The Montreal Canadiens Have a Third-Period Problem That Could Wreck Their Season

Can someone explain to me why the Montreal Canadiens are apparently allergic to holding a lead? Because I thought maybe I was imagining this, but the numbers are actually insane. The Canadiens have had six multi-goal leads this season, and they've blown five of them. Against Nashville, they went up 2-0, lost 5-2. Against Buffalo, they blew 3-1 leads twice, somehow won both games in extra time. Against San Jose, up 3-1, loss in overtime. And then there's whatever the hell happened against Winnipeg. The Canadians were winning 4-0 with 2 minutes and 39 seconds left. The Jets, who had lost 9 straight games, scored 4 goals in just over 2 minutes and won the game in overtime. I genuinely don't know how you manage that. And here's what makes this even crazier. The Canadians are 9-3-3. They're actually having a pretty good season. But they've also been outscored 19-10 in the third period. So clearly this team knows how to build a lead, they just haven't figured out what to do with it. supposed to be taking the next step towards becoming a legitimate contender, that's a pretty concerning problem. Look, I get it, they're winning games, there's a lot to be excited about in Montreal. But at some point, you have to wonder how sustainable it is, because you can get away with blowing leads in October and November, but try doing that in April. At this point, I genuinely think the most terrifying words a Habs fan can hear is Montreal takes a two-goal lead.