It is a play you see routinely in an NHL game, maybe five or sometimes even 10 times a night.



Noah Juulsen had the puck deep inside the Canadiens zone late in the third period and saw no options in front of him. His defence partner Victor Mete is on the opposite side of the net below the goal line and takes Juulsen’s pass, something the Canadiens are trying to avoid doing this season, but it was the best available option. Mete had trouble handling the pass, so he rimmed it around the boards toward the Canadiens blue line.



Jesperi Kotkaniemi was there waiting for it.



It is a very typical breakout situation, and it calls for a forward — in this case Jonathan Drouin — to curl toward the puck carrier in support and build speed in order to take a short, safe pass and skate the puck out through the neutral zone. Except while Drouin was open to take the pass, he had a forechecker who was there with him. Regardless, 99 times out of 100, a player in...