Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images
It’s been three weeks, but there won’t be many more off days for the Canadiens before the end of the season arrives.
First period
Martin St-Louis clearly remembers how well Brendan Gallagher, Phillip Danault, and Josh Anderson played in Winnipeg in the previous game because they’re out to start. And they spend their shift in the offensive zone.
It’s the New York Islanders’ fourth line that opens the scoring in the game, however, as an attempted pass from Danault in his own zone goes right to the stick of Matthew Schaefer. Marc Gatcomb collects the rebound and swings it wide around Samuel Montembeault’s pad to tuck it in. However, Montreal is quick with an offside challenge, and video review shows that the Isles were indeed offside, so the goal comes off the board.
It looks like most of the players on these teams haven’t played in nearly a month.
I little fake to get below the goal line opens a lane to the side of the net for a pass, and Alex Newhook gets his first scoring chance in his return to play.
The fourth line has a long shift in the offensive zone, and Nick Suzuki’s trio comes out for an even longer one on a change. In total it’s about three minutes spent wearing down the Islanders in their own zone, but no goal comes of it.
They have to wait for their next offensive-zone shift for that to happen. The Islanders race to the bench for a change and left the entire penalty-box side of the ice open. Four Habs players spread out and skate through it, and Hutson picks out Noah Dobson with the pass. Dobson scores, and Montreal has the official first goal of the night.
Noah Dobson takes advantage of a bad change and scores on his former team
1-0 Habs
— Scott Matla (@scottmatla.bsky.social) February 26, 2026 at 8:36 PM
The goal is Dobson’s 11th of the year, beating the 10 he had in full campaigns with the Islanders the previous two years. He’s now three away from setting a new career high.
Montembeault makes a spectacular save on a shot deflected just a few feet in front of him, then recovers to make another one immediately afterward.
It wasn’t a pretty period, but Montreal was the stronger team and did get a few good scoring chances with time in the offensive zone.
Second period
It’s a stronger start for the Islanders in the second period, with several quick shots to start it off.
The best chance so far goes to Alex Newhook, but he misses the net on a breakaway.
Caufield gets the puck in the net … with his feet. He kicked it from behind the goal line off the foot of Sorokin and in, but you can’t provide the force than sends the puck in the net, so that won’t count, even if it wasn’t actually going toward the net.
We won’t be seeing this game as part of any classic series.
Montreal’s fourth line goes back to work and draws a call in the offensive zone. Josh Anderson gets hooked as he tries to relay a dribbling shot from the point toward the net.
The Islanders are playing keepaway. It’s fair to say the power play isn’t sharp either.
Make that two goals from a new career high from Dobson. He salvages the power play with a blast from three feet inside the goal line.
It’s a Double Dob
2-0 Habs!
— Scott Matla (@scottmatla.bsky.social) February 26, 2026 at 9:29 PM
Despite the two-goal lead, the Habs are still playing the puck in the offensive zone. The Islanders are having trouble slowing them down in the neutral zone.
Juraj Slafkovský whacks the stick of Tony DeAngelo as both players try to get the puck on the boards. DeAngelo’s stick falls from his hand, and Slafkovský is going off for “interference.”
Matheson gets his stick up on on the ensuing faceoff, so the Canadiens are facing 1:52 of five-on-three time.
Matthew Schaefer scores, his 17th of the season, and it’s 2-1.
And his 18th makes it 2-2 53 seconds later.
Montreal was playing a perfectly good second period until the call on Slafkovský, but the game has been reset on two quick goals against.
Third period
Simon Holmstrom trips Noah Dobson as he’s backtracking to gain some separation. Montreal gets a chance to get the lead back on the power play.
They aren’t playing like this could be their only opportunity with an extra man to take back control of the game.
The Habs are back in control of the possession at five-on-five, however. Each line is getting the puck in the offensive zone.
The best New York can do to try to get it back is hack and hook at the puck-carrier, and they will get a penalty for doing that to Kaiden Guhle as the stick gets in his feet.
Let’s see some more urgency on this power play with just over 12 minutes to go.
Slafkovský looked to be the latest Canadiens player to have a prime scoring chance thwarted by a broken stick, but the puck ends up bouncing off the toe of Ivan Demidov at the side of the net, and Cole Caufield taps it in from his station at the opposite post. A rare fortuitous bounce for the Canadiens.
That’s a greasy one on the power play for Cole Caufield, but they’ll take it.
3-2 #Habs pic.twitter.com/8Hy0AQOozh
— Matt Drake (@DrakeMT) February 27, 2026
The wave has broken out at the Bell Centre. I had forgotten about that.
The Canadiens are trying to see out the final minutes now to claim these two points.
With 2:20 to go, Sorokin heads to the bench.
And the Islanders use the extra skater to tie the game. A point shot goes off the torso of Anders Lee before he can get out of the way, but deflects into the net.
It wouldn’t be a Canadiens-Islanders game without overtime, and we’re headed there for the fifth consecutive time in this head-to-head battle.
Overtime
Montreal holds the puck for the first 90 seconds, but can’t find a good chance.
The Habs lose an offensive-zone faceoff, and no one is paying attention to Jean-Gabriel Pageau. He goes in with speed and opens up Montembeault’s five-hole with a deke, flicking the puck through for the game-winning goal.
On a night when the Canadiens claim one point, the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings each collect two. Montreal drops to third in the division, two points up on the Bruins in the second wild-card spot. Those are the margins in this unforgiving section.
Next up is the final game at home before heading to California. The Canadiens will host the Washington Capitals on Saturday night.
EOTP 3 Stars
3) It’s a small tank now, but he gives his all
2) It feels like he hasn’t scored in half a season
1) A proper hockey time
