Tomas Tatar Spoiled Max Pacioretty's Return To Montreal

Max Pacioretty’s first career season playing outside of Montreal isn’t exactly going how he hoped. While the former Canadiens captain appeared to be exiting a rebuilding franchise when he got traded to the Golden Knights this off-season in the final year of his contract, Vegas has endured a bumpy start to the season and sits near the bottom of the West early on. The Canadiens, meanwhile, have shockingly emerged as one of the most fun teams in hockey, and their 21 points are currently six better than the Golden Knights.

Pacioretty got a big ovation when he returned to Montreal for a homecoming game on Saturday, and his team jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead. But it was Tomas Tatar—a guy who dramatically flopped in his stint with Vegas last season, before the team traded him for Pacioretty—who helped emphasize the surprise difference between the two squads when he scored a third-period game-winner for the Habs to earn a 5-4 win. That late goal appeared to spark some second thoughts from the newly Knighted Pacioretty.

We’ve found ourselves a replacement GIF for the “White Guy Blinking” meme.