MONTREAL — Patrik Laine scored the winning goal in the shootout to propel the Montreal Canadiens to a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Monday night at Bell Centre.
Laine and Kirby Dach, his first goal in 20 games, scored for Montreal in regulation (11-14-3). The Canadiens rebounded after blowing a two-goal lead on home ice Saturday night against the Washington Capitals, winning their third game in their last four outings.
Laine scored his third power-play goal in four games since his return from injury on Dec. 3. He also collected his first assist of the season on Dach’s goal. Nick Suzuki ran his point streak to seven games, over which time he has accumulated 10 points.
Sam Montembeault made 27 saves for the Canadiens in the win.
Troy Terry scored his team-leading seventh and eighth goals of the season for the Ducks (10-13-3). Lukas Dostal made 19 saves as Anaheim dropped its third straight game of a four-game road trip.
Jacob Trouba made his Ducks debut after being traded by the New York Rangers to Anaheim on Friday for defenceman Urho Vaakanainen and a 2025 fourth-round draft pick. The 30-year-old blueliner was paired with Cam Fowler, playing 22:35 and delivering five hits.
TAKEAWAYS
Ducks: Anaheim dropped its eighth one-goal game of the season, accounting for half of the team's overall losses.
Canadiens: Montreal won past regulation for the third time this season, but only their first in a shootout.
KEY MOMENT
Dostal’s misplay of the puck behind his own net allowed Juraj Slafkovsky to feed linemate Dach, who fired the puck into an empty net to tie the game 2-2. The goal came just 11 seconds after Terry’s second of the night had given the Ducks their first lead of the game.
KEY STAT
By collecting an assist on Laine’s power-play goal in the first period, Lane Hutson established the longest point streak by a rookie defenceman in Canadiens history. His seven straight games with at least a point surpasses Chris Chelios and Glen Harmon, who each had six-game streaks with Montreal.
UP NEXT
Ducks: Visit the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday.
Canadiens: Host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 9, 2024.
Jordan Stoopler, The Canadian Press
