Habs Highlights: Suzuki And Hutson Show Hunger For Playoffs in Hard Win

The Montreal Canadiens were in Florida on Sunday afternoon, hoping to beat the Panthers and get their quest for the playoffs back on track.

Even though the Habs have struggled to bank many points during the current road trip, they’re still very much in the race for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Prior to puck drop, head coach Martin St-Louis made a few changes to the lineup. Kaiden Guhle was paired with Lane Hutson, while Mike Matheson stayed with Alexandre Carrier, leaving Jayden Struble and David Savard as the third pairing. It’s crunch time, which means some changes were to be expected, but statistically speaking, Matheson and Carrier have struggle when paired together, whereas Struble and Hutson formed an excellent duo during Guhle’s absence.

St-Louis also decided to return to a 12-6 lineup, rather than running an extra defenceman. Consequently, defenceman Arber Xhekaj watched the game from the press box, while forward Micheal Pezzetta was added to the lineup to fill out the fourth line.

It ended up being a statement game for the Habs. They’re not quite ready to give up on their playoff chances, emerging with a hard-fought 4-2 win over the defending Stanley Cup champions.

If you’d like the view from the other side of the rink, make sure to visit our sister site, Florida Hockey Now.

Let’s dive into the highlights!

Slight Improvement

The Montreal Canadiens managed to take a first period lead, and they held that crucial lead for much longer than they did on Friday versus the Carolina Hurricanes. More on that a little later.

Patrik Laine scored his 19th goal of the year in just his 43rd game of the season, a powerplay goal that was assisted by Lane Hutson and Nick Suzuki, the least surprising man-advantage combination the Canadiens can offer.

Both Suzuki and Hutson did a good job opening up passing and shooting lanes, giving Laine all the time needed to pick his spot. Say what you will about his 5v5 play, Laine’s powerplay goals have played a key role in many games this year, and I doubt the Canadiens would be in the playoff discussion if he hadn’t buoyed the team’s odds with his fantastic shot.

Déjà entendu ceci quelque part : «Patrik Laine marque en A.N.»

Stop us if you’ve heard this before: Patrik Laine power play goal#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/AAmAoyfCgk

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) March 30, 2025

One Minute And Thirteen Seconds

As previously discussed, the Canadiens did indeed hold their lead for much longer this time around. Rather than giving up a 1-0 lead in less than 20 seconds, they held it for well over a minute against the Panthers.

We often tend to blame the usual suspects in Montreal, and though I’m not lobbying for more complaints in regard to Alexandre Carrier’s play, we do have to admit he’s struggled mightily in the last few weeks. It’s a good reminder that mistakes tend to come from all players in the lineup, but some are more memorable than others.

The Habs are better with Carrier than without, but like many in the lineup, he’s been showing signs of fatigue in the recent stretch. We should also note the ice in Florida is usually rougher than a Montreal roadway in the summer, making bad bounces a little more common.

Reino with the backhand to tie it up 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/pKVV3znRz6

— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) March 30, 2025

They Say It’s Your Birthday

Special teams continued to be a key factor, with birthday boy Juraj Slafkovsky scoring the team’s second goal on the man advantage midway through the second period.

It was Slafkovsky’s 17th goal of the year, and a continuation of his strong play in the second half of the season. At one point, the Canadiens will need Slafkovsky to hit the ground running at the start of the year, rather than halfway through. But even if he did turn 21 years old on Sunday, Slafkovsky is still the youngest player in the lineup. Food for thought.

Laine was not directly involved in the Slafkovsky goal, but much of the available ice was created due to the Panthers covering No.92 very closely. That’s the beautiful aspect of having one of the best powerplay goalscorers in the league, he doesn’t necessarily need to shoot to make an impact on the man advantage.

2-1 à son 21e anniversaire

2-1 on his 21st birthday#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/VaCg0kYrm6

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) March 30, 2025

Hungry For More

Of course, the Panthers responded a few minutes later when a sloppy line change and questionable goaltending from Samuel Montembeault led to Seth Jones’ ninth goal of the year, but it didn’t feel like the typical collapse we’ve seen from the Habs in March.

Yes, they lost a pair of one-goal leads, but that did not completely take the air out of their sails. Thanks to Nick Suzuki’s 23rd goal of the year, Montreal established another fragile one-goal lead early in the third period, and shockingly, Hutson was involved, registering his third assist of the game.

It was also Suzuki’s seventh (!) three-point effort this season, demonstrating his clear desire to drag his team to the playoffs, by hook or by crook.

With that in mind, if Suzuki is the engine that powers Montreal’s playoff hopes, Hutson is the suspension, allowing the team to navigate a bumpy rebuild while also aiming for springtime hockey.

You could argue he’s the steering wheel as well.

Or the frame.

Or the tires.

Or the transmission.

Or the gas.

Or the windshield.

Or the …

Hutson fait encore des siennes et Suzuki donne les devants au CH pic.twitter.com/JLa76ZTvHk

— TVA Sports (@TVASports) March 30, 2025

Brendan Gallagher, one of the other players who has done an admirable job in crunch time, secured the win with less than two minutes left on the clock, scoring his 18th goal of the year, an empty-net effort. The win put the Canadiens back in the final Wild Card spot for the time being.

The Montreal Canadiens are back in action on Tuesday. They will once again face the Florida Panthers, however, the game will be hosted at the Bell Centre, with the puck drop scheduled for 7 pm ET. All Montreal Canadiens statistics are 5v5 unless otherwise noted, via Natural Stat Trick.