(Elmont) Cole Caufield and Rem Pitlick scored in the shootout and the Montreal Canadiens took the measure of the New York Islanders 3-2 on Sunday afternoon to allow them to sign a second victory in a row for the first time in the campaign.
Posted at 4:53 p.m.
Jeff Petry and Josh Anderson hit the target in regulation time for the Canadiens (10-33-7), who defeated the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in overtime on Thursday. It was the first time since the 1er and May 3, 2021 that the Habs savored two consecutive wins.
Kyle Palmieri and Brock Nelson provided the response for the Islanders (18-20-7), who saw their two-game winning streak come to an end.
Andrew Hammond got his first start in nearly four years in the NHL, and he delivered a flawless performance. The “Hamburglar” finished the game with 30 saves, before stopping two of the three Islanders shooters in the shootout.
His vis-à-vis, Ilya Sorokin, repelled a total of 25 shots aimed at the goal of the Islanders, before yielding to Caufield and Pitlick the shootout. The New York team had won the first match between the two teams 6-2 on November 4.
The Canadiens returned to Montreal immediately after the game, ahead of their Monday night game at the Bell Center against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Michael Pezzetta, who has missed the Habs’ last five games, got his first chance to show off under new head coach Martin St-Louis. And he grabbed it quickly.
After dishing out a few good shoulder shots early in the game, including one that resulted in a visit from tough guy Matt Martin, Pezzetta obstructed Sorokin’s view and allowed Petry to beat the Islanders keeper at 9:01. of the first third.
After the intermission, the two teams exchanged a goal each.
Palmieri got both teams back to square one early in the second period. The Islanders veteran jumped on a rebound allowed by Hammond and outshot him on the power play at 1:29. It was Palmieri’s third goal in as many games.
Anderson, however, ensured that the CH finished the second period with the lead, vibrating the ropes with 1: 11 to go on the clock. He achieved this by threading the needle with a precise wrist shot from a tight angle, above Sorokin’s right shoulder.
Nelson, however, forced overtime by beating Hammond with an accurate shot with 2:57 remaining in the third period.
After Caufield and Pitlick netted in the shootout, Hammond rose up in front of Nelson to seal the game. It was his first NHL win since winning in the playoffs on April 20, 2018.
It should be noted that defender Ben Chiarot was back in action after missing two games. Chiarot, whose name has been circulating in trade rumors for some time, replaced Corey Schueneman. The latter had his name put on the COVID-19 protocol list on Saturday, and as a result he did not accompany the team to New York.
Forwards Christian Dvorak and Joel Armia, who suffered a skate in the face in the last game against the St. Louis Blues, also remained in Montreal.
Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara was contesting a 1650and NHL career game. He is just one game away from the record for a defender, which belongs to Chris Chelios.