The final game of the regular season was the first for Habs rookie Ryan Poehling, making his NHL debut and in rather memorable fashion at that. The 2017 first-round pick became the sixth player to notch a hattie in his NHL debut, and just for good measure, he scored the shootout winner too.
It was an impressive performance by Poehling, who hockey fans may remember from his dazzling performance at the World Juniors, and it came in a narrow win against the Toronto Maple Leafs — who, ironically, roster the last player to score at least three in his debut: Auston Matthews.
Matthews had some jokes about Poehling’s performance, saying that he was concerned that Poehling would match his record four-goal debut.
Well, with the shootout winner, Poehling might’ve come as close as you can get to four goals without actually scoring four goals. Game 82 of the regular season with no playoff impact is hardly a high-stakes affair and the Leafs were resting four of their defensemen tonight, but any way you slice it, this is an impressive debut for the youngster.
But, again, if you were watching the World Juniors, you’ll remember this American from all of the goals he scored then, en route to being named tournament MVP.
