While the Montreal Canadiens are happy to be back in the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a four-year absence, they missed out on what was a monumental opportunity to steal the opening game on the road in a hostile atmosphere.
The Washington Capitals, who were the top seed in the Eastern Conference, defeated the Canadiens by a 3-2 final score in overtime on Monday, April 21.
The Capitals Defeated the Canadiens 3-2 in OT
Capitals captain and future Hall of Famer Alex Ovechkin, who became the leading goal scorer in NHL history earlier this month, scored the first overtime game-winning playoff goal of his career to give his club the 1-0 series lead.
It was Ovechkin who struck first in regulation during the opening 20 minutes of play to give the Capitals the 1-0 lead. Washington then increased their lead to 2-0 late in the second period after Anthony Beauvillier, who was acquired earlier in the season from the Pittsburgh Penguins, scored his first of the playoffs.
However, the Canadiens made a game of it thanks to goals from Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki, knotting the score and sending the game to overtime.
Just 2:26 into the extra session, Ovechkin made the most of his opportunity:
OVI GETS IT DONE! 💪
Alex Ovechkin's FIRST EVER #StanleyCup Playoffs @Energizer overtime winner gives the @Capitals the victory in Game 1! pic.twitter.com/4TQEtvZLjD
— NHL (@NHL) April 22, 2025
Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson, making his first playoff appearance since joining the Capitals during the offseason, made 33 saves; Sam Montembeault, making his first career playoff appearance, made 29 saves.
3 Canadiens Who Did Not Impress During Game 1 Loss to Capitals
#1. Mike Matheson
It just was not Matheson’s night in the nation’s capital city. It was an especially rough outing for him on the defensive side of the puck, with multiple miscues that led to him committing a team-high three turnovers.
He also drew considerable scrutiny from Canadiens fans after a particularly brutal miscue at his own blue line on what would have been a key scoring opportunity:
Long, threatening shift in the OZ for Montreal?
Enter Mike Matheson… pic.twitter.com/dQ03wU1zax
— Matt Drake (@DrakeMT) April 22, 2025
Additionally, he didn’t contribute anything offensively.
#2. Ivan Demidov
Speaking of not contributing offensively, that was the case for rookie forward Ivan Demidov, who took the city of Montreal by storm upon his arrival from the KHL earlier in the month.
It’s going to be a learning curve for him at this level, and he looked every bit like a rookie playing in his very first game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Not only did he contribute zero points, but Demidov also finished tied for a team-worst -2 rating among Canadiens forwards.
#3. Alex Newhook
Demidov wasn’t the only Canadiens forward who wasn’t able to get anything going offensively while falling short defensively. Alex Newhook also fit that bill, finishing with zero points along with a -2 rating.
Skating in 14:33 of total ice time, Newhook also took an ill-advised penalty late in the first period.