Tyler Toffoli's 2nd-Period Goal Lifts Canadiens to 2-0 Series Lead over Jets

The Montreal Canadians grabbed a 2-0 series lead over the Winnipeg Jets in their second-round series with a 1-0 victory on Friday night at MTS Place. 

It was the first time on the ice for both teams since Winnipeg's Mark Schiefele was suspended four-games for charging Canadiens center Jake Evans at the end of Game 1. Evans was taken off the ice on a stretcher and remains out indefinitely. 

Already playing without Kaiden Guhle, Jon Merrill, Artturi Lehkonen and Tomas Tatar, the loss of Evans shortened the Habs' bench even further, but the club used a short-handed goal from Tyler Toffoli to grab a second victory on the road before heading back to Montreal for Game 3. Carey Price remained stellar with 30 saves on the night. 

It's the fifth-straight victory for the Canadiens since falling to a 3-1 series deficit in their first-round matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

Notable Performers

Carey Price, G, Montreal Canadiens: 30 saves, 0 Goals Allowed, 8th Career Playoff Shutout

Tyler Toffoli, RW, Montreal Canadiens: 1 Goal, 1 Shot, 14:16 TOI

Connor Hellebuyck, G, Winnipeg Jets: 23 Saves, 1 Goal Allowed

Mathieu Perreault, LW, Winnipeg Jets: 3 SOG, 7 Hits, 14:40 TOI

Jets Power Play Woes Get Worse

Winnipeg may want to consider panicking as far as its power play is concerned. 

For the second straight game, the Jets' special teams failed to convert with the man-advantage, instead allowing a short-handed goal to Montreal in the second period serve as the lone tally on the night. 

Toffoli's toe-drag around two defenders—with a third closing in—is the low point of a Winnipeg power play that finished with the seventh-best conversion rate during the regular season (23 percent). That's not to take anything away from the Habs' penalty kill, which tied for the most short-handed goals in the league at nine with the Boston Bruins, but the Jets can hardly afford whiffing on power play opportunities at this point in the year. 

They certainly can't afford to go 0-for-5 on the man-advantage in two home games to open the second-round series and expect to win. 

Not having Scheifele available for at least another three games—should the series last that long—doesn't make things any easier, either. The center is Winnipeg's time-on-ice leader on the power play (181:28 during the regular season) and has a team-high 13 assists on special teams with four goals. 

The Jets have to find answer for the loss of Scheifele there and fast if they're going to make a comeback in this series—to say nothing of having to figure things out on the road, too. 

Considering how rare scoring chances were in Game 2 for both teams, getting the power play active again might be the only chance the Jets have at climbing back into to contention. 

Price Is Right for Montreal 

It might be time to start wondering if Carey Price has a shot at winning the Conn Smythe trophy this postseason.

Following his latest postseason shutout—which moved him just two back of Ken Dryden and Jacques Plante (10) for most in Montreal history—Price lowered his playoff goals against average to 2.08 and raised his save percentage to 93.5. He's also been a master of gobbling up shots and making sure he doesn't allow any rebounds. 

Price is already the Canadiens' most important player. He might just be the most valuable in the postseason overall.

No goalie has won the Conn Smythe since Jonathan Quick accomplished the feat in 2012 with the Los Angeles Kings. That year he finished with a 1.41 GAA and 94.6 save percentage. With how the Canadiens have been able to protect the puck and keep their defensemen from losing their positioning in front of Price through two games against the Jets, it's not wild to think the netminder's numbers could keep improving—especially as he returns home to the Bell Centre. 

Of course, Price will have to carry his team to the Stanley Cup Final in order to truly put together a Conn Smythe campaign. By that point it might not eve matter whether or not the Habs become the first Canadian team since the Montreal team in 1993 to win the Cup—a year Patrick Roy won the playoff MVP in net. Five players on the Cup-losing team have won the Conn Smythe. Four of them were goalies. 

Price's legacy in Montreal should be secure either way at this point, but on the verge of a truly epic playoff run, he may just be this postseason's most valuable player. 

What's Next

Game 3 shifts to the Bell Centre in Montreal at 6 p.m. ET on June 6 live on NBCSN.