Sam Montembeault recorded a 36-save performance while Jordan Harris and Joel Armia both registered two points as the Montreal Canadiens won 4-2 over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night.
Harris, Armia, Tanner Pearson and Nick Suzuki all had goals for Montreal (23-28-8), snapping a five-game losing streak.
Alex Kerfoot and Nick Bjugstad scored for the Coyotes (23-30-5) who have lost 13 straight games. Connor Ingram stopped 17 shots.
Happening twice, Montreal capitalized on the counterattack off of two aggressive forechecks by Arizona.
With J.J. Moser pinching in the Canadiens zone, Alex Newhook took the puck the other way and had a 2-on-1 opportunity. As he skated alongside Joel Armia on his right, Newhook sent a pass to him and Armia scored for a 1-0 Montreal lead 7:52 into the first period.
Then as the Coyotes were beginning to formulate a play, Troy Stecher pushed too far forward as Harris intercepted the puck and fired it past Ingram, making it 2-0 Canadiens at 4:52 of the second.
Cutting the deficit to one, Moser took the puck behind Montreal’s net and after multiple bounces, it flung to Kerfoot who caressed it in as he caught Montembeault looking the other away for a 2-1 game. This game was Kerfoot’s 500th in his NHL career.
Trying to fight back into the game, the Coyotes couldn’t bury their chances and made yet another defensive miscue.
Skating towards the neutral zone, Harris fed a pass to Pearson who slipped between two ‘Yotes before scoring on a breakaway, giving Montreal a 3-1 advantage at 5:14 of the third. Arizona heavily outshot Montreal 38-21 throughout the contest.
As time was ticking, Bjugstad received the puck in the slot, spun, fell and was just able to beat Montembeault with a slow rolling shot.
Icing the game though, the Canadiens’ captain Suzuki chipped a shot into an empty net with his backhand to seal a 4-2 win.
Next Games
Coyotes: Away vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (33-17-8) on Feb. 29 at 5 p.m. MST
Canadiens: Away vs. Florida Panthers (39-16-4) on Feb. 25 at 5 p.m. MST
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