BUFFALO, N.Y. (Interstat) — Alex Newhook scored at 44:22 of overtime Monday, May 18, 2026, to lift the Montreal Canadiens to a 3-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres in Game 7 of their playoff series at KeyBank Center. The series, tied 3-3 entering the game, remained deadlocked. Attendance was 19,070. Montreal took a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Zachary Bolduc and Phillip Danault. Buffalo answered with Jordan Greenway in the second period and Rasmus Dahlin in the third. Newhook’s winner came on assists from Alexandre Carrier. Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes made 37 saves on 39 shots for his fourth win of the series and was named the top star. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 22 of 25 shots for Buffalo in the loss. Danault also had a goal and a high-sticking penalty. Ryan McLeod and Mattias Samuelsson each recorded an assist for the Sabres. Nick Suzuki had an assist for Montreal. Montreal’s record improved to 56-40; Buffalo fell to 57-38.

BUFFALO, N.Y. (Interstat) — Jakub Dobes stopped 37 of 39 shots and Alex Newhook scored 4 minutes 44 seconds into overtime to lift the Montreal Canadiens to a 3-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night at KeyBank Center, forcing a decisive Game 7 in this playoff series. The Canadiens built a two-goal lead in the first period and held on through a furious Sabres comeback before Newhook’s winner deadlocked the best-of-seven series at three games apiece. Montreal struck first at 4:30 of the opening period when Phillip Danault deflected a shot from Kaiden Guhle past Buffalo goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. The goal came after Danault won an offensive-zone faceoff against Konsta Helenius and the puck cycled to Guhle at the point. Danault’s tip-in was his first of the playoffs. The Canadiens doubled the lead at 14:29 of the first when Zachary Bolduc wristed a shot home from the slot, with assists going to Nick Suzuki and Lane Hutson. Bolduc’s third goal of the postseason came after Suzuki won a faceoff against Ryan McLeod and Hutson fed the puck to the rookie forward in the high slot. Buffalo cut the deficit to 2-1 at 6:19 of the second period when Jordan Greenway deflected a shot from Mattias Samuelsson past Dobes. The goal was Greenway’s second of the series, with Beck Malenstyn also drawing an assist. The Sabres had pressed for much of the middle frame, outshooting Montreal 14-9 in the period, but Dobes held firm until Greenway’s redirection. The Sabres tied the game at 2-2 with 1 minute 33 seconds remaining in regulation. Rasmus Dahlin fired a wrist shot from the left circle that beat Dobes high to the glove side, with assists from Owen Power and Ryan McLeod. The goal was Dahlin’s fourth of the playoffs and sent the KeyBank Center crowd of 19,070 into a frenzy. Montreal had a chance to win in regulation but Luukkonen made a sprawling save on Josh Anderson’s tip-in attempt with 2 minutes 17 seconds left in the third period. The Canadiens also killed off a high-sticking penalty to Danault early in the third period, with Dobes making key saves on Tage Thompson and Josh Norris during the man advantage. In overtime, the Canadiens controlled play for much of the extra session before Newhook ended it. Alexandre Carrier sent a pass from the right boards to Newhook, who cut to the slot and fired a wrist shot that beat Luukkonen high to the blocker side at 4:44 of the period. The goal was Newhook’s seventh of the playoffs and set off a celebration on the Montreal bench. Dobes, the game’s top star, improved to 2-1 in the series with the win. The 22-year-old goaltender made 37 saves on 39 shots, including 14 in the second period when Buffalo applied heavy pressure. He also stopped all five shots he faced in overtime, with his best save coming on a Tage Thompson wrist shot from the slot midway through the extra period. Luukkonen took the loss, stopping 22 of 25 shots. He made several difficult saves, including a point-blank stop on Cole Caufield in the second period and a pad save on Juraj Slafkovský in the third. Dahlin led all skaters with five shots on goal and two hits in addition to his goal. Alex Tuch recorded five shots on goal and two hits for Buffalo, while Mattias Samuelsson had an assist, two shots and two hits. Ryan McLeod added an assist and two shots. For Montreal, Danault registered a goal, two shots on goal, two penalty minutes and one hit. Suzuki contributed an assist, one shot and two hits. Guhle had an assist, two shots and three hits. Carrier finished with an assist and two blocked shots. The game featured only two penalties: Zach Benson was called for delaying game by shooting the puck over the glass at 12:34 of the first period, and Danault was whistled for high-sticking against Samuelsson at 3:34 of the third period. Montreal’s penalty kill went 2 for 2, while Buffalo’s penalty kill was a perfect 1 for 1. The series now shifts back to Montreal for Game 7, with the Canadiens holding home ice after winning three of the first six games at KeyBank Center. Montreal improved to 56-40 on the season, while Buffalo dropped to 57-38. Montreal’s previous results this season included a 5-3 win at Buffalo on Thursday and an 8-3 loss at home Saturday. The Canadiens had also lost Game 5 at home 3-2 before rebounding with a 6-3 win in Game 6. Buffalo had won Game 5 on the road and had taken three of the previous five meetings between the teams in the regular season. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Buffalo 3, Montreal 2. The ELO system gave Buffalo a 55.30 percent probability to win. Buffalo was the pregame favorite with a spread of minus 1.5 goals. The total goals of 5 went over the over-under line of 5.5.

NHL Playoffs: Canadiens at Sabres, Game 7 BUFFALO (Interstat) — The Montreal Canadiens visit the Buffalo Sabres on Monday at KeyBank Center for a decisive Game 7 in their Eastern Conference playoff series. The series is tied 3-3. Montreal (55-39) forced the final game with a 2-1 victory Saturday in Montreal. Buffalo (56-37) owns the home-ice advantage after posting a slightly better regular-season record. Montreal center Phillip Danault has been a key playmaker in the series. In three wins against Buffalo on May 14, May 10 and May 8, Danault recorded two assists and one hit, one assist and three shots on goal, and one assist and one hit, respectively. In his past seven games overall, Danault has seven points (one goal, six assists). Buffalo left wing Jason Zucker provided a spark in the Sabres’ most recent home game, a 6-3 loss to Montreal on May 14. Zucker scored a goal and registered two shots on goal. In Buffalo’s 3-2 win at Montreal on May 12, Zucker had one shot on goal, two penalty minutes and one hit. The winner advances to the conference final.