The Canadiens players were unable to offer a victory to Carey Price in his first game in 282 days.
Price was solid on his return to the game, but he was let down by his offense and the New York Islanders beat the Montreal squad 3-0 on Friday night at the Bell Centre.
The Habs’ star goaltender was playing his first game since July 7 due to knee surgery and at least three setbacks in his rehabilitation for various reasons.
The Canadian’s defense was watertight in front of Price during the first two periods, but the Islanders ended up showing opportunism.
Zach Parise, Noah Dobson and Brock Nelson, in an empty net, managed to hit the target in the third period for the Islanders (35-30-9). Ilya Sorokin was perfect against a barrage of 44 shots.
Price stopped 17 shots, but the Canadian (20-44-11) was shut out for the sixth time this season.
Forward Michael Pezzetta and defender Corey Schueneman have also been added to the Canadiens roster, replacing Tyler Pitlick and Jordan Harris.
The Canadian will be back in action on Saturday night, when the Washington Capitals will be the visitors.
Few reasons to celebrate
Price received a warm welcome from fans ahead of the game. They chanted his name for over a minute, until house announcer Michel Lacroix interrupted them for the start of a brief tribute to Mike Bossy.
Bossy, an Islanders legend and one of the greatest snipers in NHL history, died Friday at the age of 65.
From the start of the game, Price easily stopped the Islanders’ first shot after 3:32 of play, a weak shot from Kyle Palmieri which he repelled with his right pad.
The Canadian came alive on a power play, but Nick Suzuki’s multiple attempts failed.
Price made a tough first save with less than five minutes left in the first period. He used his shield to stop a shot from Anders Lee’s slot.
Both goalies continued to close the door in the second period. Sorokin was vigilant in front of Christian Dvorak early in the engagement, then Cole Caufield, a little later. Sorokin also frustrated fellow Russian Alexander Romanov late in the second period.
For his part, Price made a nice save from the shield against Jean-Gabriel Pageau early in the second period. He only faced four shots in the engagement.
Joel Armia threatened early in the third period, but Sorokin resisted.
The Islanders opened the scoring moments later at 4:25. It took a three-way attack for them to beat Price. Parise completed the sequence by lifting the disc over the goalkeeper’s right pad.
Dobson doubled the Islanders lead 1:44 later. He beat Price with a perfect shot, which hit the post before crossing the goal line.
The Canadian increased the pressure thereafter, but he botched several opportunities to enter the score. Rem Pitlick notably reached the post after a nice individual push.
Nelson nailed the coffin for the Habs by scoring in an empty net with 1:39 left on the clock.