In the Habs' Room: 'Focused' Canadiens win one for coach Claude Julien

With their head coach recovering at home after successful heart surgery, Montreal puts on a dominating display against the Flyers.

Stu Cowan • Montreal Gazette

Aug 15, 2020 • August 15, 2020 • 3 minute read

Jesperi Kotkaniemi #15 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal on Brian Elliott #37 of the Philadelphia Flyers during the third period in Game Two of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 14, 2020 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Photo by Elsa /Getty Images

TORONTO — While the Canadiens were pounding the Philadelphia Flyers 5-0 Friday afternoon in Game 2 of their playoff series at Scotiabank Arena, the hashtag #WinForClaude was popping up on social media.

The Canadiens might want to start selling T-shirts.

Following the very good news Friday morning that Claude Julien had undergone successful heart surgery stenting of a coronary artery with doctors expecting a full recovery, the Canadiens went out and played their best game in a very long time, with Kirk Muller taking over the head-coaching role.

“We have a focused group,” Muller said after the game. “I think having the good news on Claude’s health was a nice relief for everybody and then it was like they’re professionals. It’s like: All right, now we got to focus on today’s game. Claude’s going to be all right.”

For Muller, it was his first NHL playoff victory as a head coach after failing to make the postseason during his three seasons in that role behind the Carolina Hurricanes bench. He does have a 1993 Stanley Cup ring as a player with the Canadiens.

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“We have great leaders in this room,” said Muller, a former Canadiens captain. “They did a great job getting the guys prepared and I think that’s a compliment to our leaders. They had everyone ready to go and they just went out, played our game. We got a lot of respect for our opponent. We know that the next game’s going to be tough. So we got to get right back to the books.”

With the series now tied 1-1, Game 3 is slated for Sunday night (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports, TSN 690 Radio).

Muller made a lineup change before the game, taking out veteran Dale Weise and putting in rookie Jake Evans. He also put Max Domi and Jonathan Drouin together on a line with Jesperi Kotkaniemi between them.

Julien had stubbornly refused to put Domi and Drouin on the same line — going back to last season — before putting them with Kotkaniemi midway through the third period of a 2-1 loss to the Flyers in Game 1. Kotkaniemi scored two goals in Game 2, while Domi had three assists and Drouin had one.

Domi’s talents were wasted on the fourth line, where he had been since the start of the postseason.

“Obviously, it’s no secret Jo and I are very close off the ice, spend a lot of time away from the rink together and we love playing together,” Domi said. “So it was a lot of fun to get out there with him tonight. KK was outstanding. I think when we have all four lines going like that we’re a very tough team to play against and that’s what we had tonight. Kirk and the coaching staff did a great job, everyone engaged, and very positive and a lot of fun to be a part of out there tonight.”

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Carey Price made 30 saves for the shutout, improving his record in the six postseason games to 4-2 with a 1.46 goals-against average and a .954 save percentage. Kotkaniemi now has a team-leading four goals in the six games.

“He’s playing with a lot of confidence,” Domi said about the 20-year-old centre. “I think he’s starting to realize how big of a body he is, too, and how effective he is around the net. He’s never been scared, obviously. He’s a tough kid, too … he’s shown that, he’s fought a couple of times. But you can be tough by going to the hard areas and winning puck battles and he did that a lot tonight, he’s been doing that a lot lately, and he’s got some swag to his game right now. He knows where to go to score and his shot is elite already. So you get him the puck in the right spot and he’s going to put it in the back of the net and he did that tonight.”

Captain Shea Weber, who logged a team-high 25:25 of ice time on his 35th birthday, retrieved the puck after the game as a souvenir.

But for who?

“After the game, it’s the boys’ time, so I haven’t really seen them,” Muller said when asked if he got the puck. “The puck really should go to Claude. I’m sure that’s what they grabbed it for.

“To Claude, I’m sure he’s listening,” Muller added. “This win is for you … you and your family.”

scowan@postmedia.com

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