About Last Night: The Habs won. Finally

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The previously winless Canadiens got out of the trap in a big way, recording their first win of the 2021-22 season with a 6-1 beating of the Detroit Red Wings at the Bell Center on Saturday.

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A host of new Habs played a key role in the victory, starting with a hat-trick from Mathieu Perreault. Christian Dvorak and Mike Hoffman also broke the seals on their payroll. In his first game as a Canadian, defender Sami Niku provided two assistants.

The local crowd chanted the Drummondville native’s name after scoring an empty net in his third match of the game. According to Stu Cowan, a local player scoring three here has become a rarity:

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Let’s go to those goals, shall we? Detroit actually opened scoring, giving hungry Habs fans on offense a sinking feeling at 5:25 of the first. On the power play, Captain Dylan Larkin slid from the top of the circle to the spot, unloading a spot-on shot that beat Jake Allen to give the Wings a 1-0 lead.

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After that, it was all Montreal. The Canadiens scored two before the first period ended, first from a Ben Chiarot on a streak of a Jonathan Drouin feed across the boards.

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Just over two minutes later, Hoffman recorded his first time in blue-blanc-rouge, showing his very loud howitzer on the power play to give the Habs a 2-1 lead heading into the second period.

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The floodgates opened for Montreal in the second. Dvorak bounced a puck off the Detroit defender’s leg and outscored Thomas Greiss to extend Montreal’s lead to 3-1.

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Then it was Perreault’s turn to score his first two as a Hab. For the first, he grabbed a loose puck that hit a skate in the neutral zone and carried it home.

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By the second, just over two minutes later, Perreault parked in the slot, finally receiving a backhand pass from Tyler Toffoli. After the fifth goal, Detroit traded starting keeper Greiss for Alex Nedeljkovic, acquired this offseason from Carolina.

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Trailing 5-1 with more than seven minutes remaining in the third period, Detroit coach Jeff Blashill took out his goalie for an extra hitter. Seconds later, Perreault ran across the ice to deny a frosting and placed his third in the empty cage. The game ended 6-1.

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After last season’s empty stands and little to cheer this October, Olé Olé’s chants returned on Saturday night. As for Detroit, star forward Tyler Bertuzzi couldn’t play because he’s the last unvaccinated player in the league and couldn’t travel with his teammates.

With the proverbial monkey off the team’s back, the Habs head to the West Coast for a four-game road trip that begins in Seattle on Tuesday for a momentous first contest against expanding Kraken. Liveblog commenters felt that Niku won another game in the top six, and that Allen deserved a bit of support to run for a change.

3. “Can I be happier for Jake Allen? I don’t think so! “-Carin Latzel

2. “Imagine getting a triplet for the team you grew up loving. Man who has to feel great. “-Marc Taillefer

And I don’t normally post supplemental comments, but a big win knocks Liveblog veterans out of the woods.

1. “I don’t really post too much here, but I’ve been reading this comment section since it was called HABS Inside Out, and the great Mr. Boone was our blogger. Erik, you’re making him and us proud, thanks for all the hard work! All I have to say is I think we all needed this game and hopefully we can build and prove everyone wrong about this team one more time! LET’S GO HABS LET’S GO! “-Robbie Arseneault