The Bell Centre crowd rose for Samuel Montembeault late Saturday, and a fan's clip of the Montreal Canadiens goalie's moment quickly hit social media.
The fan who posted it wondered whether to cry. That tells you how much this goalie means to the people in those seats.
The clip doesn't explain what prompted the moment. But in a market this demanding, a standing ovation for a goaltender is never a small thing.
On the ice, his camp has been quiet but steady. He stopped seven of eight shots over 32:48 in Monday's 3-2 win over Ottawa.
In the clip, fans throughout the Bell Centre stands climb to their feet for him, the kind of reaction usually saved for playoff nights.
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The ovation lands in the middle of a real crease competition. Jakub Dobes played the other half on Monday and got the win, stopping 11 of 12.
Jakub Dobes keeps the Canadiens crease debate alive
Splitting that game down the middle didn't tip Martin St-Louis' hand.
Montembeault should get the opener in Toronto. When a building stands up for its goalie like that, you ride the goodwill into October.
A September ovation is like a toast before the wedding vows. Lovely, but the marriage gets tested later.
Montreal's skaters made life easy that night. Cole Caufield scored twice, including the winner, and one of his goals came on the power play.
Lane Hutson set up two goals from the back end.
Ottawa's Samuel Ersson faced 36 shots, a reminder of how badly Montreal tilted the ice against a Senators team that managed 20.
The Canadiens are 3-0 this preseason. They open the regular season Tuesday in Toronto against the Maple Leafs.
Kent Hughes already has other decisions on his desk, from Florian Xhekaj's push for a job to Kirby Dach trade interest.
The crease might be the biggest one. The crowd has made its pick, and now St-Louis gets to decide whether he agrees.
Should Samuel Montembeault start the Canadiens' opener in Toronto?
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