Canadian Teams Morning Review – Feb. 3: Sens, Habs, Jets, Canucks, Leafs & Flames
From Ottawa’s steady climb to Vancouver’s uneasy slide, Monday night offered a familiar Canadian pattern: progress rarely announces itself, and trouble seldom arrives all at once. Some teams looked like they knew exactly what they were doing and why. Others looked as if they were still hoping that effort alone would be enough.
What tied the night together wasn’t drama so much as direction. The clubs trending upward leaned on structure, patience, and timely decisions. The ones drifting relied on spurts, individual moments, or good intentions. Over five games involving Canadian teams, the margins were thin — but the meaning wasn’t.
Ottawa Senators 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 2
For the Ottawa Senators, this was less about beating Pittsburgh than about confirming what the last few weeks have suggested: this team now understands how to close games. Claude Giroux’s third-period goal — awarded after review despite chaos at the crease — was not just dramatic. It was decisive.
Giroux remains Ottawa’s emotional and tactical stabilizer. The play itself mattered less than the calmness. Ottawa didn’t panic after the net came loose or the contact looked awkward. The Senators stayed composed, and the goal stood. That composure has been missing in past seasons.
The defining moment actually came earlier, though. Ottawa’s first two goals — from Tim Stutzle and Michael Amadio — started with Pittsburgh turnovers. This wasn’t opportunism by accident. Ottawa outshot the Penguins 31–16 and suffocated them in the second period. That kind of territorial control tilts games quietly but firmly.
Linus Ullmark faced only 14 shots, which tells you everything about the night. His win streak against Pittsburgh is trivia; the real story is how little he was asked to do. Ottawa didn’t need heroics. They needed discipline.
The Senators are now four games into a winning streak and have points in nine of their last eleven. The climb is slow, but it’s no longer a surprise.
Minnesota Wild 4, Montreal Canadiens 3 (OT)
For the Montreal Canadiens, this loss hurt precisely because it showed progress. They erased a 2–0 deficit, took the lead early in the third, and forced a division contender into overtime. That matters — even if the standings won’t reward it.
The game tilted in one moment: Phillip Danault’s overtime hook on Kirill Kaprizov. It was subtle, understandable, and fatal. Kaprizov then ended it himself, converting on the power play with a shot that looked inevitable once Minnesota set up.
Montreal’s key figure was Kirby Dach. His goal twelve seconds into the third period reflected how quickly the Canadiens can flip momentum when their pace is right. Brendan Gallagher and Ivan Demidov also scored, continuing a trend of Montreal’s offence coming from multiple lines rather than one hot hand.
Still, the structure betrayed them late. Brock Faber’s tying goal came because Minnesota beat Montreal down the right side with speed and purpose. That’s where games are won — not in the comeback, but in the response to it.
This was Minnesota’s fourth straight win and Montreal’s first stumble after three good ones. The Canadiens didn’t look outclassed. They looked unfinished.
Dallas Stars 4, Winnipeg Jets 3 (OT)
From a Winnipeg perspective, this was a missed opportunity disguised as a respectable point. The Jets matched Dallas for long stretches, survived pressure, and forced overtime — but couldn’t finish when it mattered.
Thomas Harley’s overtime winner came from space. Winnipeg briefly lost. Matt Duchene drew coverage, Harley filled the gap, and the game ended. Three-on-three punishes hesitation more than mistakes, and Winnipeg hesitated.
The Jets’ defining moment came late in regulation, when Logan Stanley’s shot deflected in to tie the game with the goalie pulled. That resilience earned a point, but it also masked recurring issues through the neutral zone — issues Dallas exploited.
Connor Hellebuyck was solid. The problem wasn’t goaltending. It was control. When Winnipeg briefly led in the second period, they couldn’t sustain it. When Dallas pushed, the Jets defended rather than dictated.
This was Dallas’s fifth straight win. For Winnipeg, now losing four of six, the gap between “competitive” and “effective” continues to matter more each night.
Utah Mammoth 6, Vancouver Canucks 2
This game wasn’t close, and that’s the concern. Vancouver didn’t just lose — they were solved. Nick Schmaltz’s five-point night highlighted every vulnerability the Canucks have shown over the last month.
Schmaltz was the key player, but the defining moment was Utah’s second-period surge. Once the Mammoth stretched the lead to 5–1, Vancouver had no answer. The Canucks didn’t collapse emotionally; they simply ran out of ideas.
Vancouver’s recent record tells the story. Two wins in eighteen games is more than a slump. Defensive coverage remains inconsistent, and offensive push arrives too late to matter.
Liam Ohgren and Teddy Blueger scored, but neither goal shifted momentum. Kevin Lankinen had little help. This was another night where Vancouver chased rather than controlled.
With the Olympic break approaching, the Canucks don’t need rest so much as clarity. Right now, they’re playing without either.
Toronto Maple Leafs 4, Calgary Flames 2
For Toronto, this was a stabilizing win. William Nylander’s breakaway goal 35 seconds in set the tone, and his three-point night reflected a player comfortable dictating pace rather than reacting to it.
Nylander was the key figure, but the defining moment came late: Bobby McMann’s empty-net goal. Toronto didn’t sit back protecting a one-goal lead — they finished the job.
Joseph Woll was steady, continuing his quiet mastery of Calgary. More importantly, Toronto avoided the self-inflicted chaos that defined its recent losing streak. They managed the puck, controlled the middle of the ice, and limited Calgary’s second chances.
The Flames showed effort but little cohesion. Nazem Kadri and Joel Farabee scored, yet Calgary remains a team chasing structure rather than enforcing it.
Toronto now sits within striking distance of the playoff line. It’s not momentum yet — but it’s direction.
Closing Thoughts for Canada’s Teams
Monday night didn’t produce miracles or disasters. It clarified trajectories. Ottawa and Toronto look organized. Montreal looks encouraged but incomplete. Winnipeg looks competitive but constrained. Vancouver looks stuck.
At this stage of the season, style matters less than intent. The teams that know who they are are the ones still moving forward. The rest are running out of nights to figure it out.