HABS RALLY, BUT LOSE TO JETS
Last game at Bell Centre this season
JETS 5, CANADIENS 4 (OT)
The bottom line: Kyle Connor scored the winning goal at 3:00 of overtime as the Winnipeg Jets defeated the Canadiens 5-4 Tuesday night in the final game of the season at the Bell Centre.
Overtime: The Canadiens forced overtime after pulling goalie Carey Price and Alex Galchenyuk scored during a 6-on-4 power play at 18:18. The Jets rested No. 1 goaltender Connor Hellebuyck as well as top scorer Blake Wheeler, Mark Scheifele and defencemen Jacob Trouba and Josh Morrissey. Kerby Rychel gave the fans hope when he scored his first goal as a Canadien at 10:15 of the third to tie it 3-3, but Sami Niku, who was making his NHL debut, gave Winnipeg a 4-3 lead 24 seconds later.
Faster than a speeding bullet: Price didn’t have time to react as Patrik Laine opened the scoring with a power-play goal at 12:25 of the first period. Dustin Byfuglien set up Laine for a one-timer from the top of the circle. It was Laine’s 44th goal. The Jets made it 2-0 on their next shot as Nikolaj Ehlers played give-and-go with Paul Stastny on and scored his 29th goal at 14:19.
Upping the ante: Price made a big save against Andrew Copp on a short-handed breakaway but he should have stopped Jack Roslovic who gave the Jets a 3-0 lead at 15:58 of the second period. Roslovic beat Price through the five-hole.
Shutout averted: The Canadiens were spared the embarrassment of being shut out for the 13th time this season when Artturi Lehkonen scored with 59.3 seconds remaining in the second. When Galchenyuk was tied up in the high slot, Lehkonen grabbed the loose puck and beat Steve Mason for his 11th.
Never say die: The Canadiens closed the gap to 3-2 when Paul Byron scored his 20th goal at 3:19 of the third period. Mason made the initial save on Brendan Gallagher, but he was sprawled on the ice when Byron found the top of the net. The goal gave Byron backto-back 20-goal seasons.
Honour roll, part one: Gallagher and Byron collected some hardware before the game. Gallagher was presented with the 2017-18 Molson Cup, which goes to the player earning the most three-star mentions. The team also announced he won the March and April segments. Byron was awarded the Jacques Beauchamp-Molson Trophy, which can best be described as an unsung hero prize.
Honour roll, part two: The game was stopped at the 6:13 mark of the first period to recognize Price, who set the Canadiens’ record for most games by a goaltender with his 557th appearance, one more than the late Jacques Plante. Price shared glove bumps with his teammates while former Canadiens goaltending greats Patrick Roy and Ken Dryden offered video congratulations. Price is fourth in alltime wins with 239, trailing Plante (324), Roy (289) and Dryden (258).
The end of the road: The Canadiens wrap up the regular season with a pair of road games. They are in Detroit Thursday to face the Red Wings (7:30 p.m., TSN2, RDS, TSN-690 Radio) and they finish against the Maple Leafs Saturday in Toronto.