Canadiens Must Take Advantage of Shocking Opportunity

The Montreal Canadiens lost their last outing but didn't drop from their playoff spot.

Mar 25, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Montreal Canadiens center Nick Suzuki (14) is congratulated by teammates after scoring against the St. Louis Blues during the first period at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images / Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

The Montreal Canadiens got swatted by the St. Louis Blues 6-1 in their most recent loss. Sitting in the second wild card spot with a couple of teams right on their heels, the Canadiens can’t afford to take those kinds of losses.

With 12 games remaining, the Canadiens have a 33-28-9 record for 75 standings points. The New York Islanders and New York Rangers are one point behind the Canadiens with 74 points.

Luckily for the Canadiens, the Islanders didn’t leapfrog them and take their wild card spot.

The Islanders had a massive contest with the Vancouver Canucks, but suffered a 5-2 defeat, staying outside of the wild card race. Even heading into the matchup, Islanders head coach Patrick Roy thanked the hockey gods for giving them an opportunity to pounce.

In a previous contest, the Islanders blew a two-goal lead to the Columbus Blue Jackets, but everyone else in the Eastern Conference playoff race also suffered losses.

The Islanders couldn’t capitalize on their opportunity, opening a new door for the Canadiens. They suffered a big loss but managed to continue holding their playoff positioning.

Already looked at as one of the most surprising teams in the NHL this year, the Canadiens have to capitalize on the opportunity they’re now getting.

The Canadiens are traveling to take on the Philadelphia Flyers, a team coming off of a blowout loss of their own. The Flyers lost 7-2 to the Toronto Maple Leafs the last time they took the ice, and head coach John Tortorella might be on thin ice in Philadelphia.

Moneypuck.com currently give the Canadiens a 55.6% chance of defeating the Flyers, which would also boost their chances of making the playoffs by 8.3%. That’s not a massive swing, but considering their position in the standings and with time running out on the regular season, this is a huge game for the Canadiens.

The Flyers aren’t mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, but their odds have been at 0% for quite some time.

The Canadiens still have a chance to shock the hockey world and sneak into the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Every game will be big for Montreal from now on, but they must take advantage where the Islanders couldn’t.

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