St. Louis has experience coming back from 3-1 deficit Canadiens face in East Final

RALEIGH, N.C. – The Montreal Canadiens players have heard about it before.

Some of them even have their own experiences to share about what it takes to come back from a 3-1 series deficit in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That is the challenge the Canadiens face against the Carolina Hurricanes heading into Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final at Lenovo Center on Friday (8 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

Still, in the aftermath of a disheartening 4-0 loss in Game 4 of the best-of-7 series in Montreal on Wednesday, coach Martin St. Louis wanted them to know what is possible and how rewarding completing such a comeback can be. St. Louis knows from doing it three times as a player.

“He just kind of explained how good the feeling is of getting that done,” Canadiens forward Cole Caufield said Thursday. “Obviously, we're excited for the challenge. It's a lot of work ahead, but you’ve got to have that belief with our coach and everybody in the room just to get the job done one game at a time.”

After losing the past three games by a combined 10-4, and being outshot 109-43 in the process, there doesn’t seem like there’s much reason for the Canadiens to believe they can turn this series around. St. Louis learned firsthand, though, how winning one game can change the momentum of a series. He was part of it with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2011 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Pittsburgh Penguins. They won 8-2 in Game 5 in Pittsburgh and that sparked them to win the next two games as well.

It was similar when St. Louis was with the New York Rangers and they trailed the Penguins 3-1 in the 2014 Eastern Conference Second Round. The Rangers won 5-1 in Game 5 in Pittsburgh to spark their comeback. Then, the Rangers did it again the next season in the Eastern Conference Second Round against the Washington Capitals, with a 2-1 overtime victory in Game 5 providing the springboard.

St. Louis said that was part of his message to his players in Montreal’s locker room following Game 4.

“I told them last night after the game you can't look at it that you’ve got to win three,” he said. “That’s a big mountain to climb. You’ve just got to win one.”

Caufield is among the players remaining, along with forwards Nick Suzuki, Jake Evans, Josh Anderson, Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher, who were with the Canadiens when they rallied from a 3-1 series deficit against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the North Division First Round in 2021. That comeback began with a 4-3 overtime victory in Game 5 in Toronto, beginning a magical ride all the way to the Stanley Cup Final before Montreal lost to Tampa Bay.

Back then, veterans such as Eric Staal, Corey Perry and Shea Weber spoke up and provided the guidance for the younger players in the Canadiens locker room.

“They just preached (about) how hard it is to get to that spot,” said Caufield, who was a 20-year-old rookie in 2021. “We were so lucky to be where we were. You don't know the next time that you'll get back to that, so just realizing that and giving everything you’ve got and just be ready for that moment.”

The odds are clearly stacked against the Canadiens. Of the 74 previous teams to face a 3-1 deficit in the round before the Stanley Cup Final, only one came back to win the series – the New Jersey Devils against the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2000 Eastern Conference Final.

Montreal is used to being counted out, though. The Canadiens qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season when few expected them to, and though they lost to the Washington Capitals in five games in the first round, the lessons they learned in that series have served them well this postseason.

In each of their first two series, against the Lightning and Buffalo Sabres, they rebounded after losing Game 6 at home to win Game 7 on the road and advance. Now, they need to win the equivalent of three Game 7s.

“I feel like we've been the underdog every series,” defenseman Alexandre Carrier said. “It's part of our team. I think we're a team that competes, younger group, a fast-paced team. It's important that we keep that and we stay desperate and when you do that, you see who's going to step up and stuff like that tomorrow. And I’m excited to see who that’s going to be.”

Montreal can take some confidence from its 7-3 record on the road in the playoffs, which includes a 6-2 win in Game 1 against Carolina. Shaking off some rust from an 11-day layoff after the second round, the Hurricanes rebounded to win 3-2 in overtime in Game 2 at home, but the Canadiens didn’t think they played poorly in that game.

If they can find a way to get the extra goal in Game 5 that they couldn’t in Game 2, they can force a Game 6 at Bell Centre in Montreal on Sunday. And one win might be enough to turn the series in their favor.

“It's just one game at a time,” Caufield said. “You're not focused on (Game) 6 or 7. You’ve got to take care of (Game) 5. … You're not out of it until you're completely out of it, and that's kind of our mindset. We're just going to keep battling and try to flip it as fast as we can.”