Before so much as two minutes had elapsed, the Habs gave up a solid six shot attempts, including Jamie Benn’s clear breakaway and Curtis Mackenzie’s uncontested tap-in of his own rebound.
The sloppy play continued even after the first goal, turning Montreal’s first five minutes of the game into a circus of failed zone exits, impotent zone entry attempts, and a general lack of positional awareness.
Before the Stars could do too much damage, however, the Canadiens woke up, and when they did, they took over the game for much of the rest of the way.