The Bell Center witnessed a grim night, as the Montreal Canadiens suffered an 8-3 loss against the Buffalo Sabres. Game 6 of the conference second round was a tough watch for fans, with Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki agreeing that his team did not perform well.

The passionate arena was hailed as a cauldron for opposition teams, helping Montreal persevere against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. Now, the Sabres are also proving hard to beat.

Following the game, Suzuki expressed his disappointment with the result and labeled it their worst display in the series.

“That was probably the worst game we’ve played," the center told reporters. "We’re only going up."

Game 6 was supposed to close it out for the Canadiens, but it quickly turned ugly. The night started with the Sabres grabbing the first goal.

Montreal roared into action and struck back, as Arber Xhekaj, Ivan Demidov, and Jake Evans scored three goals to take an early lead.

The Sabres, however, spoiled the night with seven unanswered goals and delivered a defensive lesson, allowing only six shots in the third period. Buffalo's eight-goal display marked a franchise record in the playoffs.

Captain Rasmus Dahlin had a special night, posting five points. The defenseman chipped in with a goal and five assists, tying with Derek Roy and John Tucker for a single-game team record in the postseason.

Despite the result, Suzuki believes the team should focus on the upcoming game.

"I think it’s going to be important for guys to look themselves in the mirror and say we’ve got an opportunity to win one game and move on to the third round," he added. "We’d take that any time throughout the season.”

With Game 7 taking place at the KeyBank Center, the Canadiens must weather another tough night. Fortunately, they aren't strangers to seven-game slugfests.

Peter DeBoer says Buffalo has home advantage in Game 7

While New York Islanders coach Peter DeBoer insists that playing on the road is easier during the playoffs, Game 7 switches it up.

“Easier to play on the road in the playoffs. Less pressure, ” DeBoer told Pierre LeBrun from The Athletic. “Always said home ice doesn’t matter and isn’t important until Game 7. Then I feel it’s a huge advantage to be at home!”

This season, the Sabres were terrific in the playoff environments at the Bell Centre and TD Garden, going 5-1 on the road. Team captain Lindy Ruff was proud of his team’s performance on Saturday.

“I’m very proud of our guys,” Ruff said. “We talked this morning about how everybody needs to play their best game. "

He called the Saturday win the defining moment of the season.

The Sabres are now looking forward to Game 7 to make it to the Eastern Conference finals. Or can the Canadiens clinch it on Monday? Let us know in the comments section.

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Written by

Ankita Yadav

Edited by

Sijo Paul