Canadiens Crush Sabres 5-1, Even Atlantic Division Final

The Montreal Canadiens responded to a discouraging Game 1 loss with a dominant 5-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres, evening the Atlantic Division final at one game apiece.

Head coach Martin St. Louis’s adjustments paid off immediately. Just 1:36 into the first period, Lane Hutson set up Kaiden Guhle for a shot that Alex Newhook deflected home. Less than three minutes later, Phillip Danault won a faceoff leading to a goal by Mike Matheson.

Montreal’s faceoff dominance continued, with the team posting a 57% success rate in the playoffs compared to Buffalo’s league-worst 43%.

Newhook scored his second of the game in the second period on a pass from Jake Evans. Alexandre Texier added a fourth, and Nick Suzuki scored an empty-netter for his third straight game with a goal.

The Canadiens outclassed Buffalo in nearly every metric, controlling expected goals across all four lines.