National Hockey League
Montreal 4, Arizona 2
When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Where: Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec
Referees: Eric Furlatt, Pierre Lambert
Linesmen: Jonathan Deschamps, Dan Kelly
Attendance: 21105

Sam Montembeault stopped 36 shots and Jordan Harris and Joel Armia each had a goal with an assist on Tuesday as the host Montreal Canadiens posted a needed 4-2 win that extended the Arizona Coyotes' losing streak to 13 games.

Arizona outshot the Canadiens 38-21, but Montembeault was solid when needed. He yielded a second-period goal to Alex Kerfoot and a late tally to Nick Bjugstad but otherwise was not severely tested as Montreal snapped a five-game skid.

Harris, a defenseman, was a surprise offensive hero despite entering with one goal and six points in 34 games. Tanner Pearson and Nick Suzuki (empty-netter) also scored for the Canadiens.

Playing without injured star Clayton Keller (upper-body injury), Arizona had its chances but fell to 0-11-2 since a 5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Jan. 22. It's the fourth-longest winless stretch in franchise history.

Arizona was the offensive aggressor early and outshot the Canadiens 11-5 in the first period but had nothing to show for it and allowed Montreal to open the scoring 7:52 into the game. A simple breakout play for the Canadiens turned into a two-on-one with Alex Newhook feeding Armia for his 10th goal.

The Canadiens made it 2-0 at 4:52 of the second period. Off a blocked shot, Montreal again found itself amid a two-on-one surge, where Harris kept the puck and beat Arizona's Connor Ingram (20 saves).

Just 2:50 later, the Coyotes finally got on the board. Amid some traffic in front and around the Canadiens net, Kerfoot got the puck behind the goal and tucked it over the line. Kerfoot was appearing in his 500th NHL game.

Montreal extended its advantage 5:14 into the third, and again via some shoddy Arizona defense. This time, Harris got the puck at his own blue line and sent a modest stretch pass to Pearson, who got behind the Coyotes' defense and chipped it past Ingram.

Bjugstad made it interesting with a knuckler that caught Montembeault out of position with 5:37 remaining in regulation.

Arizona is also amid an 0-7-3 stretch on the road.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Arizona   Montreal
Nick Bjugstad 1 Points Joel Armia 2
Nick Bjugstad 1 Goals Joel Armia 1
Michael Kesselring 1 Assists Jake Evans 2
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Connor Ingram .850 Save Percentage Sam Montembeault .947
Connor Ingram 17 Saves Sam Montembeault 36
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Arizona 38 2 0-3 0-0 0 20
Montreal 21 4 0-0 3-3 6 27
Upcoming Games
  • Montreal will play their next game on the road against Florida. The Canadiens have a W/L % of .261 after a win and .472 after a loss.
  • Arizona will play their next game on the road against Toronto. The Coyotes have a W/L % of .458 after a win and .353 after a loss.