Drouin leads Canadiens past Avalanche 4-2
Jonathan Drouin scored and added two assists as the Montreal Canadiens ended the Colorado Avalanche’s ten-game winning streak with a 4-2 victory on Tuesday.
Nicolas Deslauriers, Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher, into the empty net, also scored for the Canadiens (2022-6). Carey Price made 20 saves for his 14th win of the season.
Nathan MacKinnon and J.T. Compher scored late in the third period for the Avalanche (27-17-3), who lost for the first time in 2018. Colorado’s last defeat was Dec. 27, 2017 against the Arizona Coyotes.
Jonathan Bernier stopped 36 shots in defeat, dropping to 0-7-2 when playing in Montreal. He’s also 1-10-3 all-time versus the Canadiens.
Montreal outshot Colorado 40-22.
The slumping Canadiens were unlikely streak-breakers coming into the contest, having won just once in their past five games.
The Avalanche were coming off a 4-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday and their legs were heavy to start the game. Colorado fired just five shots on Price in the first, none too dangerous.
After a scoreless opening period, Deslauriers set the Avalanche back on their heels by putting the home side in front at 5:42. After Drouin saw his shot blocked by Mark Barberio, Deslauriers got his stick on the loose puck in the slot and beat Bernier five-hole for his careerhigh seventh goal of the season.
The 26-year-old’s previous
high was six goals in 70 games with the Buffalo Sabres in 2016.
That goal saw the Avs trailing for just the second time over the course of their 10-game-winning streak. It was also the first time the Avalanche conceded the first goal in a game since their last defeat.
Galchenyuk increased Montreal’s lead with a power-play marker at 7:58 of the second. After sustained puck possession by the Canadiens, Drouin connected with Galchenyuk, who fired a one-timer past Bernier.
Drouin, playing one of his best games of the season, put the game out of reach with his seventh goal at 12:36 of the third after a great individual effort by Jeff Petry along the boards to get him the puck.
It was Drouin’s first threepoint
game of the year.
MacKinnon ruined Price’s shutout bid two minutes later with a shot from the point before Gallagher scored his 17th of the season in the empty net.
Compher made it 4-2 with 12 seconds remaining on the clock.
Bruins 3, Devils 2 BOSTON — Brad Marchand had a goal and an assist, and the Boston Bruins continued surging toward the All-Star break with a 3-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night.
Patrice Bergeron and Riley Nash also scored for the Bruins, who won their fourth straight and improved to 13-0-4 in their last 17 games. Tuukka Rask stopped 37 shots as Boston won again despite being outshot 3924.
Miles Wood and Damon Severson scored for New Jersey, which has lost three straight in regulation for the first time this season. Corey Schneider made 27 saves in the first two periods and Ken Appleby stopped the only four shots he faced in the third for the slumping Devils, who are 2-6-3 in the last 11.
New Jersey outshot Boston 20-9 in the first period, but couldn’t get anything past Rask. After a wild second period, Rask stopped 12 more shots. Marchand gave the Bruins the lead on a breakaway goal, his 21st, with 33 seconds left in the middle period.
Marchand also assisted on Bergeron’s power-play goal with 7:07 to go in the second that tied it 2-all. It was the 20th goal of the season for Bergeron.