In order to give themselves a realistic shot at holding onto a play-in position, Laval needed to sweep the week on home ice. They were able to do just that and with a bit of good fortune elsewhere, the Rocket will live to play another day.
The 2022-23 season has now come to an end for the Montreal Canadiens. They had a back-to-back set to finish off the campaign but while they kept things close in both games, they weren’t able to pick up a point, resulting in them finishing fifth-last league-wide.
With the season coming to an end with a 5-4 loss to Boston on Thursday, the Habs were cleaning out their lockers, saying their goodbyes, and meeting with the media on Friday. Here are some of the notable items from their interviews.
Montreal’s 2022-23 season came to an end on Thursday night as they hosted the league-leading Bruins. The Habs put up a good fight, holding the lead on multiple occasions but a pair of goals from Boston in the third were the difference-maker as they picked up the 5-4 win.
Montreal’s final road game of the season took them to New York on Wednesday to take on the Islanders. The Isles needed a win to clinch a playoff spot and they got it, doubling up the Habs by a 4-2 score.
We have finally reached the top five of our 2022-23 prospect rankings. Some of these players have gone out and now established themselves as regulars and won’t be on this list next season while others still have a ways to go in their development but have high ceilings.
Laval had a chance to get a bit of distance on the final play-in spot in the North Division last week. They weren’t able to get it but enter the final week of the season holding down that last spot.
After two ugly losses the week before, the Habs followed it up with two more particularly ugly defeats this past week. At least this time, they snuck in a win between their poor performances.
Montreal’s final Saturday contest of the season was a tough one. A brutal first period had them down quickly and things didn’t get much better from there with Toronto picking up a 7-1 victory.
The month of March featured the start of the playoffs for some leagues while others were well into their stretch runs. The Habs had several prospects saving their best performances for last at those levels.