Cole Caufield entered Game 2 against Buffalo with just one goal in eight playoff games, and Montreal needs more from its top line after a 4-2 loss on Wednesday. The Canadiens winger said Thursday that his game is not where he wants it to be.
Caufield and Buffalo
Caufield’s only playoff goal came on the power play in Game 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He had two shots on goal against the Sabres, and that was the seventh time in eight playoff games that he finished with two or fewer shots.
That drop has come after a regular season in which he scored 51 goals and averaged 3.19 shots per game. Close to 22 per cent of his total shot attempts came from the inner slot then, but that share has fallen to 9.7 per cent in the playoffs.
Montreal's top line
Montreal’s first line has not produced enough to carry the series. Caufield, Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky generated one scoring chance at five-on-five in 12:05 of ice time on Wednesday, and the group has been outscored 5-0 in the playoffs.
That line opened the playoffs with better possession but still has not turned it into goals. In Game 1 against Buffalo, the trio logged 1:20 of offensive-zone possession time at five-on-five, its second-highest output of the playoffs, while against Tampa Bay it reached 1:40 in Game 2 of that series.
Ruff and St. Louis
Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff put Caufield’s production in sharp terms after Wednesday’s game, saying, “That top line, Slafkovský is one hell of a player. And then you’ve got a 50-goal scorer on that line at the same time.” He added, “Maybe they will generate a little bit more.”
Montreal coach Martin St. Louis pointed to the room his group saw in Game 1, saying, “They haven’t had this kind of space for two weeks,” a reminder that the Canadiens still need their top players to finish the chances they are getting. Game 2 against Buffalo was scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
The numbers around Caufield keep pointing the same way. He was one of two NHL players to score 50 goals this season and the first Canadiens player in almost 40 years to reach that mark, but through eight playoff games his lone goal and shrinking shot volume have left Montreal waiting for the version that carried the regular season.
