VANCOUVER — This game turned on a power play, with Ivan Demidov unexpectedly throwing the puck across to Nick Suzuki to give the Montreal Canadiens life.

They had none of it to start the game, sleepwalking through the first period and emerging fortunate to have not spotted the Vancouver Canucks a bigger lead than 1-0.

The Canadiens didn’t start the second any better before falling down 2-0 in the eighth minute of the second period. They were flat, they were forcing passes, they were disconnected at five-on-five, and they were playing the exact type of game that would force their power play to come through.

Turns out the timing was ripe because the Canadiens’ power play, as currently constructed, was designed to do exactly that.

They didn’t need it to get them to 6-2-0, but it would’ve

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