Hidden Game: Highlights from Canadiens' 5-2 win in Washington

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Captain Nick Suzuki has always been the Canadiens' first-line centre, even when Sean Monahan was with the team.

Now that Monahan is gone — traded to Winnipeg last Friday — more attention will be focused on Suzuki's game. He didn't disappoint, scoring two goals in Montreal's 5-2 win at Washington on Tuesday night. It was the Canadiens' return to action after a bye week and the All-Star break.

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While most of Suzuki's teammates were enjoying the sun and surf last week, Suzuki was in Toronto as the Canadians' lone representative at the All-Star Game. He must have been tired and had every excuse not to perform against the Capitals. Instead, Suzuki now has six goals and 14 points in 11 career games against Washington.

Gone but not forgotten: Capitals winger Max Pacioretty, former Canadiens captain, faced Montreal for the first time since June 24, 2021, when the Canadiens eliminated Vegas to advance to the Stanley Cup Final. Pacioretty, who spent 10 seasons with the Canadiens after being selected 22nd overall in 2007, looked at times like a player trying to avoid another torn Achilles. He played only his 13th game this season.

Gone and Forgotten: The Canadiens made their NHL debut after signing goaltender Charlie Lindgren as a free agent on March 30, 2016. Lindgren played parts of five seasons with Montreal, appearing in 24 games, and while making two appearances in 2017-18, he never played. Will be Carey Price's second player. Or Patrick Roy.

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Lindgren made his third career start against the Canadiens and was benched less than 13 minutes into the game after allowing three goals on nine shots. That's a .667 save percentage.

Welcome to Canadians: Center Brandon Gignac had a big debut in Montreal. The Laval Rockets' most productive player, who was signed to a two-year, two-way contract on Sunday – 14 goals and 42 points in 43 games – was able to warm up early, barely 20 seconds into the game's first shift.

The 26-year-old Gignac, playing just the second game of his NHL career — and his first with New Jersey since March 9, 2019 — immediately caught fire after getting a boost of confidence from head coach Martin St. Louis, playing opposite Alex Ovechkin and Dylan Strome in his first shift. The day after the morning skate, St. Louis said Gignac's level of competition and skill is at the NHL level. In his first game in Montreal, Gignac logged nearly 15 minutes of ice time and won 50 percent of his faceoffs.

Strange but true: Michael Pezzetta, perhaps the favorite Canadian of the Hidden Game — brutally honest, given his willingness to give time to the inked media with every shift fired up — sent Lindgren to the bench in a 3-0 win over the Canadiens. .

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It was Pezzetta's third goal in 39 games this season. While that may not seem like much, it's one more game than current Canadiens second-string center Jake Evans has in 50 games. Heading into the Washington game, Evans averaged 15:44 of ice time compared to Pezzetta's 7:31. And Pezzetta hits anything that moves.

A tale of two periods: We don't know what goes on in the Canadiens locker room between periods. But after making 13 shots in 20 minutes, the visitors managed five shots in the second period. After Joel Armia's shot in the seventh minute, the Canadiens didn't have another shot on Darcy Kuemper in the final minute.

The chase continues: When Ovechkin scored Washington's first goal just over six minutes into the second period, the 38-year-old was a shadow of his once-dominant self. Ovechkin has 832 career points with 10 goals and 32 points in 45 games. He hopes to catch Wayne Gretzky, the NHL's all-time points leader with 894. With two more seasons left on his contract, Ovechkin needs to pick up his pace significantly.

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Save the game: In the 12th minute of the second period, Canadiens defenseman David Savard denied Pacioretty a goal. Savard, you may recall, missed 22 games earlier this season with a broken left hand after blocking a punt against Buffalo in late October. After that final block, Savard received a hug from goaltender Samuel Montembo. Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes doesn't need our advice, but we're not selling Savard under any circumstances.

The news you need: With two assists, Canadian guard Mike Matheson set a career high with 36 points (seven goals and 29 assists). He also logged 27:08 of ice time. … Cole Caufield now has 23 assists. He had 10 starts in 46 games last season. … With 37 saves, Montembo had a .949 save percentage against January's Molson Cup winner Washington and continues to establish himself as the Canadiens' top-line goaltender.

They said: “We had a lot of enthusiasm after the break,” Suzuki told reporters in Washington. “We got a great result (but) our second period was very bad. We spent the third period well and managed to extend our lead.”

“It's not the best win,” Evans said in Washington. “I would say lack of execution. The guys felt a little rusty with their hands. It was still huge to get the win and the confidence boost.”

“It wasn't perfect,” St. Louis said. “I don't believe you're going to play a great game in this league. I felt that in the third period we straightened ourselves up and played with dominance.”

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