Buffalo Sabres vs. Montreal CanadiensMay 16, 2026

FinalPlayoffsSaturday, May 16, 2026· Centre Bell

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Goals	1	2	3	T		Shots	1	2	3	T
BUF	2	3	3	8		BUF	11	17	8	36
MTL	3	0	0	3		MTL	5	10	7	22

: BUF 61MTL 53
: BUF 5.02MTL 2.51
PP goals: BUF 4MTL 1
Hits: BUF 19MTL 31
Blocks: BUF 18MTL 9
PIM: BUF 30MTL 58
: BUF 61%MTL 39%

Fantasy takeaways

Generated from the play-by-play, shifts and season context. No opinions, just what changed.

Buffalo Sabres rout Montreal Canadiens 8–3

Buffalo Sabres beat Montreal Canadiens 8–3 at MTL. Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) led the scoring with 1G 4A. BUF's first power-play unit (Thompson, Dahlin, Quinn, Doan and Benson) scored 2 power-play goals on 7 attempts in 3:28 together.

Points
Rasmus Dahlin had a goal and 4 assists (5 points) on 3 shots in 19:56.Dahlin
Points
Tage Thompson had a goal and 3 assists (4 points) on 6 shots in 18:14.Thompson
Points
Jack Quinn had two goals and an assist (3 points) on 3 shots in 18:18.Quinn
Points
Jake Evans had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 1 shot in 16:13.Evans
Points
Jason Zucker had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 2 shots in 13:29.Zucker
Points
Zach Benson had a goal and an assist (2 points) on 6 shots in 20:04.Benson
PP1
BUF's first power-play unit (Thompson, Dahlin, Quinn, Doan and Benson) scored 2 power-play goals on 7 attempts in 3:28 together.Thompson Dahlin Quinn Doan Benson
PP1
MTL's first power-play unit (Suzuki, Caufield, Hutson, Slafkovský and Demidov) scored 1 power-play goal on 8 attempts in 3:36 together.Suzuki Caufield Hutson Slafkovský Demidov

Shot map

Both teams on one rink, filtered by strength and period.

Shot map

Every attempt, sized by expected goals. Goals are rings, shots on goal dots, misses hollow, blocks crosses.

Strength

Period

Team

← BUF attacks left (bottom on phones)MTL attacks right (top on phones) →

MTL
BUF
Goal
Shot on goal
Missed
Blocked

Showing 114 of 114 attempts · MTL 53 · BUF 61

Game flow

Cumulative expected goals and shot attempts, with power plays shaded and goals marked.

Cumulative shot attempts

MTL
BUF
Goal
Power play (shaded)

Pressure Index

MTL pressure
BUF pressure
Goal
Control (|PI| > 0.25)

: descriptive only, the team with more pressure scored the next goal about half the time. In control: BUF 36% of the game, MTL 20%.

Shift chart

Every shift, grouped by line and pair; bars are coloured by strength state. Click a player to highlight.

Shifts

MTL

BUF

goals / penalties

Even strength
Power play
Penalty kill
Goal
Penalty

Head-to-head matchups

MTL skaters (rows) against BUF skaters (columns) at 5v5. Square size is time together; colour is xGF% from the MTL side.

Matchup matrix

MTL xGF% 4060square size = TOI together · blank = under 1:00

Sequence card

5-on-5 possession-chain numbers from the sequence engine (Draw Equity and control cover all situations).

Sequence card
Stat	BUF	MTL
	50	38
	3.54	1.23
	3.21	1.20
	14	6
	6	5
	14	23
	+0.050	−0.050
	36%	20%

Definitions: sequence xG, transition attempts, Draw Equity, control and the Pressure Index.

Lines used

Detected from who actually shared the ice, with time together. Percentages are the unit's share of shot attempts.

Buffalo Sabres

L1Tuch – McLeod – Doan
10:5358% CF
L2Thompson – Norris – Benson
9:5973% CF
L3Zucker – Quinn – Helenius
9:2052% CF
L4Greenway – Malenstyn – Krebs
3:3040% CF
D1Samuelsson – Dahlin
9:19100% CF
D2Byram – Power
7:4360% CF
D3Timmins – Metsa
1:360% CF

PP1Thompson – Dahlin – Quinn – Doan – Benson
3:28100% CF
PP2Zucker – Tuch – Norris – McLeod – Byram
1:2350% CF
PK1FGreenway – Malenstyn
1:45
PK2FTuch – McLeod
0:39
PK1DTimmins – Samuelsson
2:12
PK2DPower – Metsa
0:14

Current BUF line combinations →

Montreal Canadiens

L1Suzuki – Caufield – Slafkovský
10:2647% CF
L2Evans – Newhook – Demidov
8:2350% CF
L3Danault – Anderson – Texier
7:3431% CF
L4Veleno – Dach – Bolduc
6:1725% CF
D1Dobson – Hutson
14:5850% CF
D2Matheson – Carrier
8:470% CF
D3Guhle – Xhekaj
4:5873% CF

PP1Suzuki – Caufield – Hutson – Slafkovský – Demidov
3:3680% CF
PP2Texier – Dach – Newhook – Bolduc – Hutson
0:35100% CF
PK1FEvans – Newhook
2:05
PK2FDanault – Anderson
1:29
PK1DMatheson – Guhle
1:57
PK2DDobson – Hutson
0:42

Current MTL line combinations →

Scoring summary

Every goal with the skaters on the ice for it.

Box score

Skaters grouped by the line they played on; CF% is the 5v5 share of shot attempts while on the ice.

Buffalo Sabres

BUF skaters
Skater	Line	G	A	P	+/-			Hits	Blk	PIM		PP	SH
Ryan McLeod C	L1	0	1	1	0	1	0.29	0	1	0	21:56	—	—	62	80
Alex Tuch R	L1	0	0	0	-1	4	0.56	1	1	2	19:10	—	—	57	86
Josh Doan R	L1	0	0	0	0	2	0.23	1	0	0	16:31	—	—	58	84
Zach Benson L	L2	1	1	2	+3	6	0.86	1	2	10	20:04	—	—	68	82
Tage Thompson C	L2	1	3	4	+3	6	0.96	3	0	0	18:14	—	—	68	79
Josh Norris C	L2	0	1	1	+1	2	0.24	3	0	4	15:27	—	—	63	84
Jack Quinn R	L3	2	1	3	+1	3	0.30	1	1	0	18:18	—	—	48	66
Jason Zucker L	L3	1	1	2	0	2	0.50	1	0	0	13:29	—	—	50	65
Konsta Helenius C	L3	1	0	1	+1	2	0.14	0	2	0	12:36	—	—	55	65
Beck Malenstyn L	L4	0	0	0	-1	1	0.03	1	0	0	8:22	—	—	43	11
Jordan Greenway L	L4	0	0	0	-1	0	0.00	1	1	0	8:15	—	—	50	54
Peyton Krebs C	L4	0	0	0	-1	0	0.00	1	0	12	6:25	—	—	33	9
Mattias Samuelsson D	D1	0	1	1	+1	1	0.04	1	1	0	22:53	—	—	73	82
Rasmus Dahlin D	D1	1	4	5	+2	3	0.44	0	0	2	19:56	—	—	72	81
Owen Power D	D2	0	0	0	+1	0	0.00	1	2	0	22:22	—	—	56	95
Bowen Byram D	D2	0	1	1	+1	2	0.32	3	1	0	19:53	—	—	62	77
Conor Timmins D	D3	0	0	0	+1	0	0.01	0	5	0	17:26	—	—	35	27
Zach Metsa D	D3	1	0	1	-1	1	0.08	0	1	0	12:19	—	—	33	22

BUF goalies
Goalie	Dec	SA	SV	GA			TOI
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen	W	18	18	0	.1000	2.06	49:41
Alex Lyon(start)	—	4	1	3	.250	0.45	10:14

Montreal Canadiens

MTL skaters
Skater	Line	G	A	P	+/-			Hits	Blk	PIM		PP	SH
Nick Suzuki C	L1	0	0	0	-1	2	0.30	2	0	0	19:20	—	—	50	14
Juraj Slafkovský L	L1	0	0	0	-1	3	0.33	0	1	0	17:46	—	—	50	14
Cole Caufield R	L1	0	1	1	-1	2	0.35	0	0	0	16:01	—	—	47	14
Ivan Demidov R	L2	1	0	1	0	5	0.73	0	0	0	17:14	—	—	56	49
Alex Newhook C	L2	0	0	0	-1	3	0.15	2	1	0	16:32	—	—	50	39
Jake Evans C	L2	1	1	2	+1	1	0.13	1	1	12	16:13	—	—	48	49
Josh Anderson R	L3	0	0	0	0	1	0.20	1	0	2	14:03	—	—	32	21
Alexandre Texier L	L3	0	0	0	-2	0	0.00	1	0	0	13:04	—	—	44	24
Phillip Danault C	L3	0	0	0	-1	0	0.05	3	1	2	12:06	—	—	28	5
Zachary Bolduc R	L4	0	0	0	-1	0	0.05	7	0	0	13:39	—	—	44	18
Kirby Dach C	L4	0	0	0	-1	2	0.04	3	0	10	11:24	—	—	41	14
Joseph Veleno C	L4	0	0	0	0	0	0.05	2	0	0	9:59	—	—	27	14
Noah Dobson D	D1	0	0	0	0	1	0.01	2	1	0	25:22	—	—	50	29
Lane Hutson D	D1	0	1	1	0	1	0.11	1	2	2	24:28	—	—	50	20
Mike Matheson D	D2	0	1	1	-2	0	0.00	3	1	4	22:05	—	—	31	19
Alexandre Carrier D	D2	0	0	0	-2	0	0.00	0	0	12	17:32	—	—	18	3
Kaiden Guhle D	D3	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	19:27	—	—	48	47
Arber Xhekaj D	D3	1	0	1	0	1	0.01	3	1	12	7:12	—	—	62	62

MTL goalies
Goalie	Dec	SA	SV	GA			TOI
Jakub Dobes(start)	L	33	27	6	.818	4.54	49:58
Jacob Fowler	—	2	1	1	.500	0.10	8:23

Goal anatomy

Animated replays from NHL EDGE tracking, with the entry, passes and shot speed for each goal.

Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) 1st 0:32 · assists Mattias Samuelsson, Zach Benson · Forecheck turnover · 15.8 mph shot.

Rasmus Dahlin · 1st 0:32 · BUF

Play: turnover-forecheck
Passes: 0
Shot: 15.8 mph
Distance: 6 ft

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Arber Xhekaj · 1st 1:40 · MTL

Play: faceoff
Passes: 0
Shot: 61.3 mph
Distance: 45 ft

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Ivan Demidov · 1st 8:12 · MTL PP

Play: turnover-forecheck
Passes: 4 (royal road)
Shot: 67.2 mph
Distance: 29 ft
Type: one-timer

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Tage Thompson · 3rd 14:12 · BUF EN

Play: cycle
Passes: 0
Shot: 11.5 mph
Distance: 23 ft

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Jake Evans · 1st 10:14 · MTL SH

Play: odd-man-rush
Entry: carry
Odd man: 2-on-1
Passes: 0
Shot: 51.7 mph
Distance: 21 ft
Entry to goal: 1.9 s

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Jason Zucker · 1st 13:56 · BUF PP

Play: turnover-forecheck
Passes: 1
Shot: 27.8 mph
Distance: 6 ft
Type: one-timer

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Zach Benson · 2nd 1:00 · BUF

Play: rebound
Passes: 3 (royal road)
Shot: 13.2 mph
Distance: 9 ft
Type: rebound

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Jack Quinn · 2nd 10:54 · BUF PP

Play: point-shot
Passes: 3 (royal road)
Shot: 75.5 mph
Distance: 43 ft
Type: one-timer

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Konsta Helenius · 2nd 12:59 · BUF

Play: odd-man-rush
Entry: carry
Odd man: 2-on-1
Passes: 0
Shot: 58.7 mph
Distance: 16 ft
Entry to goal: 3.6 s

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Jack Quinn · 3rd 9:58 · BUF PP

Play: cycle
Passes: 4
Shot: 66.8 mph
Distance: 29 ft
Type: one-timer

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Zach Metsa · 3rd 17:49 · BUF PP

Play: cycle
Passes: 4 (royal road)
Shot: 24.2 mph
Distance: 35 ft
Type: one-timer

Watch on NHL.com → · Tracking-derived via NHL EDGE

Methodology

Shot locations come from the NHL play-by-play, normalised so each shooter attacks the same way, then flipped so the home team attacks right. On-ice stats and lines come from the shift charts: a unit is the exact set of skaters sharing the ice, and CF% is the share of all shot attempts while they were out. Head-to-head cells are 5v5 time against each opponent. Expected goals and the Pressure Index appear as their models are released.

Buffalo Sabres vs. Montreal CanadiensMay 16, 2026

Fantasy takeaways

Buffalo Sabres rout Montreal Canadiens 8–3

Shot map

Shot map

Game flow

Cumulative shot attempts

Shift chart

Shifts

Head-to-head matchups

Matchup matrix

Sequence card

Lines used

Buffalo Sabres

Montreal Canadiens

Scoring summary

1st period

2nd period

3rd period

Box score

Buffalo Sabres

Montreal Canadiens

Goal anatomy

Rasmus Dahlin · 1st 0:32 · BUF

Arber Xhekaj · 1st 1:40 · MTL

Ivan Demidov · 1st 8:12 · MTL PP

Tage Thompson · 3rd 14:12 · BUF EN

Jake Evans · 1st 10:14 · MTL SH

Jason Zucker · 1st 13:56 · BUF PP

Zach Benson · 2nd 1:00 · BUF

Jack Quinn · 2nd 10:54 · BUF PP

Konsta Helenius · 2nd 12:59 · BUF

Jack Quinn · 3rd 9:58 · BUF PP

Zach Metsa · 3rd 17:49 · BUF PP