Montreal Canadiens Nick Suzuki celebrates a goal
(Photo by Vincent Ethier/Icon Sportswire)

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Canadiens in playoffs for first time since 2021
  • Montreal will face top-seeded Washington Capitals in Round 1
  • Read below for more on the Canadiens clinching

The Montreal Canadiens are back in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

It took a bit longer than some fans may have hoped, but the Habs are headed to the playoffs for the first time since losing the Stanley Cup Final in 2021.

Kaiden Guhle scored two goals, including the game-winner, and Nick Suzuki capped off his fantastic season with his 30th goal of the year.

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Lane Hutson picked up an assist on the game-winning goal to tie Larry Murphy for most assists in a season by a rookie defenseman with 60.

Then Jake Evans iced it with an empty-netter to secure the victory and playoff berth for the Canadiens, and the Montreal crowd loved it.

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The Canadiens won six games in a row to begin the month but had lost three straight, including in a shootout on Monday against the lowly Chicago Blackhawks, to set up this win-and-in scenario. They got the job done and will now face the Washington Capitals in the first round.

Montreal fans may remember the last and only other time the Habs played the Caps in the playoffs. The No. 8 seed Canadiens took down the No. 1 seed Capitals in seven games in the first round of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs en route to an Eastern Conference Final appearance.

Could the Canadiens have some more magic up their sleeve? The addition of Ivan Demidov certainly doesn’t hurt, and the Russian youngster has already shown what he can do.

Stay tuned for the full first-round schedule for this series. It’s bound to be a raucous crowd in Montreal this spring.