Canadiens 4, Canucks 3 (OT)
MONTREAL -- Center David Desharnais scored at 3:25 of overtime to give the Montreal Canadiens a 4-3, come-from-behind win over the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night at the Bell Centre.
Goaltender Jacob Markstrom stopped 32 shots for the Canucks, who squandered a 3-0 lead. Goalie Mike Condon made 23 saves for Montreal (14-3-2).
Right winger Adam Cracknell, center Jared McCann and left winger Daniel Sedin scored in regulation for Vancouver (7-6-6).
Left wingers Lars Eller, Max Pacioretty and Tomas Fleischmann replied for the Canadiens.
Fleischmann tied it up at 16:52 of the third period when he beat defenseman Ben Hutton along the wall and shot from the right dot. Markstrom thought he had it, but the puck trickled behind him.
A turnover by defenseman Jeff Petry allowed the Canucks to get on the board first. Left winger Chris Higgins picked up Petry's no-look pass behind him and got it over to defenseman Matt Bartkowski at the right point. Condon stopped the shot and right winger Derek Dorsett's attempt on the rebound, but the second rebound found its way to Cracknell on the right at 1:26 of the first period.
It marked the fourth consecutive game that the Canadiens allowed the first goal.
McCann doubled the Canucks' lead at 17:54 on the power play. With right winger Brendan Gallagher serving a double minor for high-sticking, the rookie's intended pass for right winger Radim Vrbata found center Henrik Sedin at the top of the right circle, and the Vancouver captain sent a perfect feed to McCann at the side of the net.
The Vancouver power play connected again at 3:17 of the second period. Blue-liner Yannick Weber sent a light pass to Daniel Sedin at the blue line, and the winger took a couple of short strides to outside the left circle before firing a puck that got wedged top corner.
Eller broke Markstrom's shutout with his sixth of the season, on the penalty kill. Defenseman Tom Gilbert sent a stretch pass to Eller at center ice and the winger, on a two-on-one with right winger Devante Smith-Pelly, carried it to just inside the right circle before recording the Canadiens' fourth short-handed goal of the season at 8:40 of the second period.
Pacioretty brought the crowd to life when he made it a one-goal game at 10:53 of the middle period. After Weber fell behind the net in a battle for the puck with Pacioretty, the puck found its way to Gallagher in the left circle. Markstrom made the save, but Pacioretty was alone to the right of the net to easily poke it home. It was just his second goal since Oct. 27 and his first goal against a goalie since Oct. 24, the other being an empty-netter.
NOTES: Vancouver RW Alexandre Burrows missed the game for personal reasons, while C Brandon Sutter remains day-to-day with a lower body injury. ... Canucks LW -- and former Canadien -- Brandon Prust remained on injured reserve with an ankle injury sustained against Montreal on Oct. 27, as did D Luca Sbisa (left ankle). ... Montreal scratched LW Paul Byron and D Jarred Tinordi while D Alexei Emelin missed his second game with a lower-body injury and will be re-evaluated on a daily basis, according to coach Michel Therrien. ...Vancouver rookie C Hunter Shinkaruk made his NHL debut. ... Canadiens LW Tomas Fleischmann played in his 600th NHL game.