Down by two goals late in the second period, the New Jersey Devils remained composed and mounted a comeback to secure a victory.
Kyle Palmieri netted a power-play goal 1:30 into overtime, completing the Devils’ rally for a 4-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night.
“We stuck to a plan,” said Devils defenseman P.K. Subban. “We’ve been in so many tough spots this season where we’ve lost games late, so it’s great to see us moving past that.”
Nikita Gusev, Nico Hischier, and Wayne Simmonds also scored for the Devils, who were down 3-1 late in the second. Mackenzie Blackwood, playing his second game in as many nights, made 31 saves.
Palmieri scored the game-winner with a one-timer off a pass from Taylor Hall, while Montreal’s Phillip Danault was in the penalty box for hooking Hall. The victory marked New Jersey’s sixth consecutive win against the Canadiens.
The Devils began their comeback when Hischier scored a short-handed goal on a 2-on-1 break with just 2 seconds left in the second period. Earlier, Canadiens goalie Keith Kinkaid had stopped Hischier on a breakaway.
Montreal took five penalties in the third period, and their lack of discipline caught up with them when Simmonds tied the game at 3-3 with 4:48 left, taking advantage of a power play caused by Max Domi’s interference and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.
“That’s on me,” said Domi, who had been penalty-free all season before committing three infractions in the third period. “I can’t do that. It won’t happen again. You just can’t do that. I’ve got to learn from it.”
Domi was penalized for knocking Blake Coleman’s fallen stick a few feet down the ice at 11:18, and he received an additional two minutes for something he said to the officials.
“He took responsibility for his actions, as he should,” Canadiens coach Claude Julien said. “But taking responsibility is one thing; following through is another. You hope he can do that.”
Danault appeared to give Montreal a 4-3 lead with 47 seconds left, but the goal was waved off after officials determined that he had kicked the puck into the net.
Brendan Gallagher, Cale Fleury, and Nick Suzuki scored for the Canadiens, who saw their three-game winning streak come to an end. Kinkaid, playing against his former team, made 39 saves.
“I was really motivated to beat them,” Kinkaid said. “I felt really sharp out there. It’s frustrating not to get the two points. My job is to get them two points, and I didn’t do that tonight.”
Both teams were playing the second game of back-to-back sets. New Jersey defeated Pittsburgh 2-1 on Friday, while Montreal won 5-2 in Washington.
Gallagher opened the scoring for Montreal, finding space in the slot and deflecting Jeff Petry’s shot for his ninth season goal with 1:19 left in the first period.
Late-period goals have been an issue for Montreal all season, and this game was no different. Kinkaid stopped 19 consecutive shots to start the game, but Gusev found the back of the net with 19 seconds remaining in the first period, tying the game at 1-1.
Montreal regained the lead when Fleury scored his first NHL goal at 7:43 of the second period, skating in from the blue line and beating Blackwood on the backhand.
Suzuki extended the lead to 3-1 with a 5-on-3 power-play goal, tapping in Domi’s rebound with 1:18 left in the second. New Jersey has struggled with penalty killing on the road this season.
Playing in his sixth game against his former team, Subban was booed by Bell Centre fans every time he touched the puck.
“I’ll never play head games with the fans here,” Subban said. “They have every right to boo me, but they’ve always supported me, even when I was on opposing teams.”
Game Notes
- Canadiens coach Claude Julien shuffled his lines due to injuries to Jonathan Drouin and Paul Byron. Jesperi Kotkaniemi (recovered from a groin injury) and Charles Hudon (recalled from the AHL) were back in the lineup.
- Max Domi played left wing alongside Nick Suzuki.
- Montreal’s Shea Weber extended his point streak to six games.
- Legendary Russian goaltender Vladislav Tretiak and new Montreal Impact coach Thierry Henry attended Bell Centre.
Up Next
- Devils: Host Boston on Tuesday night.
- Canadiens: Visit Columbus on Tuesday night.
