An indication that the Canadiens are playing with all the confidence in the world came immediately following Montreal's Game 6 victory in front of 2,500 fans on Saturday night, the first game played in front of fans in Canada all season long, when the hero of that game forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi issued what appeared to be a guarantee that the Canadiens would take home Game 7. Kotkaniemi, seemingly unpromoted, stated flatly that he and his teammates would be going into Toronto to claim a win in Game 7 and would be coming back home to Montreal to prepare for their second round series.
By all accounts, Kotkaniemi, Montreal's first-round (3rd overall) choice in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, had a terrible year in the 2020-2021 regular season. After a good performance on the National Hockey League's postseason bubble, his 5 goals and 15 assists for a total of 20 points in 56 games were less than what had been expected of him, but unlike Toronto's top stars, he has shown up when it matters most. He has three goals in five postseason games for the Canadiens so far in this series, the biggest of which being the OT winner last night.
