NHL

Montreal Canadiens at Vancouver Canucks

· National Hockey League
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Slafkovsky helps Canadiens beat struggling Canucks 4-2 to move closer to wild card spot

Montreal Canadiens vs. Vancouver Canucks: Game Highlights

Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield each had a goal and an assist, and Mike Matheson added an empty-netter in the final minute for the Canadiens. Sam Montembault finished with 29 saves to help Montreal win for the sixth time in eight games (6-1-1) and pull into tie with Boston and the New York Rangers, two points behind Columbus for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference.

Filip Hronek had a goal and an assist and Elias Pettersson also scored for the Canucks. Kevin Lankinen made 23 saves.

Trailing 3-2, Vancouver pushed for the equalizer late, pulling Lankinen in favor of an extra attacker with less than two minutes left, but Montreal’s defense smothered the offensive onslaught before Matheson sent a puck into the empty net with 17 seconds to go.

Takeaways Canucks: Vancouver’s offense has largely dried up in recent weeks. The Canucks have not scored more than three goals in 15 games dating back to Jan. 29 when they beat the Blues 5-2 in St. Louis.

Canadiens: Montreal’s top line has been hot since returning from the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off break. Suzuki has five goals and 10 assists in eight games, Caufield has scored six goals and three assists, and Slafkovsky has four goals and four assists.

Key moment Midway through the second period, Slafkovsky picked off a loose puck and sliced a quick pass up ice to Suzuki. The Canadiens’ captain drove up the ice, then sent the puck to Caufield, who tapped it in back door to give Montreal a 3-0 lead with his team-leading 32nd goal of the season at 8:59.

Key stat The Canucks are the only team in the NHL that has not posted a third-period comeback this season. Vancouver is now 0-19-4 when trailing after the second period.

Up next Canadiens visit Seattle on Wednesday, and Canucks play at Calgary.

Regular Season Series

MTL wins series 2-0

Scoring Summary

Goal 1st Period 1:06 Nick Suzuki Goal (20) Backhand, assists: Cole Caufield (26), Juraj Slafkovský (25)
Goal 1st Period 8:34 Juraj Slafkovský Goal (12) Wrist Shot, assists: none
Goal 2nd Period 8:59 Cole Caufield Goal (32) Wrist Shot, assists: Nick Suzuki (47), Juraj Slafkovský (26)
Goal 3rd Period 4:05 Filip Hronek Goal (4) Wrist Shot, assists: Marcus Pettersson (17)
Goal 3rd Period 11:08 Elias Pettersson Goal (13) Wrist Shot, assists: Filip Hronek (20), Conor Garland (23)
Goal 3rd Period 19:43 Mike Matheson Goal (6) Wrist Shot, assists: none

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/mtl.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originMTL https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/van.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originVAN
17 Blocked Shots 21
31 Hits 23
5 Takeaways 2
27 Shots 31
0 Power Play Goals 1
1 Power Play Opportunities 3
0.0 Power Play Percentage 33.3
0 Short Handed Goals 0
0 Shootout Goals 0
28 Faceoffs Won 35
44.4 Faceoff Win Percent 55.6
16 Giveaways 15
3 Total Penalties 1
6 Penalty Minutes 2
Vancouver Canucks Vancouver Canucks Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Derek Forbort, D Out Apr 22
Tyler Myers, D Out Apr 21
Elias Pettersson, C Out Apr 21
Kevin Lankinen, G Out Apr 19
Nils Aman, C Out Apr 12
Montreal Canadiens Montreal Canadiens Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Sam Montembeault, G Day-To-Day Apr 25
Patrik Laine, RW Out Apr 25
Rafael Harvey-Pinard, LW Out Mar 19

Game Information

Rogers Arena

Location: Vancouver, BC
Attendance: 18,886 | Capacity:

2024-25 Atlantic Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Toronto 52 26 108 4
Tampa Bay 47 27 102 8
Florida 47 31 98 4
Ottawa 45 30 97 7
Montreal 40 31 91 11
Detroit 39 35 86 8
Buffalo 36 39 79 7
Boston 33 39 76 10

2024-25 Pacific Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Vegas 50 22 110 10
Los Angeles 48 25 105 9
Edmonton 48 29 101 5
Calgary 41 27 96 14
Vancouver 38 30 90 14
Anaheim 35 37 80 10
Seattle 35 41 76 6
San Jose 20 50 52 12
Full Standings