Caufield, Laine absent, defensive miscues, and more: 3 reasons why Montreal Canadiens lost 3-2 to Anaheim Ducks

The Montreal Canadiens dropped their fifth straight game, losing 3-2 to the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday evening at the Honda Center. Meanwhile, the Ducks have now won four of their last five, further distancing themselves from the last-place San Jose Sharks in the Pacific Division.

Joel Armia scored a shorthanded goal for the Montreal Canadiens to open the scoring in the first period. Christian Dvorak added a power play goal to give the Habs a 2-0 lead. Mason McTavish, Frank Vatrano and Alex Killorn got the goals for the Anaheim Ducks.

Here are three key reasons why the Montreal Canadiens lost to the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday evening.

3 reasons why Montreal Canadiens lost to Anaheim Ducks

#3 Blown lead

The Montreal Canadiens jumped out to an early 2-0 lead. The goals by Armia and Dvorak, one shorthanded and the other on the power play, looked to set the tone for the rest of the game.

However, the Canadiens took their foot off the gas, allowing the Ducks to get back into the game. Eventually, the Ducks got on the board in the second, heading into the locker room tied at two after 40 minutes.

While both teams played tough in the third, Alex Killorn gave the Duck the lead midway through the third, sealing the victory for Anaheim. The blown lead stings for the Canadiens as their inability to close out the game came back to haunt them.

#2 Defensive miscues

The Montreal Canadiens committed a number of defensive miscues, leading to the blown lead. Nevertheless, the most glaring one was Arber Xhekaj’s failed stick-check attempt on Killorn in the third period.

During the sequence, two Montreal defenders got caught out of position in front of their own net. Then, Xhekaj attempted to stick-check the puck from Killorn. Killorn let the shot fly and the screen in front of Samuel Montembeault allowed the puck to hit the back of the net. The shot appeared to be deflected by Xhekaj’s stick, making it impossible for Montembeault to stop the shot.

Here’s a look at the goal:

The weak attempt by Christian Dvorak to block the shot didn’t help matters much, as the Ducks took a lead they would not relinquish.

#1 Caufield, Laine absent

Montreal top scorers, Patrik Laine and Cole Caufield, failed to generate much offense on Sunday evening against the Ducks.

Caufield was quiet on the night, playing over 20 minutes in the game on 20 shifts. He managed three shots on goal, but could not find the back of the net.

Meanwhile, Laine played a little over 10 minutes on the night. He was a minus-1 in 12 shifts, getting a shot on goal. Laine has gone cold over his last four games, seeing his ice time gradually diminish. There’s no word if Laine is dealing with an injury at this time.

The Canadiens will be back in action on Tuesday night at they take on the San Jose Sharks at the SAP Center.