The Montreal Canadiens withstood a late comeback from the New York Islanders to win 5-3 at the Bell Center on Saturday.
Martin St. Louis' men led 4-0 after 40 minutes of play and certainly believed victory had already been achieved. However, Brock Nelson, initially outnumbered and then playing five-on-five, cut the deficit to 4-2 by scoring two goals in 1:36.
Bo Horvat then increased his team's deficit to one goal more than five minutes before the end of the game.
Nevertheless, CH managed to stop the bleeding and get the two winning points thanks to Christian Dvorak's goal into the empty net, ending a streak of 17 games without a single goal.
However, the second period largely went to the advantage of the local heroes. Josh Anderson finally came out of his torpor and beat Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov twice, not just once. Cole Caufield also ended a seven-game losing streak without turning the red light.
In fact, the number 22, positioned very close to the visitors' goal, took advantage of Nick Suzuki's attack to upset the ropes. Joel Armia scored the first goal after assists from Brendan Gallagher and Kaiden Guhle.
Justin Barron and Sean Monahan each had two assists in the game. Samuel Montembeault, starting for the fourth time in six games, was perfect after two periods, stopping 30 shots on 33 shots.
The Canadian will return to the Bell Center on January 4, 2024 against the Buffalo Sabres. The Montreal club will therefore end 2023 with seven away games in a row. This long journey begins on Monday against the Jets in Winnipeg.
SUMMARY
THIRD PERIOD
8:00 p.m. – End of period.
19:40 – BUT MTL 5-3 Christian Dvorak confirms Montreal's win by shooting into an empty net. This is his second of the season. Nick Suzuki gets an assist.
14:06 – GOAL NYI 4-3 The Islanders continue to increase the pressure. Bo Horvat recovers a throw and scores his twelfth goal of the season. Montreal's lead is now just one goal.
03:43 – GOAL NYI 4-2 Less than two minutes later, Brock Nelson returns to the attack. His second goal of the game allows New York to get within two goals of Montreal.
02:07 – GOAL NYI 4-1 Brock Nelson hits the target while outnumbered. His 14th goal of the season allows New York to get on the scoresheet.
00:37 – Anders Lee receives a penalty. The Canadians will play on the power play.
00:00- Start of period.
SECOND PERIOD
8:00 p.m.- End of period.
19:22 – BUT MTL 4:0 16 seconds later the Canadians returned to the attack. Cole Caufield scored the goal. This is his eighth of the season. Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky get assists.
19:06 – BUT MTL 3:0 Josh Anderson storms to the net and scores his second goal of the game. Montreal now leads by three goals. Justin Barron and Sean Monahan are accomplices.
13:47 – Brock Nelson gets a penalty. The Canadians will play on the power play.
10:35 – BUT MTL 2:0 Josh Anderson takes advantage of the traffic in front of the net to shoot a shot that beats Semyon Varlamov. It is his second goal of the season. Justin Barron and Sean Monahan are accomplices.
07:45 – BUT MTL 1:0 Joel Armia opens the scoring with a lively shot. His fourth win of the season puts Montreal in the lead. Brendan Gallagher and Kaiden Guhle get assists.
03:05 – Johnathan Kovacevic receives a penalty. The Islanders will play on the power play.
00:00 – Start of period.
FIRST PERIOD
8:00 p.m. – End of period.
00:00 – Start of the game.
In front of the net
Semyon Varlamov Record: 6-3-1 / Goals Against Average: 2.60 / Efficiency Rate: 92.1%
Samuel Montembeault Record: 6-4-2 / Goals Allowed Average: 2.78 / Efficiency Rate: 91.1%
Training from trainer Martin St-Louis