Canadiens blank Maple Leafs 1-0 in season-opener

Sam Montembeault made 47 saves, Cole Caufield scored the game-winning goal and the Montreal Canadiens opened the NHL season with a 1-0 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday at the Bell Centre.

Caufield scored a power-play goal at 7:48 of the first period, finishing off a perfectly executed tic-tac-toe play with Juraj Slafkovsky and Kirby Dach. The Canadiens’ power play went 1-for-5 on the night after going 0-for-30 during the pre-season.

Toronto pulled goalie Anthony Stolarz with two minutes remaining, but to no avail as Caufield’s goal hung on as the winner. Stolarz stopped 26 shots for the Maple Leafs after presumed starter Joseph Woll was surprisingly kept out of the lineup with “lower-body tightness,” head coach Craig Berube said.

Takeaways

Canadiens: Montembeault’s 47 saves was an NHL record for a season-opening shutout. He became the seventh Canadiens goaltender to post a shutout in a season-opening game. Jacques Plante was the only other to do it against the Maple Leafs (Oct. 6, 1960, Oct. 6, 1955). 

Maple Leafs: Toronto had trouble staying out of the penalty box with five minor penalties in the first 40 minutes. The Maple Leafs also went 0-for-4 on the power play and hit three posts in the second period.

Key moment

Midway through the second period, Montembeault flashed the leather with a glove save on a one-timer from the slot by Maple Leafs sniper Auston Matthews, who scored an NHL-leading 69 goals last season. Montembeault’s 47th save of the night was on another Matthews chance from the slot with the clock winding down.

Key stat

Caufield scored a goal in the Canadiens’ season-opener against the Maple Leafs for the third straight season. The 23-year-old American also recorded his 150th career point in his 206th game, becoming the fastest Canadien to reach that mark since Saku Koivu in 1997-98.

Up next

Both teams play their second game in as many days Thursday. The Canadiens travel to Boston to take on the Bruins. The Maple Leafs visit former Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe and the New Jersey Devils.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 9, 2024.