Here are three things to watch in Game 5:
1. Penalty trouble
There is one simple fact about Buffalo and penalties in this series: The Sabres are taking too many.
Though Ruff was clear he believed some of the calls by the officials in Game 4 were “questionable,” his team cannot put itself in a position to be on the wrong end of those calls. It ended up on the penalty kill seven times in Game 4, killing six of them, after killing all five in Game 2 and four of six in Game 3.
At some point, the Canadiens are going to make them pay.
“I see some trends where, I know Montreal has got a good power play, but I think they’re going down easy,” Ruff said.
“I think it’s part of the playoffs. It just is. You know how important a power play can be, so you get a stick on somebody; you’ve got to be careful with your sticks. You know if they have a chance to make the play look worse than it is, they’re going to. It’s playoff hockey. Every team in this league does it.”
2. Getting up to speed quicker
It’s tough to win a playoff series when consistently chasing the score.
It’s even more difficult after constantly surrendering the game’s first goal in the opening seven minutes of play, something the Canadiens have done in three of the first four games. In Game 1, Buffalo forward Josh Doan scored 4:31 into the game. In Game 3, Sabres center Tage Thompson needed just 53 seconds after the opening face-off to put his team ahead. And, most recently, in Game 4, defenseman Mattias Samuelsson opened the scoring for Buffalo at 6:32 of the first period.
Notice a trend here? The Canadiens had better, especially with the Sabres having regained home ice advantage.
“We need to get off to a good start,” Montreal forward Josh Anderson said. “We need to get to our game right away and get on the forecheck. It’s important to set the tone.”
3. Helenius' encore
When Konsta Helenius addressed the media Tuesday before making his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut with Buffalo, he was made to pronounce his name to the assembled media. That’s how new to the NHL he is, as he got into his 10th career League game, burning the first year of his entry-level contract.
But after the center's poised, impressive debut one day after his 20th birthday, a lot more people should be familiar with his game.
“He’s a really smart player, very competitive and very responsible,” Sabres forward Jack Quinn said. “I think he just makes players around him better and complements me and [Jason Zucker] well (on the third line).”
Helenius, who had four points (one goal, three assists) in nine games during the regular season, was active in his first playoff game, creating chances, and was trusted enough that he was on the ice in the final minutes with Buffalo holding onto a 3-2 lead in a crucial game.
