3 least impressive Montreal Canadiens from 5-4 loss to Columbus Blue Jackets feat. Sam Montembeault

The Montreal Canadiens were hoping to continue the momentum that they'd built from a home-and-home sweep of the Detroit Red Wings this weekend when they paid a visit to central Ohio to take on the Columbus Blue Jackets.

For Canadiens forward Patrik Laine, it was his first time back at Nationwide Arena since being traded to Montreal in a move that he requested.

However, it wasn't a happy return to the venue that he called home for a portion of his NHL career. The Blue Jackets ended Montreal's winning streak with a 5-4 win, improving to 14-15-1 while the Canadiens fell to 14-17-3.

The Blue Jackets had seized a 3-1 lead at the midway point of the second period thanks to 1st-period tallies from Dmitri Voronkov and Kent Johnson; former Blue Jackets defenseman David Savard cut the lead in half early in the middle frame, but Jordan Harris scored to restore the two-goal lead shortly after.

It wouldn't be long before the Habs tied the score thanks to goals from Lane Hutson and Jake Evans late in the period. Early in the third period, it was Joel Armia who gave Montreal their first lead with a goal just 20 seconds after the puck drop.

But Columbus roared back to tie the score thanks to Voronkov's second goal of the night, followed by the winner late in regulation from Kirill Marchenko.

Sam Montembeault fell back down to Earth after his two strong performances against Detroit, victimized for five goals on 32 shots; Blue Jackets goaltender Jet Greaves picked up his 1st NHL win.

3 least impressive Montreal Canadiens from 5-4 loss to Columbus Blue Jackets

#1. Sam Montembeault

All of the good feelings that came from Montembeault's strong showing on consecutive nights against the Red Wings vanished with his porous performance on Monday night against the Blue Jackets.

The five goals he allowed were more than the last two games combined, and at least two of the goals he'd love a second chance on. The main thing that Montembeault has struggled with this season is consistency, and Monday night was a perfect example of his varied outings in 2024-25.

#2. Mike Matheson

While he led all Habs defensemen in ice time, he also committed the most turnovers with four; he also finished the contest with a pedestrian -2 rating.

#3. Patrik Laine

While Laine was limited to less than seven minutes of ice time before he ultimately departed the contest with an injury, he did himself no favors by throwing his former Blue Jackets teammates under the bus prior to the game.

Not only did he not register any points in his limited ice time, but the Blue Jackets admitted afterward that his words gave them special motivation to come away with a win; Columbus made it count and halted Montreal's winning streak, and Laine's words had plenty to do with it.

The Canadiens will look to bounce back when they face the Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena next on Saturday.