Canadiens get off to fast start in win over Jets
WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- The Montreal Canadiens never gave the Winnipeg Jets a sniff at a second straight shutout, opening both the scoring and the floodgates on the first shift of the game in a 7-4 victory Wednesday night at the MTS Centre.
The Habs got a pair of goals from both center Phillip Danault and left winger Artturi Lehkonen and singles from center Tomas Plekanac, right winger Brian Flynn and left winger Sven Andrighetto while Al Montoya stopped 23 shots in the Canadiens net.
The Jets defeated the Calgary Flames 2-0 on Monday night, with Connor Hellebuyck recording his third shutout of the season. He wouldn't last 21 minutes in this game.
The Habs outshot the Jets 30-27.
The Canadiens started slowly in the third period, waiting until the 4:10 mark before Lehkonen deflected a Shea Weber point shot behind Hutchinson to make it 6-2.
Then while an unsportsmanlike penalty to Jets winger Shawn Matthias was being announced, Lehkonen scored his second of the period at 9:05 by batting in a rebound behind Hutchinson while being knocked to the ice in the crease.
The Jets didn't quit, though. Center Bryan Little picked Canadiens defenseman Ryan Johnston's pocket in the Montreal zone and quickly ripped his seventh of the season between Montoya's legs at 10:04.
The Canadiens didn't waste any time, hitting the scoreboard while many of the sell-out crowd were still buying hotdogs and beer. Danault picked up a loose puck to the Hellebuyck and buried a backhand just 57 seconds after the opening face-off.
The Canadiens went up 2-0 when Flynn took a cross-ice pass from Andrighetto and came in virtually alone on Hellebuyck down the left side. His wrist shot squeezed through the Jets goalie at 4:19.
The Jets got right to work on their comeback, though. Center Mark Scheifele had a nifty give-and-go with right winger Drew Stafford down low in the Canadiens zone and buried a wrist shot behind former teammate Al Montoya for his 18th of the season at 6:07 to make it 2-1.
Just a few minutes later, Jets left winger Mathieu Perreault thought Dustin Byfuglien's point shot had bounced off the post behind Montoya -- he even raised his stick for a second -- but then spun around after realizing his mistake and kicked a pass from captain Blake Wheeler up to his stick and roofed it glove side behind Montoya at 12:58.
The game didn't stay tied for long. Just 59 seconds later, the Canadiens recaptured the lead when the puck squirted out from a scrum in the left corner behind Hellebuyck on to the stick of Plekanec. His wrist shot bulged the twine up high on the beleaguered goalie's blocker side. That was enough for Paul Maurice. The Jets coach pulled his No. 1 goalie and inserted Michael Hutchinson between the pipes.
The Canadiens caught the Jets napping early in the second period, too. Andrighetto converted a rebound off a spin-around shot by Flynn just 53 seconds into the frame to give the Habs a 4-2 lead.
Just a couple of minutes later, Danault split the defensive pairing of Byfuglien and Josh Morrissey at the Jets blueline and went in alone on Hutchinson. His wrist shot ricocheted off the post for his ninth of the season at 4:31 to extend the Habs' lead to a 5-2.
Maurice had seen enough (again) and called a 30-second time-out, during which he took off his glasses and laid into his charges with a profanity-laced tirade.
As if on cue, Canadiens center Torrey Mitchell took a delay-of-game penalty by shooting the puck over the glass. It took the Jets just 10 seconds to pull within two after Nikolaj Ehlers found Scheifele with a cross-crease pass and his wrist shot found a largely open net at 5:06 of the second period for his 19th of the season.
NOTES: In the press box for the Jets are Patrik Laine (concussion) and D Mark Stuart and LW Brandon Tanev, both of whom are healthy scratches. ... Joining them from the Canadiens are LW Chris Terry, D Zach Redmond and RW Bobby Farnham. ... The Jets are tied for first in the NHL with three shorthanded goals at home this season and tied for second overall with five shorthanded markers. ... The Canadiens scored five goals in eight minutes and 43 seconds against Colorado four weeks ago, just missing their team record of 8:20, which was set on Dec. 24, 1919 against the Quebec Bulldogs. ... Last week, Canadiens LW Max Pacioretty scored his eighth career regular-season overtime goal in a game against Dallas, passing four players, including Aurele Joliat and Howie Morenz, Habs legends from nearly 100 years ago.