Canadiens stage lively show to edge flashy Knights

It’s not always pretty, but it is entertaining when the Canadiens win a game this season. Their see-saw battle against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night was a perfect example as Montreal came from behind on two occasions to post a 5-4 victory. Tomas Tatar provided the winning margin when he scored from close range at 12:17 of the third period. It was his seventh goal of the season and his fourth in three games. Andrew Shaw scored two goals, including a tying goal at 9:20 of the third period. It was a typical Shaw goal as he went to the net and scored on the rebound of a shot by Max Domi. This was a wide-open game between two teams that like to punish the opponent with their speed. The Golden Knights had a comfortable 38-26 margin in shots, but Antti Niemi, who got the nod over a struggling Carey Price, made 34 saves to run his season record to 4-1-0. There were a dozen times last season when the Canadiens gave up two goals inside of a minute, and it happened again late in the first period. While the Golden Knights enjoyed a huge advantage in terms of shots on goal, it was 0-0 when Mike Reilly was sent off for tripping at 16:29. Vegas opened the scoring on a goal by defenceman Brad Hunt at 17:40. Hunt faked a shot from the right faceoff circle and when Niemi dipped his shoulder, Hunt tucked a wrist shot under the crossbar. Fifty-seven seconds later, Jonathan Marchessault was credited with a goal he never saw. The pride of Cap Rouge had his back to the net as he battled for position in front of the net and Reilly Smith’s shot from the corner went off the back of his skate. The Canadiens came out strong in the second period and they needed 66 seconds to produce the two goals that tied the score and they took their first lead before the midway point of the period. Rookie Jesperi Kotkaniemi played the major role in the comeback. He set up Charles Hudon for Montreal’s first goal that came when Hudon faked a forehand and then beat Marc-André Fleury with a backhander. Kotkaniemi gave Montreal a 3-2 lead when he went to the front of the net and converted Artturi Lehkonen’s pass from behind the net. In between those scores, Shaw netted a tying goal off a battle in front. Jonathan Drouin fanned on a shot from the slot, but Shaw scored when he gave the puck a forceful nudge. Alex Tuch scored before the period was out to tie the score at 3-3 and the Vegas power play paid dividends when William Karlsson scored early in the third period to put Vegas ahead 4-3. The bounces went against the Canadiens on this goal as Niemi made the save on a shot from Tomas Hyka, only to have the puck carom off Matthew Peca’s skate and end up in the net. The Canadiens treated Max Pacioretty better than they did when they ran him out of town on the eve of the team’s annual charity tournament. The team offered a video tribute to the former captain prior to the game and the crowd greeted him warmly.