Jakub Dobes didn't have to stand up for himself very long last night, because the Canadiens got to John Tavares first.
The flashpoint came at the final horn of Montreal's win in Toronto. The Leafs forward drifted into the goalie's crease, and the Montreal netminder wasn't having it.
Dobes gave his stick a tug. Tavares answered with a shove to the chest.
That's when the Canadiens arrived in a hurry. A wave of Montreal players converged on the Toronto veteran and put him on the ice.
In the clip, the stick tug comes first, then the shove, then a rush of Canadiens that ends with Tavares down on the ice.
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Martin St-Louis gets a messy first win and a united room
The win itself won't make any coaching tape. Montreal fell behind early on a quick William Nylander goal and spent most of the night climbing back in, bit by bit.
Execution was average at best. Martin St-Louis will take the two points and worry about the details later.
The reaction at the horn told a better story. Nobody hesitated, and nobody looked around to see who'd go in first.
Tavares knows better. A respected veteran crowding a goalie after the buzzer is a bad look, and the Leafs can't act surprised by what came next.
It's like leaning on a stranger's car in a parking lot while his buddies are standing right there. You'll get your answer fast.
Kent Hughes has to love what he saw. That kind of unity never shows up on a stat sheet, and it tends to travel.
It travels to Pittsburgh on Saturday, then back home for Carolina, Nashville and Detroit.
Toronto hosts the Islanders tonight with a sour taste still hanging around. Somewhere in that locker room, somebody is already circling the next Canadiens date.
