The Buffalo Sabres defeated the Montreal Canadiens by an 8-3 final score in Game 6. With this, the Sabres have kept their playoff run alive and have forced Game 7. 

Former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jason Zucker contributed to the Sabres' victory, as he had a strong game for the Atlantic Division club in Game 6. 

Zucker scored a goal and recorded an assist in the Sabres' Game 6 victory over the Canadiens, and both were important moments.

With the Sabres down 3-1 in the first period, Zucker scored to cut the Canadiens' lead to 3-2. This was the first of seven unanswered goals scored by the Sabres, so Zucker's goal undoubtedly helped spark Buffalo's dominance in Game 6. 

Zucker's assist in Game 6 was also important, as it was the primary one on Konsta Helenius' second-period goal that gave the Sabres a 5-3 win. 

With this clutch game, Zucker now has two goals and four points in 12 playoff games so far this spring. This is after the former Penguins forward had 24 goals and 45 points in 62 games for the Sabres this regular-season. 

The Buffalo Sabres didn’t just survive Saturday night in Montreal — they clawed their way back from the brink behind a handful of unlikely difference-makers who refused to let the season die quietly.

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen Slammed the Door Shut

When Lindy Ruff pulled Alex Lyon after three goals on four shots, the atmosphere inside the Bell Centre felt almost fatal for Buffalo. The Sabres looked rattled, the Canadiens smelled blood, and the season appeared to be slipping away in real time.

Then Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stepped into the chaos and completely flipped the emotional gravity of the game.

Instead of unraveling under the pressure of an elimination game on the road, Luukkonen delivered the kind of composed, season-saving performance that changes playoff series. He turned aside all 18 shots he faced after entering the game, erasing dangerous chances and stabilizing a team that desperately needed someone to calm the storm.

Every save seemed to strengthen Buffalo’s belief. Every stop drained life from a Canadiens crowd expecting a knockout blow.

What made the performance even more remarkable was the circumstance surrounding it. Luukkonen entered after a disastrous Game 5 outing and likely wasn’t even expected to see the ice Saturday night. Yet when the Sabres needed someone to rescue the season, he answered with the biggest relief appearance of his career.

Now, heading into Game 7, the crease unquestionably belongs to him.

Jack Quinn Finally Delivered the Breakthrough Buffalo Needed

The Sabres have spent much of this series searching for consistency from their power play, and for stretches, it looked like special teams might ultimately bury them.

Instead, Jack Quinn turned it into Buffalo’s greatest weapon in Game 6.

The winger entered the night still searching for his first playoff goal, making him an unlikely candidate to become one of the offensive catalysts in the most important game of the season. But Quinn erupted with two power-play goals, both arriving at critical moments as Buffalo seized momentum and refused to let Montreal recover.

More importantly, Quinn looked dangerous every time the puck found his stick. There was confidence in his release, urgency in his movement, and a level of assertiveness that had been missing earlier in the postseason.

Buffalo’s stars carried much of the offensive burden, but Quinn’s emergence gave the Sabres something they had lacked for large stretches of the series — secondary scoring capable of punishing Montreal’s mistakes.

If that version of Quinn shows up again Monday night, the complexion of Game 7 changes dramatically.

Konsta Helenius Is No Longer Just a Feel-Good Story

When the Sabres inserted Konsta Helenius into the lineup earlier in the series, it initially felt like an injection of youthful energy more than anything else — a talented prospect getting a taste of playoff hockey.

That storyline has officially expired.

Helenius is impacting games in meaningful moments now, and his second-period goal in Game 6 may have been one of the defining swings of the night.

At the time, Buffalo had battled back to reclaim momentum, but the game still felt fragile. One Canadiens push could have erased everything the Sabres had worked to rebuild after the ugly opening minutes.

Then Helenius struck.

His goal pushed the lead to 5-3 and completely changed the pressure dynamic inside the building. Suddenly, Montreal looked tense. Buffalo looked freer. The rookie didn’t just add insurance — he gave the Sabres breathing room in a game that had been emotionally volatile from puck drop.

Beyond the goal itself, Helenius continues to look remarkably composed for a player thrown into playoff hockey under immense pressure. The pace hasn’t overwhelmed him. The stage hasn’t intimidated him.

The Colorado Avalanche finally got the kind of update every playoff team spends May desperately hoping to hear: relief instead of bad news.

Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar struck an optimistic tone Sunday afternoon, saying he expects all of Colorado’s banged-up regulars to be available for Game 1 against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday to open the Western Conference Final.

Reinforcements Arriving At The Right Time

Defenseman Sam Malinski and winger Artturi Lehkonen both missed Games 4 and 5 against Minnesota, while superstar defenseman Cale Makar appeared visibly battered during the series-clinching Game 5 victory. Makar briefly left the game before gutting through the remainder of regulation and overtime, continuing to battle both hip and shoulder injuries.

Bednar says “I think everyone’s going to be available for Game 1, but we’ll see” regarding injured guys.

Asked earlier if Malinski is trending towards being available for G1 and he said “yes.”

— Evan Rawal (@evanrawal) May 17, 2026

Makar has not practiced over the last couple of days, though Bednar’s confidence Sunday suggested the organization believes its franchise cornerstone is trending in the right direction.

Veteran defenseman Brent Burns has also been absent recently, but indications are pointing toward a return sooner rather than later. Malinski was the lone injured regular spotted practicing Sunday, while Makar, Lehkonen and Burns remained off the ice.

Surviving The Grind Of Playoff Hockey

At this stage of the postseason, nobody is healthy — only available.

The Avalanche still need eight more wins to lift the Stanley Cup, and surviving this time of year often comes down to which teams can endure the physical damage piling up beneath the surface. Colorado at least appears to be getting critical reinforcements at the perfect time after expending enormous emotional and physical energy clawing past Minnesota in one of the wildest series of the playoffs.

Now the focus shifts entirely to Vegas.

Colorado is off Monday before likely returning to practice Tuesday, when the statuses of Makar, Lehkonen, Burns and Malinski should come into even sharper focus ahead of Game 1.

If there’s one player that hasn’t disappointed on the Montreal Canadiens' roster in the playoffs this season, it’s Lane Hutson. Despite only being 22 years old, the sophomore defenseman is playing like a seasoned vet and leads by example every day on the ice, whether it’s at practice or in game action.

Throughout 13 games, the youngster has 13 points and leads the Canadiens in points, but what’s even more impressive is the fact that he has a plus-three rating. Hutson plays well on both sides of the puck, and when he gets dispossessed or gives the puck away, he backchecks like a man possessed to fix his own mistake.

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The team’s other top players have been on the ice for more than their fair share of goals. Nick Suzuki is minus-five, Cole Caufield is minus-seven, and Juraj Slafkovsky is minus-eight. While plus-minus doesn’t always accurately reflect what’s happening on the ice, in these playoffs, there’s no denying that the first line has been struggling defensively. In the last two games, the opponent’s first goal has been set up by their turnovers in the defensive zone. Slafkovsky’s missed clearance on Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres was eerily similar to Caufield’s on Thursday.

In the Canadiens’ disappointing performance on Saturday night, the blueline had 10 attempts on net. Unfortunately, only one of those shots made it to the goalie, but that’s partly because he has learned to take advantage of the traffic in front of the opposing goaltender. He puts the puck on net and tries to set up his teammates for deflections, something he didn’t use to do as much.

In 13 games so far, the rearguard has averaged over 25 minutes of ice time. Martin St-Louis is using him in all situations. He quarterbacks the first power play and gives it more punch with his mobility and ability to dish passes everywhere on the ice. He also has a knack for buying himself more time and space, dancing along the offensive blueline all the while preparing his next move.

Even when the Canadiens are down a man, Hutson doesn’t get a break, as he’s an important piece of the second penalty-killing unit. Martin St-Louis wasn’t keen on using him in that situation early on in the season, but he has proven that he can handle it and shows no sign of slowing down, no matter how much time he spends on the ice.

If the Canadiens are to eliminate the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night, they’ll need Hutson to lead his team into battle once again.

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Lane Hutson has been a much more aggressive shooter in the playoffs.

My Canadiens vs. Sabres predictions expect that to continue in a win or go home game where he'll get all the ice time he can handle.

Let's take a closer look at my NHL picks for Monday, May 18.

Canadiens vs Sabres Game 7 prediction

Canadiens vs Sabres best bet: Lane Hutson Over 1.5 shots (-115)

Lane Hutson has ramped up his shot volume significantly during the playoffs. He has averaged 5.8 attempts per game, well above his season average of 3.7.

It’s not one or big two games propping up his numbers. He attempted at least four shots in 11 of 13 games thus far.

He cleared 1.5 shots in 72% of his games this year when generating at least four attempts.

Hutson is being spoon-fed offensive zone starts and will see as much ice as he can handle in an elimination game, setting him up to fire away.

Canadiens vs Sabres Game 7 same-game parlay

Alex Newhook has been a constant headache to the Buffalo Sabres. He leads the Montreal Canadiens in shots on goal and scoring chances at 5-on-5, and we’re unlikely to see much special teams play in a Game 7. 

That makes even-strength play even more important, and Newhook has consistently made an impact in that state.

Kaiden Guhle blocked multiple shots in five of his last six road games, including all three against Buffalo. He combined for 10 blocks in Buffalo, and will be relied upon to lead the charge defensively in Game 7.

Canadiens vs Sabres SGP

• Lane Hutson Over 1.5 shots
• Alex Newhook Over 1.5 shots
• Kaiden Guhle Over 1.5 blocked shots

Canadiens vs Sabres odds for Game 7

• Moneyline: Montreal -105 | Buffalo -115
• Puck Line: Montreal +1.5 (-280) | Buffalo -1.5 (+225)
• Over/Under: Over 5.5 (+105) | Under 5.5 (-125)

Canadiens vs Sabres trend

The Montreal Canadiens have hit the moneyline in 14 of their last 20 away games (+8.6 units, 37% ROI) Find more NHL betting trends for Canadiens vs. Sabres.

How to watch Canadiens vs Sabres Game 7

Canadiens vs Sabres latest injuries

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In a season filled with learning experiences, the Senators saw firsthand how finding the right backup goalie can be a game-changer.

When Ottawa signed veteran goaltender James Reimer as a free agent four months ago, the move barely registered across the NHL. The Senators were tied for last in the East, so seeing them bring in Canada's Spengler Cup goalie was like watching someone rearrange deck chairs on the Titanic.

Reimer came in from the bullpen to replace Leevi Merilainen, who, despite his heroics in a small sample size last year, showed he wasn't ready for full-time NHL duty just yet. While Merilainen was sent to Belleville for the rest of the season, Reimer was viewed as experienced depth, a stopgap measure, and not much more.

But that was exactly what the Senators needed.

Linus Ullmark carried the mail down the stretch, and he and the Senators turned the season around, but Reimer was one of the stabilizing forces behind it.

When GM Steve Staios held his season-ending news conference, he admitted that he didn't support Ullmark well enough to start the season. 

"When I talk about making decisions to help this team move forward, the one where we didn't do a good job was on the backup position initially," Staios said. "And we still believe in Leevi in saying this."

Staios' goaltending plans were maybe overly optimistic because he was asking both of his chosen goalies to go out and do something they've never done. For the kid, Merilainen, it was asking a 23-year-old to be a full-time NHL backup for the first time, playing behind a veteran who's never had a season where he hit the 50-game mark in NHL games played.

For Ullmark, it was asking him to bump up his games-played count. And based on his usage in the first three months of this season, they had him on a pace to start over 60 games.

The success of each plan was directly tied to the other, and neither worked out particularly well.

Now, as the Senators once again search for support behind Ullmark, it’s fair to ask an obvious question:

Why not just bring Reimer back?

When you go searching for UFA goalies whose production and contract demands might make them attractive as Ullmark's understudy, you start to realize that the list of realistic options isn't very long. 

Meanwhile, we know the Reimer experiment works. He gave the Senators exactly what they needed this season. In 14 appearances with Ottawa, he posted a tidy 2.42 goals-against average. More importantly, he gave the team competent, calming goaltending on nights when Ullmark needed rest.

There wasn't a single night where Reimer looked overmatched or played at a level that didn't give the Senators a chance to win, and that trickled down to boost team confidence. Reimer upgraded the backup position and helped to upgrade Ullmark as well.

And unlike many of the other free-agent options, there’s very little mystery about the fit here.

At 38, Reimer understands the role. He’s a pro, a happy, positive teammate, who's not coming in looking to challenge Ullmark for the crease or create controversy about starts. 

There’s also the financial reality.

Some of the bigger names on the market will command significantly more money, even in backup roles, and even though the cap is going up, the Senators aren't expected to spend to the absolute max. With new contracts looming and other roster needs to address, overpaying for a backup goalie when the starter is already north of $8 million isn't high on their wish list.

Reimer would be signable at nearly league minimum.

If Ottawa simply needs reliable goaltending for 30 games behind Ullmark, are they really guaranteed to get better results from anyone on the free agent market that's reasonably priced and willing to sign here?

That’s debatable.

Meanwhile, Ullmark appeared comfortable working alongside Reimer, and the Senators finally found some rhythm this season. So maybe they shouldn't overthink this.

In a city famed for being a goalie graveyard, when you finally find something that worked, maybe don't pick at it.

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News

This article was first published at The Hockey News Ottawa. Check out more great Sens features from The Hockey News at the links below:  

Our One-On-One With Senators Winger Drake Batherson
Senators Defenseman Goes From 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs To Signing In Switzerland
Rasmus Ristolainen: A Deeper Look Into A Potential Senators Trade Target
What’s The Plan For Senators UFA Lars Eller?
Archive: The Year Erik Karlsson Became Ottawa's First Norris Trophy Winner At 22