Frustrated Samuel Montembeault Snaps, Breaks Stick After Being Pulled Early Against Seattle Kraken

The Canadiens were overtaken by the Kraken, who scored four goals in the first ten minutes of play. Before the half, Cole Caufield's ninth goal of the year pulled the score to 4-1, but Brandon Montour's power-play goal early in the second half put an end to Montembeault's evening.

This season, Montembeault had a fantastic start. He recorded a career-high 48-save shutout against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Canadiens' opening game of the season. However, things have generally gotten worse since then, giving up five goals on just ten shots against the Seattle Kraken tonight.

Samuel Montembeault was taken out of the game by head coach Martin St-Louis for the second time in back-to-back games. Given what transpired against the New York Rangers a few days ago, it's reasonable to feel frustrated with the way things have gone. However, he expressed his annoyance by slamming his stick against the tunnel wall on his way to the locker room.

When Kraken defenseman Brandon Montour scored his second goal of the game in the second period to make it 5-1, it was the final straw. Despite appearing harmless from the point, the shot ended up in the back of the net. That same shot is actually only predicted to go in 2.4% of the time, according to analytics.

Fans are becoming increasingly frustrated because the majority of them thought the team would advance this season. They risk finishing even worse, but if they lose tonight, they will be on track to at most match last season's point total. I hope they can make things better soon. If not, a team attempting to reestablish itself as a contender in the NHL may experience more upheaval and change.