Hidden Game: Canadiens squander big lead in Lane Hutson's debut

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This edition of The Hidden Game focuses on rookie Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson, who made his NHL debut Monday night against Detroit at Little Caesars Arena.

It seemed somehow fitting that the 20-year-old native of Holland, Mich., made his debut in Detroit in front of family and friends.

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A second-round pick (62nd overall) by Montreal in 2022, Hutson's mobility, skating and hands should make him a power-play force for years to come, though he's undersized at 5-foot-10 and 162 pounds. must stock up on bacon cheeseburgers and fries.

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Here's how you start your NHL career: In just his second shift, Hutson made a personal effort by setting up Brendan Gallagher, who scored the first of two just 4:25 into the game. Two innings and his first big league score. It won't be Hutson's last.

What's wrong with this picture: We love back-to-back six meetings, and when the Canadiens close out the regular season against the Red Wings at the Bell Center on Tuesday night, it will be the fourth meeting between the teams this season. On the other hand, Montreal has only played Toronto three times this season.

Strange but true: While we'll never be able to tell Derek Lalonde how to coach his team, we found his decision to start Alex Lyon in pure play surprising, to say the least. Lyon's record since February 29 is 3-10-3. It was the Red Wings' biggest game of the season, and even though it was Lyon's 44th appearance, does James Reimer deserve his second straight start in last Saturday's overtime win over the Maple Leafs? Lyon allowed four goals on their first 13 shots, but Lalonde looked good in the end.

The news you need (Part I): It was his first goal since Dec. 18 when Canadiens defenseman Justin Barron made it 2-0 less than two minutes after Gallagher opened the scoring. But that statistic is misleading, considering Barron played 30 games for AHL Laval.

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Newbie error: On Detroit's first field goal by JT Komfer, Hutson got lost in the defensive zone.

Impulse, torque: Compher's goal came 1:56 after Barron's.

He doesn't score, but: Never doubt that Josh Anderson had his most disappointing season as a Canadien. He blocked two shots in the first period, one of his best 20 minutes of the campaign.

The News You Need (Part II): Michael Pezzetta delivered four first-period hits despite being limited to six turnovers in just over four minutes of ice time.

In case you are interested: Hutson's first stint in the NHL consisted of seven shifts in 7:05.

Here's a picture of him on a milk carton: Rafael Harvey-Pinard has been out for most of the season. But he scored his second goal in 44 games just over five minutes into the second period to give Montreal a 3-1 lead. It was Harvey-Pinard's first goal since January 15. He did not score in 27 matches.

Overnight (Part I): Jake Evans to Harvey-Pinard.

Save the night: At exactly 8:00 of the middle period and on Detroit's power play, Samuel Montembo denied Robbie Fabbri and took the left plate before what looked like a certain goal.

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The news you need (Part III): Pezzetta committed five minor penalties in eight games in April.

Hit of the night (Part I): Anderson hit Lucas Raymond 16 minutes into the second period.

Impulse, torque (Part II): Just 33 seconds after Gallagher made it 4-1, Compher's second goal of the game cut the Canadiens' lead to 4-2 at 15:59 of the period.

The News You Need (Part IV): Patrick Kane's assist for Compher's second goal was his 813th career goal. He is tied with Mike Modano for assists by an American player, trailing only Phil Housley (894).

Night Hit (Part II): Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki doesn't play a particularly physical game. Nevertheless, at the end of the second period, he destroyed Raymond behind the Montreal net.

Hutson Update: In two stints, he logged 14:35 of ice time and 14 turnovers.

Inch Game: In the seventh minute of the third period, Kane hit the goal post.

Face of the night: Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin wins over Alex Newhook. Five seconds later, Alex DeBrincat made it 4-3 with a goal at 10:38.

Within 20 seconds, most horizontal bars are hit: DeBrincat, followed by Shane Gostisbecher in overtime.

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Overnight (Part II): Larkin scored the game-winning goal for Raymond at 4:35 of overtime.

Slow learners: Last Saturday, the Canadiens blew a four-goal lead against Ottawa. Against Detroit, they blew a three-goal second-period lead, allowing the Red Wings to score four in a row. While Detroit is a hopeless team in playoff contention, those scenarios won't happen if Montreal hopes to take the next step in its rebuilding process.

The news you need (Part V): For the second time in three games, Montembo gave up his 17th career win. In 30 stops, he had a .857 save percentage against Detroit.

The News You Need (Part VI): The Canadiens are now 17-11-15 in one-goal games. Twenty-six losses in 43 games won't cut it.

Update list: After the game, the Canadiens announced that they had recalled defenseman Logan Mailu from the Rockets.

They said: “I felt good,” Hutson told reporters in Detroit after the game. He played 21:54, had one shot, one assist and was minus-1. “It was good to be there. The Red Wings have a good team. We also have a good team. You never know what's in store, but I'm excited to be there.”

“It's a lesson we had to learn the hard way this year,” Gallagher told media in Detroit. “You have to understand that if we want to get to where we want to be eventually, these are the games we have to play comfortably and learn to play better with a leader. More than one goal was lost this year. It makes you optimistic that we can turn things around.”

“It's a good (practice) to play and (play) a team in a Game 7 mode,” Evans said in Detroit. “We have to learn to win these games.”

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