Cole Caufield had the puck on his stick in prime shooting position.
The Canadiens were trailing by two early in the third period after a strong finish to the second against the Buffalo Sabres.
Caufield saw more room in that moment on a quick 2-on-1 rush than he did at almost any point in Montreal’s playoff-opening bloodbath with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
A breakthrough there from the club’s 51-goal man could have changed the dynamic of Wednesday’s second-round curtain-raiser. Known for picking corners and finding holes with pinpoint accuracy and elite vision, Caufield instead rushed a shot that hit netminder Alex Lyon on the crest of his jersey.
The sequence represented both a positive and a negative for Montreal. Caufield finally had some space to manoeuvre. The finish, however, was still severely lacking.
Caufield registered a solitary power-play goal in that tight-checking, seven-game slugfest with the Lightning before again being held at bay in Montreal’s 4-2 loss to Buffalo.
The first player from the Original Six franchise to reach the half-century mark for goals in 36 years, he has now failed to register a point across his team’s last four contests.
“As a whole, not where I want it to be,” Caufield said when asked to assess his recent performances. “I expect more out of myself, and my teammates do, too. Just trying to get better every game and just trying to make a difference.”
The 25-year-old took part in Thursday’s optional practice at KeyBank Center, adding his confidence remains high despite this current rough patch.
“It’s still there,” said Caufield, a winger standing five foot eight and weighing 175 pounds. “I want to be better. I want to produce more, but you can’t lack confidence in this league. Once you do, I think that’s when you really start to struggle. The confidence is there, obviously, and the positivity in this room is still going strong.
“There’s no worries here … just going to try and continue to work harder.”
The free-flowing Sabres allowed Montreal’s top line, one that includes Caufield, Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slavkovsky, more space to operate in Game 1 compared to the war of attrition faced against Tampa, but the trio was still unable to connect at 5-on-5.
Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis said that while the emphasis is on Caufield to figure things out, the team’s collective approach must remain strong.
“The game, in general, was different than what we experienced in the last seven games against Tampa,” St. Louis said of Wednesday night. “We played with the puck a lot more, with space. It’s been two weeks and more that we haven’t had that. I’m confident that we will improve with the puck in space.
“And I’m confident Cole will be a part of our improvement.”
The Canadiens will look to even the best-of-seven series Friday before proceedings shift to the Bell Centre for Games 3 and 4. Montreal defenceman Noah Dobson said the locker room isn’t concerned about Caufield and his linemates.
“They’re getting their looks and their chances,” he said. “It’s only a matter of time … all the confidence in those guys.”
“He’ll figure it out,” Canadiens forward Alex Newhook added of Caufield. “He’s been a goal-scorer his whole life. He’s proven he can score on big occasions in every different way this year. He’ll come up big when we need him.”
Caufield is used to bright lights and scrutiny — chasing 50 goals in Montreal isn’t for the faint of heart — and he will continue to focus on team success until the offensive mojo returns.
“We’re just chasing wins,” he said. “I think that’s the moral of the story.”
A couple pucks hitting the back of Buffalo’s net would help.
Canadiens defenceman Lane Hutson had a tough start to the second round when he fell down early in the first period, leading to a 2-on-1 and Josh Doan’s opener off a Zach Benson setup.
“I feel everyone kind of came ready to play except me, honestly,” Hutson said. “S—– bounce or whatever, but you’ve got to make a play there.”
“Not great feeling to start the game,” he added. “But feel like I responded good enough.”