Cole Caufield found the puck on his stick in prime shooting position and ripped a shot upstairs early in the first period to even the score and silence a raucous home crowd.
Juraj Slafkovsky danced through the opposition with a dazzling individual effort seven minutes into the third to cap a sequence that effectively sealed the result.
The Montreal Canadiens survived two playoff rounds without getting much from their top line.
Caufield, Slavkovsky and Nick Suzuki woke up in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final — and pushed the aggressive, uncharacteristically sloppy, Carolina Hurricanes off their axis.
The trio combined for six even-strength points in Thursday’s surprising 6-2 victory at Lenovo Center after finding the back of the net just once when on the ice together at 5-on-5 through their first 14 post-season games this spring.
“You like to see your top guys produce,” Canadiens winger Josh Anderson said Friday afternoon. “They were a little bit snake-bit in the last couple series. The scoring chances have been there all playoffs. You knew they were going to break out at some point.”
A balanced attack further down the lineup allowed the club to get past both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres in knife-edged, seven-game triumphs.
Montreal’s stars showed spurts on the power play, but offensive production at even strength was largely a challenge in difficult matchups.
“The results on the scoresheet help the confidence,” Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis said following Game 1, adding he was equally impressed by how the line defended.
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Suzuki, Caufield — Montreal’s first 50-goal man since the 1989-90 season — and Slafkovsky, who all skipped a lightly attended optional practice and weren’t made available to reporters, also combined on the latter’s empty-net goal to finish with eight points.
“You knew they were going to break out at some point,” Anderson said. “To execute on the chances they were given is encouraging.”
Montreal assistant coach Stéphane Robidas said St. Louis, who was away from the team to attend a graduation ceremony Friday, did a good job keeping the top line’s spirits up despite a string goose eggs through two playoff rounds.
“Go back to your identity and play with your strength,” Robidas said of the message. “Whenever they do that, they’ve been very effective. Sometimes even though you’re not producing offensively, you’re helping the team in other ways. That’s what they’ve done so far in the playoffs … you need depth and you need contribution from everyone.”
The Hurricanes, meanwhile, played for the first time in 11 days after sweeping aside both the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers, but were a rusty, disjointed version of themselves in the opener.
“One team looked like an Eastern Conference final team and the other didn’t,” Carolina winger Taylor Hall said. “We have a lot more to give … you don’t want to let things slide. Whether we win or lose (Saturday’s Game 2), we have to play our game and our identity. Let that come through for 60 minutes, and let the cards fall where they do.
“That wasn’t the game that we were proud of.”
The Canadiens, who improved to 7-2 on the road in these playoffs and owned the league’s third-best record away from home in the regular season at 24-9-8, will now look to grab a 2-0 series lead.
“Maybe less thinking,” Anderson said of his team’s performances away from the Bell Centre. “You want to calm the storm a little bit. I think on the road, our starts have been pretty good. We’re well organized. We just play the right way.”
Montreal winger Zachary Bolduc said his group is ready for the Hurricanes to respond after getting embarrassed on their ice.
“We expect the best out of them,” he said. “They didn’t like the way the Game 1 turned (out), but as a team we want to focus on ourselves.
“We know they’re going to come at us hard.”
BLOCK PARTY
Montreal defencemen have eaten a lot of pucks this spring, with four sitting among the league’s top-7 overall in shot blocks.
“It’s a huge part of our identity in the back end,” said blueliner Kaiden Guhle, who has got in the way of 31 opposition attempts on goal. “(We) knew that needed to be better to get to this point.”
MOVING ALONG
Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes keeps teammates on their toes with a unique style, including some aggressive puck-handling to help start breakouts.
“He’s great at it,” said blueliner Alexandre Carrier, before adding with a grin: “Sometimes he makes us sweat a little bit with how much confidence he’s got, but as a defenceman, I love it.”
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