Zachary Bolduc just handed the internet a new meme, and it came from the Canadiens bench in Toronto on Saturday night.
The look went around quickly after the Canadiens beat the Maple Leafs 4-2. Bolduc was standing outside Montreal's bench when the referee started talking with head coach Martin St-Louis, and the 23-year-old turned to the official with a face that fans immediately screenshotted.
The /r/Habs account on X flagged the moment right away, saying Habs fans had a Bolduc meme face on their hands.
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Nobody needs a transcript for this one. The reaction says enough, and the timing helps: a road win in Toronto makes any bench moment funnier.
Bolduc had a good night to go with it. He scored on the power play and put three shots on goal in 16:08 of ice time, one of six Canadiens to find the scoresheet with a goal or two.
Alex Newhook led the way with two goals, and Chris Kreider's goal was the game-winner. Jacob Fowler stopped 26 of 28 shots at the other end.
Why a bench moment travels so fast
Part of it is the setting. Canadiens and Maple Leafs games already draw the biggest audience in the league, so anything caught near the bench gets seen by a lot of people before the second period is over.
The other part is Bolduc himself. A player who scores and then gives the ref that look in the same night is easy to like, and the memes write themselves.
The face is harmless, too. Nothing in the post or the scene suggests any trouble with the officials, only a young forward reacting to a conversation he was standing next to.
Bolduc and the Canadiens are back on the ice Tuesday against the Wild, and the first thing a lot of fans will watch for is whether he gives the bench another reaction.
Quick hits
VANCOUVER CANUCKS: Brock Boeser pulled the Canucks within one late in Edmonton, but they still lost 4-2. That's five straight defeats, and the late goal changes nothing about the mood.
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EDMONTON OILERS: Jason Gregor says Connor McDavid is up to 47 points in 18 games after the Oilers beat the Canucks. Forty-seven in 18 is a pace few players ever see.
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COLORADO AVALANCHE: Martin Necas kept it simple after the 4-0 win over the Red Wings: special teams got them going. Hard to argue with a shutout.
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LOS ANGELES KINGS: Alex Laferriere told Zach Dooley the Kings weren't ready for Pittsburgh on Saturday night, and he put it squarely on the players. That's an honest answer, and it's the kind coaches like to hear.
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DETROIT RED WINGS: Moritz Seider and Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog dropped the gloves in Colorado. It was the lone bright spot in a 4-0 Red Wings loss.
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Was Zachary Bolduc's meme face the funniest moment of the Canadiens' win in Toronto?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
What William Nylander said about Sergei Bobrovsky after Leafs loss
