Cole Caufield filled the web throughout the regular season.
The Montreal Canadiens sniper bagged 51 goals — the primary time the Original Six franchise has had a player reach the half-century mark in 36 years — as a part of a campaign marked with memorable moments.
Caufield found it much tougher sledding in the primary round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for Montreal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in a seven-game series that featured razor-thin margins and 4 time beyond regulation contests.
The five-foot-eight, 175-pound winger scored once and added three assists on the facility play, but was held off the scoresheet at 5-on-5.
Caufield did his best to affect proceedings other ways throughout a grinding, defensive matchup with the Lightning, including a roster-topping five hits — “That’s an actual stat,” said captain and linemate Nick Suzuki — within the Canadiens’ smash-and-grab 2-1 victory over the Lightning in Game 7.
Montreal also knows that with a purpose to make the NHL’s Eastern Conference final, its offensive catalyst up front will likely need to search out his range.
“He’s been playing some good hockey,” Suzuki said Wednesday before the Canadiens opened their second-round series on the road against the Buffalo Sabres. “Everyone wants him to attain, and so does he, but he’s been defending hard.
“He’s bought in.”
The Canadiens’ top line of Caufield, Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky, who were split up at times by head coach Martin St. Louis, combined for only one even-strength breakthrough versus the Lightning in a series that saw each game decided by one goal.
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Caufield’s power-play effort got here in Game 4 before being held completely at bay through the ultimate three contests.
“It’s pretty obvious that he doesn’t need a complete lot of time and space,” Montreal defenceman Mike Matheson said. “It’s only a matter of time for him. We’re not nervous in any respect about him.”
St. Louis was succinct when asked what the message is to Caufield because the Canadiens pivot to a matchup that might feature more open ice with the league’s fifth- and seventh-best offensive teams during 2025-26 going head-to-head in an Atlantic Division showdown.
“Keep playing,” said St. Louis, a 2018 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee with the same frame to Caufield.
Suzuki said he’s seen numerous growth in his linemate’s craft since first entering the league in 2020-21.
“His play away from the puck, the way in which he gets into good ice,” said the centre named amongst three finalists for the Selke Trophy because the NHL’s top defensive forward Wednesday. “He’s turned himself right into a guy that may read the forecheck very well and switch over pucks. He’s develop into lots higher player.
“It’s amazing to see him put all of the work in.”
The Canadiens just hope that blood and sweat also results in a number of more goals this spring.
“He’s doing every whatever it takes,” Suzuki said. “But we’re still going to search for him to attain and put him in good positions.”
FAMILY FEUD?
Matheson is married to former U.S. national team defender and Western Latest York product Emily Pfalzer Matheson.
The Canadiens blueliner, who spends his summers within the Buffalo area and infrequently trains alongside Sabres forwards Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch, needed to double-check together with his in-laws on their rooting interests.
“They’re all pretty committed to our team,” Matheson said with a smile. “I needed to ensure that.”
DOWN TIME
The Canadiens stayed in Tampa after topping the Lightning in Sunday’s Game 7 as an alternative of immediately heading north. The club took a break day before hitting the practice ice and boarding a flight to Buffalo.
“It was great just hang around, get better rest, get some sun,” Suzuki said. “You undergo a seven-game series like that, it’s nice to only have a full reset after which get right back to it. Everyone’s in good headspace and able to return into the war.”
BORDER BATTLE
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mark Carney inserted somewhat cross-border politics into the Canadiens’ playoff run Wednesday.
“How essential is the Habs run? There’s not much (that’s) more essential, and I stay up for calling the president of america and sending him his Habs jersey,” Carney said at an event within the Montreal region.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 6, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press