffalo, forwards Tanner Pearson (four Game 7s), Ryan McLeod (three), and Alex Tuch (three) lead in appearances. Pearson (two goals, one assist) and Tuch (one goal, one assist) are the only Sabres with Game 7 goals.
Neither Buffalo goaltender, Alex Lyon or Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, has played in a Game 7. Head coach Lindy Ruff is 1–4 in five Game 7s.
For Montreal, forwards Brendan Gallagher (three Game 7s) and Phillip Danault (three Game 7s) lead current skaters. Gallagher has one goal and two assists in those games. Nick Suzuki and Alex Newhook each scored in Montreal’s Game 7 win over Tampa Bay in the first round.
Goaltender Jakub Dobes made 28 saves in that 2–1 win, marking coach Martin St. Louis’ first Game 7 as head coach.
“We’re a team that is really resilient,” Suzuki said. “We’ve been in this situation already in the first round, so we have experience. We just have to win one game.”
