St. Louis Prepares Canadiens – Sabres for Buffalo’s 109-Point Surge
The canadiens – sabres series opened in Buffalo with the hosts carrying a different kind of edge after 109 points and a first-round win in six games over the Boston Bruins. Montreal arrived after beating the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games, and Martin St. Louis said his team has to stay inside the game that is right in front of it.
Buffalo’s new edge
Jason Zucker called the atmosphere in Buffalo “highly addictive” on the eve of Game 1, and Josh Doan said the change around the team has been obvious after the playoff round win. Doan described the earlier season as one where he could feel “the negative energy from fans and outside sources,” then said the mood shifted once the Sabres advanced.
“But since we won a playoff round, you could feel that weight come off the shoulders, and now we’re playing free and having fun,” Doan said. That is the backdrop for Montreal’s trip into Buffalo, where the home team entered the series with 109 points and first place in the most competitive division in hockey.
St. Louis on Montreal
St. Louis said the Canadiens need to “play the game that’s in front of you.” He added that there “won’t be a lot of space” against Buffalo, so Montreal has to “let the puck do the work” and “forecheck more.”
That approach matches what Montreal showed against Tampa Bay. St. Louis said the Canadiens protected the inner slot really well in that series and did hard things throughout the round, which he wants repeated against a Buffalo team that has already shown it can survive a long spring series.
Ruff sizes up Montreal
Lindy Ruff pointed to Montreal’s goaltending first, saying the Canadiens’ goalie “has played really well.” He also said Montreal has “as good a top line as any team,” plus mobile defense and Lane Hutson, who is “really hard to keep track of back there.”
Ruff’s view lines up with why Buffalo had to work through six games with Boston. The Sabres’ regular season ended with 109 points, then their first-round win carried them past the Bruins and into this matchup with a home crowd that now sounds different from the one Doan described earlier in the year.
Game 1 was scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+, and the series opened with both teams carrying recent seven-game and six-game pressure tests into a building that Buffalo has turned into a louder, looser place after years of futility. Montreal now has to answer that energy shift on the ice, starting with the tight, low-space game St. Louis described.
