3 Takeaways From the Canadiens 2-1 Loss to Maple Leafs

For the first time this pre-season, the Montreal Canadiens gave up a goal and were defeated by their rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs, 2-1 at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday night.

View the original article to see embedded media.

Christian Dvorak tallied his first goal of the pre-season, tying the contest at 1-1 in the second period before Nicholas Robertson netted the eventual game-winner in the dying minutes of the middle frame.

Jakub Dobes played the entire contest between the pipes, making 32 saves and finishing his night with a .941 SV%.

Related: Canadiens vs. Maple Leafs: the Youngsters Faced a Real NHL Team

There isn't much time to dwell on this latest setback since the two teams meet again on Saturday night at the Bell Centre. Here are three takeaways from the first meeting between the Original Six rivals.

Seventeen Shots Isn't Going to Win Hockey Games

After the first 20 minutes, the visiting Canadiens were dominated, getting outshot by a nearly complete Maple Leafs lineup, 13-3. Their only flaw in the opening period was Jonathan Tavares' power-play goal at 10:12. Besides that blemish, Dobes kept Montreal in the contest as the kids struggled to generate any offense zone time against a seasoned opponent.

However, as the game progressed, it remained much the same. Even though the shot clock read 29-10 after two periods, at no point did it ever feel like the Canadiens had ten shots on goal. There wasn't a prominent moment when someone in a white jersey made Alex Stolarz work.

After the Maple Leafs gave the crease to Matt Murray at the start of the third period, the Canadiens only fired seven shots on goal to finish the night with 17, getting outshot 34-17. Montreal's only saving grace in the third period was that the game slowed down, and Toronto looked like they ran out of gas with just five shots.

According to Sportnet's Garry Galley, goaltending hasn't been a problem for the Canadiens over the years, and he's not wrong. Dobes got beat twice, but the lineup in front of him didn't do the same thing as in previous games to get that second goal and pick up another victory.

What Else Can You Say About Lane Hutson?

The Canadiens and Maple Leafs are the NHL's oldest rivalry, but if you tuned into Sportsnet, you'd never know because most of the broadcast was spent talking about 20-year-old Lane Hutson.

Chris Cuthbert and Galley wondered if Hutson would be this generation's Phil Housley, a Hall of Fame defender who played 21 years. They spent most of the broadcast talking about Hutson because he danced with the puck whenever he had it, and his creativity was one of the Canadiens' bright spots in an almost lackluster team performance.

Whether it's on Saturday, on opening night, or at some point during the season, Hutson is going to get his shot, and he's going to blossom into a star for the Canadiens. On Wednesday night, he led all skaters with 25:47 of ice time, beating out veteran Morgan Rielly for the top minutes in the contest.

Head coach Martin St. Louis sees something in the young Hutson because if he weren't an up-and-coming franchise player, he wouldn't be trusted in critical situations, no matter how much confidence he shows on the ice. Despite all the praise, Hutson lived up to the billing and did his best to stand out in a game full of veteran NHL superstars. Even in defeat, he was a bright spot for Montreal on both ends of the ice.

Inexperience on Display in Loss to Maple Leafs

Without sounding like a broken record, no team will win an NHL game with just three shots on goal in the first period. The Canadiens rolled with a young lineup on Thursday against a Maple Leafs squad only missing 69-goal scorer Auston Matthews.

Related: Canadiens Chasing Milestones in 2024-25

Age and inexperience were decisive factors in the game's first goal, as the lethal Toronto power play went to work with Mitch Marner threading a pass through the penalty killers to an undefended Tavares. It may only be pre-season, but no one with 1,000 points should ever be able to sneak behind the defenders and be left alone on the net to tip home a shot from the point.

However, once the Canadiens fell behind, they didn't generate enough scoring chances to offset the veteran Maple Leafs' relentless shots. Without their stars like Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, or Patrik Laine, the Montreal attack didn't have the same emphasis on pushing ahead and relied on their young prospect netminder to weather a one-goal deficit on two occasions.

Once again, it was only a pre-season contest, and the future looks brighter with each passing game, but there are some areas of concern for St-Louis and his staff when they don't have 20-goal scorers to send over the boards.

Bookmark THN's Montreal Canadiens site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and more.