The Washington Capitals and Montreal Canadiens lost their starting goalies because of injuries in Game 3 of their first-round series Friday night.
Canadiens starter Sam Montembeault was replaced by rookie Jakub Dobes, who made his playoff debut, in the second period due to a lower-body injury. Capitals starter Logan Thompson left late in the third period after a collision with teammate Dylan Strome.
The Canadiens won 6-3 to cut their series deficit to 2-1.
“You never want to see anybody go down,” Washington defenseman John Carlson said.
Montembeault left the crease with 8:21 remaining in the second period and the score tied 2-2. Replays showed him reaching for the back of his left leg after making a save on Capitals defenseman Alex Alexeyev. Montembeault had stopped 11 of 13 shots. For the series, he stopped 58 of 63 shots (.921 save percentage) with a 2.49 goals-against average.
Dobes, 23, stopped seven of eight shots in relief of Montembeault and earned his first NHL playoff win in his debut.
“You guys cannot imagine how a person feels,” Dobes said. “I was afraid, I was excited, I was emotional. I was crying at the end. I was a mess.”
Dobes was 7-4-3 in 16 games for the Canadiens in the regular season with a .909 save percentage. He had a win over the Capitals on Jan. 10, stopping 15 shots in a 3-2 overtime win.
Thompson was helped from the ice by a trainer and teammates after Strome collided with him with 6:37 left in regulation right after Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky made it a 5-3 Montreal lead. Thompson attempted to skate off on his own but couldn’t put weight down on his left leg.
Capitals coach Spencer Carbery did not have an update on Thompson after the game.
“It was tough,” Capitals defenseman Jakob Chychrun said. “Obviously [Strome] is trying to get back and make a desperate play to save a goal and it’s unfortunate.”
Backup goalie Charlie Lindgren replaced Thompson, who had been outstanding for the Capitals in the first two games of the series, winning both with a .951 save percentage and a 1.47 goals-against average. He made 30 saves on 35 shots in Game 3.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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