SHAW REAPS REWARD IN OVERTIME THRILLER
Andrew Shaw might have woken up Sunday morning with a sore back, but that was a small price to pay for the overtime goal that gave the Canadiens a 3-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday at the Air Canada Centre.
Shaw’s momentum carried him into the end boards after he beat Fredrik Andersen on a breakaway at 1:06 of the overtime.
“It started in our own end with (Tomas Plekanec) winning a huge draw,” said Shaw. “He snaps it back and (Andrei Markov) draws a guy into him and with that 3-on-3 mentality, you just want to get on offence. He made a great pass to Pleky and we used our speed. (Plekanec) made a great area pass and I just skated into it.”
Shaw’s task was made easier because Andersen came out of the crease to challenge and left an opening for Shaw. This was the kind of performance general manager Marc Bergevin envisioned when he traded for Shaw from the Chicago Blackhawks last summer.
The feisty winger earned a reputation in Chicago for coming up big in key games and he said this was his favourite time.
“Twenty games to go and then the playoffs, this is the time to make a push,” said Shaw. “It’s a long season and sometimes it gets boring, but we’re focused now.”
Coach Claude Julien said this was a solid team effort in a game between two teams desperate to earn points, but he acknowledged that there were some strong individual performances starting with Carey Price. He made 32 saves and was the reason why the penalty kill is still perfect on Julien’s watch. The Leafs had eight shots on two power plays and they failed to score because Price was determined to bar the door.
“There were some rebounds there and I just thought he moved around well,” said Julien. “He found those pucks, he tracked them well. That’s the Carey Price we’re used to seeing and it’s nice to see him back playing that way. He’s giving us a chance to win and he’s giving us confidence because we know if there’s a breakdown, he’s making a save and it allows us to play with a lot more confidence.”
One of those breakdowns occurred early in overtime and Auston Matthews, the rookie sensation who scored both Toronto goals, had a breakaway.
“I got a knob on it. Any player will tell you he hates that, but I’ll take it,” Price said of the gamesaving stop.
The win was No. 259 for Price and he moved ahead of Ken Dryden for third place on the Canadiens’ all-time list behind Jacques Plante (314) and Patrick Roy (289).
Price said he hasn’t paid much attention to the milestone, but said Dryden has played a role in his development.
“Ken is the first Hab I ever met,” Price said. “I met him in Williams Lake when I was eight years old. I got his autograph on a piece of paper and I still have it today. I was going through a tough time when I was 21 and he called me and we had a good talk. I have a lot of respect for Ken and what he did in the NHL.”
Max Pacioretty and Alex Galchenyuk scored the other Montreal goals. It was No. 29 for Pacioretty and No. 13 for Galchenyuk, who also stood out in the faceoff circle, winning nine of 12 draws. He was also the Canadiens’ top faceoff performer in the loss to the Islanders Thursday.
Julien said he has talked to all the Canadiens’ centres about the need to bear down on faceoffs, but Galchenyuk said he also did some extra homework during the winter break.
“Over the break, I contacted Olli Jokinen in Florida and we went on the ice and we just took faceoffs for an hour and a half,” said Galchenyuk. “It helped me, but I have to keep working at it.”