MTL@PIT: Looking back while looking ahead

Experience versus youthful exuberance. Stanley Cups versus Stanley hopes.
While the Pittsburgh Penguins looked to add to their recent Stanley Cup hauls, the Canadiens were hoping to play the underdog role to perfection.

The Habs count one of the youngest rosters involved in the 2020 playoffs, while the Penguins have one of the oldest. And though the hockey gods tend to favour those who have kneeled at the altar of Lord Stanley, once in a while they flip the script, forgoing the same ole story for one filled with excitement and entertainment.
On Saturday, fans were treated to a game that perfectly illustrated the juxtaposition of both rosters. The Canadiens youngsters shone brightly, while the Penguins' veterans reminded everyone why they're one of the best teams in the NHL.
The Penguins set the tone early, but as is tradition, Carey Price put on a display of goaltending excellence, helping elevate -- and calm -- his team out of the gate.
His steadfast goaltending was enough to give his teammates, particularly his younger teammates, enough breathing space to shine.
In the end, the Canadiens were victorious in overtime, but not before the young stars made their mark, two, count them, two penalty shots were called, and a certain Jeff Petry, one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL, played the role of hero.
Much ado about Carey
The Penguins scored twice, including a savvy, veteran play by Sidney Crosby to bank a shot off a sprawling Price, but the Canadiens netminder was clearly the driving force that kept his team in the game early on, as well as late in the third period.
Here's how you know Price is in the zone: He makes a 39-save outing, including a penalty shot save with a few minutes left in the third, look easy.

Finn-ishing the play
As the old saying goes, you have to be good to be lucky, and you have to be lucky to have a puck deflect off your body and wind up in the back of the net.
But hey, they all count on the scoreboard.

What matters most, beyond Jesperi Kotkaniemi scoring his first playoff goal, is the young man seems to be a reinvigorated player since his time in the AHL with Laval Rocket, where he spent countless hours in the video room with Joel Bouchard, not only discussing strategy, but long term goals as well. More than just reviewing Xs and Os, the organization used his time in the AHL to establish a line of communication that allowed the young Finn to express himself in ways that time restraints simply didn't allow in the NHL.
Confidence is a tricky thing. Either you have it, or you don't. But when you do tap into that mysterious life force, you tend to find your name on the scoresheet more often than not.
To drive the point home, look no further than his 2-on-1 in the third period. Oftentimes, a young player will defer to their teammates, no matter how difficult the attempted pass may be. It has happened on several occasions with Kotkaniemi over the course of the last two seasons.
On Saturday night, he didn't hesitate to take the shot. A trigger-happy Kotkaniemi is exactly what the Canadiens need, because shooting, in his case, tends to lead to good things for the team.
The nature of things
Now, I know what you're thinking. The next goal Marc is going to review is from Nick Suzuki, and he's probably going to go overboard in praising Suzuki's offensive instincts and creativity.
And you're absolutely right.
Though before we get to the goal, I would like to note that not only did Suzuki made a difference on the scoresheet, he also made a lot of smart, simple plays that led to a slew of chances, including drawing a penalty and forcing several turnovers, as well as his excellent defensive play on the penalty kill.

When I watch Suzuki play, I see a rookie with 10 years of NHL experience, which explains why he's such a good salesman. In fact, he gave me a great deal on the Jacques Cartier Bridge before he left for Toronto.
But enough about my impeccable business prowess.
Not only does Suzuki create the turnover prior to the goal, but he also bamboozles Murray with the greatest of ease.
Take a look at how Murray sets himself for a near-side save, while Suzuki picks apart the far-side corner. That subtle, yet crucial adjustment by Murray, opened up just enough space for a perfect shot.
It's all about his body language prior to the shot, which screams "I'm going to make this easy on you," but only results in trust issues for opposing goaltenders.

Stats Pack
- The Penguins held a 14-7 high-danger shot advantage at 5-on-5, which resulted in 13 high-danger saves by Carey Price. Some would argue that's a pretty good save percentage, given the context. Others, like goaltender analysts, would just bow down in awe.
- No other Canadiens player had a higher share of the shots during their shifts than Brett Kulak (59%). But forget the numbers for a minute. Kulak played an excellent game, from start to finish, maintaining excellent defensive positioning while supporting the attack at the perfect time.

• The second-best Canadiens player in terms of shot share? Yup, you guessed it, Jeff Petry. Oh, and he did this, too:

• It probably won't shock you that Brendan Gallagher led all Canadiens players in high-danger scoring chances, with four.
  Final Word
  Given the flashes of brilliance from Kotkaniemi and Suzuki, there's no doubt Canadiens fans received a brief, if not incredibly encouraging, glimpse into the years to come. And seeing as they did so against a team littered with Stanley Cup Champions, you could even argue that in many ways, the future is now for the Canadiens.

But that would be selling the veterans that played a starring role, such as Petry, Price and Kulak, in particular, short.
Yes, there's a lot to look forward to when examining the youngsters on the roster. They'll need guidance. They'll need players to take over when the going gets rough, just as we saw on Saturday night.
All statistics are 5-on-5 unless otherwise specified, via NaturalStatTrick.com.