{"id":67157,"date":"2026-05-15T10:51:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T14:51:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/rookie-goalie-bounces-back-after-rough-start-to-lead-canadiens-past-sabres\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T10:51:22","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T14:51:22","slug":"rookie-goalie-bounces-back-after-rough-start-to-lead-canadiens-past-sabres","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/rookie-goalie-bounces-back-after-rough-start-to-lead-canadiens-past-sabres\/","title":{"rendered":"Rookie Goalie Bounces Back After Rough Start to Lead Canadiens Past Sabres"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

BUFFALO, N.Y. \u2014 Montreal Canadiens first-year netminder Jakub Dobes says he takes pride in not losing faith in himself after Buffalo scored three times on their opening four attempts. More importantly, he remains grateful that Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis chose not to pull him from the game.<\/p>

The difficult opening, which wasn’t completely the goaltender’s responsibility, ultimately helped Dobes find his rhythm and rebuild his confidence. He turned away Buffalo’s remaining 32 attempts in Thursday night’s 6-3 victory that put Montreal ahead 3-2 in their second-round playoff matchup.<\/p>

“I told him thank you for leaving me and trying to prove myself,” Dobes said, referring to St. Louis. “That’s a big part, to have (the) trust of your coach, and I will never disrespect it. I appreciate it and the only thing I was trying to do just give some momentum back to the team and try to keep it tight, and it worked out.”<\/p>

Game 6 is at Montreal on Saturday night.<\/p>

Despite whatever difficulties Dobes experienced early in a contest where Buffalo held a 3-2 advantage by the 10:15 mark of the opening period, the 24-year-old Czech player convinced his teammates he had found his rhythm again.<\/p>

This became especially clear about four minutes into the middle period when he denied Tage Thompson during a breakaway opportunity after Buffalo caught Montreal during a line change. The Sabres’ top regular-season goal scorer rushed in from the left side, moved across the goal mouth only to see Dobes track his movement and block Thompson’s attempt with his left leg pad.<\/p>

Montreal answered by scoring three times during the period’s final 12 minutes to establish a 5-3 advantage.<\/p>

“It was a huge save,” Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki said. “We never lost confidence in him. Everyone was struggling in that first period. And I just thought that was a big moment for us.”<\/p>

For Dobes, who posted a 29-10-4 record during his initial complete NHL regular season, the challenging-then-successful performance taught him about resisting frustration. The netminder admitted his spirits dropped after rookie Konsta Helenius scored Buffalo’s third goal between his legs.<\/p>

“The one lesson I learned from today was just got to have a better body language for the boys \u2014 don’t let them know that I’m not feeling maybe my best,” Dobes said, noting he was reminded of that during a first-intermission discussion. Dobes has been Montreal’s starting goaltender since the playoffs opened, and is now 7-5 in which he’s allowed 28 goals.<\/p>

St. Louis said it was goalie coach Marco Marciano’s decision to not pull Dobes.<\/p>

“Ultimately, it’s probably my decision right? But I feel like the goalie position is probably the one position that I can help much,” said St. Louis, a former NHL forward. “So I try to stay out of it and not be emotionally driven, and being upset that we’re down.”<\/p>

St. Louis described the conversation over the radio with Marciano, who was watching from the press box, as being brief.<\/p>

“He said, ‘No, keep him in.’ OK, let’s move on,” St. Louis said.<\/p>

Forward Juraj Slafkovsky defended Dobes by saying Buffalo’s first goal pinballed in by deflecting off Sabres forward Jason Zucker and then a Montreal defender. And Dobes was screened when Josh Doan beat him to put Buffalo up 2-1.<\/p>

“We didn’t help him there, but then he came back and he was in a game, and he was once again really good,” said Slafkovsky, who had three assists. “It’s just Marty trusting him. I think it’s huge for confidence of (Dobes). And we all trust him as well.”<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Montreal Canadiens rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes overcame a difficult opening that saw him allow three goals on Buffalo’s first four shots to shut out the Sabres for the remainder of their 6-3 victory Thursday night. The 24-year-old Czech netminder credited his coach for keeping faith in him during the struggles, helping Montreal take a 3-2 series lead in their second-round playoff matchup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":67156,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[836],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778856682199.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbtNqq-htb","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":68918,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/montreal-canadiens-reach-eastern-conference-finals-after-two-game-7-victories\/","url_meta":{"origin":67157,"position":0},"title":"Montreal Canadiens Reach Eastern Conference Finals After Two Game 7 Victories","author":"Admin","date":"May 19, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Montreal Canadiens have advanced to the Eastern Conference finals following their second Game 7 victory of the postseason, defeating Buffalo 3-2 in overtime. Forward Alex Newhook scored the series-clinching goal in both Game 7 wins, helping Montreal reach the NHL semifinals for the first time since 2021.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779201542966.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779201542966.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779201542966.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779201542966.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":60722,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/lightning-force-game-7-with-overtime-victory-over-canadiens\/","url_meta":{"origin":67157,"position":1},"title":"Lightning Force Game 7 with Overtime Victory Over Canadiens","author":"Admin","date":"May 2, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Gage Goncalves delivered his first career playoff overtime winner to lift Tampa Bay past Montreal 1-0 in Game 6. The thrilling Eastern Conference series now heads to a decisive Game 7 on Sunday in Tampa.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1777706612561.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":71910,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/hurricanes-edge-canadiens-3-2-in-ot-take-2-1-series-lead\/","url_meta":{"origin":67157,"position":2},"title":"Hurricanes Edge Canadiens 3-2 in OT, Take 2-1 Series Lead","author":"Admin","date":"May 26, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 in overtime Monday night, with Andrei Svechnikov scoring the game-winner. Carolina now leads the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals 2-1 after winning their second consecutive overtime game.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779780295523.jpg?fit=450%2C301&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":64669,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/montreal-dominates-buffalo-6-2-takes-2-1-series-lead-in-eastern-conference-semis\/","url_meta":{"origin":67157,"position":3},"title":"Montreal Dominates Buffalo 6-2, Takes 2-1 Series Lead in Eastern Conference Semis","author":"Admin","date":"May 11, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Buffalo Sabres 6-2 in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series. Cole Caufield ended his five-game goal drought with the game-winning power-play score, while Alex Newhook contributed two goals in the victory.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1778484194504.jpg?fit=450%2C335&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":59526,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/canadiens-edge-lightning-3-2-take-3-2-series-lead-in-stanley-cup-playoffs\/","url_meta":{"origin":67157,"position":4},"title":"Canadiens Edge Lightning 3-2, Take 3-2 Series Lead in Stanley Cup Playoffs","author":"Admin","date":"April 29, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Alexandre Texier scored the game-winning goal early in the third period as Montreal defeated Tampa Bay 3-2 in Game 5. The Canadiens now lead the first-round playoff series 3-2 and need just one more victory to advance.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777516631579.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777516631579.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777516631579.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777516631579.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":67968,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/sabres-canadiens-hockey-playoff-series-heads-to-winner-take-all-game-7\/","url_meta":{"origin":67157,"position":5},"title":"Sabres-Canadiens Hockey Playoff Series Heads to Winner-Take-All Game 7","author":"Admin","date":"May 17, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens will face off in a decisive Game 7 Monday night after a wild second-round NHL playoff series. Both teams have struggled at home, with the road team winning most games in this unpredictable matchup.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779050206065.jpg?fit=1000%2C584&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779050206065.jpg?fit=1000%2C584&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779050206065.jpg?fit=1000%2C584&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1779050206065.jpg?fit=1000%2C584&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67157"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67157\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67156"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}