(Anaheim) The Canadian started his trip to California on the right foot, despite some areas of turbulence.
Alex Newhook broke the tie late in the third period by scoring his second goal of the game and the Montreal hockey club defeated the Anaheim Ducks 4-3 on Wednesday at the Honda Center.
The Canadian thus ended a series of four defeats.
His last victory in Anaheim was on March 5, 2014. He had lost his last seven games in the Los Angeles suburbs.
Samuel Montembeault had a strong game, making 30 saves. He saved the skin of his teammates a few times from excessive attacks by the opponent.
“We needed a victory,” admitted head coach Martin St-Louis. We’re going to review the video and yes, there are a lot of things to correct, but the effort was there. Sam was excellent. We fought well despite our imperfection. We went for a victory that the group needed. »
Mike Matheson and Kaiden Guhle also scored for the Canadian (8-9-2). Jake Evans had two assists.
For the Ducks (9-10-0), who suffered a fourth straight loss, Mason McTavish collected two goals and an assist, while Frank Vatrano accumulated a goal and an assist. John Gibson stopped 24 shots.
Defenseman Jayden Struble played his first career NHL game. He replaced Jordan Harris in the Habs lineup. Harris returned to Montreal on Tuesday due to a lower body injury.
“It was truly an extraordinary experience,” said Struble, selected in the second round by the Canadian in 2019. “The victory was the icing on the cake. »
The Canadian will face the San Jose Sharks on Friday afternoon, then return to Southern California on Saturday afternoon for a duel against the Los Angeles Kings.
The Canadian quickly took the lead after 5:59 of play, shortly after the end of a power play. He beat Gibson on the shield side after receiving a pass from Tanner Pearson.
Guhle widened the gap 38 seconds later, following a two-on-one attack with Jesse Ylönen.
Newhook came close to adding another goal late in the first period. However, he cut through the air in front of an empty cage after a cross pass from Josh Anderson.
McTavish got the Ducks going again 53 seconds into the second period, during a power play. He only had to deflect a nice pass from Leo Carlsson in the opening.
The Canadian responded 56 seconds later. Matheson accepted a pass from Nick Suzuki at the top of the slot, then beat Gibson with a high shot from the side of the shield.
Once again, McTavish brought the Ducks back into the game, moving the strings at 6:00. Vatrano made fun of Johnathan Kovacevic’s coverage, then spun around to join McTavish in the slot.
In the sequence, Quebecer Tristan Luneau collected his first point in the NHL. He was participating in a third career match.
Cole Caufield had several scoring opportunities during the game, including three before the end of the second period. On his best chance, he missed an open net during a power play, but the angle was very tight.
Montembeault resisted the Ducks’ attacks early in the third period. He made a spectacular glove save at the expense of Vatrano.
The Ducks forward, however, had his revenge with 8:29 left in regulation. He tied the game 3-3 by beating Montembeault over the left shoulder after a set-up from McTavish.
Newhook, however, gave the Canadian the lead again with 3:20 left on the clock, when the teams were playing four against four. He beat Gibson after receiving a pass from Evans during a two-on-one attack.
“We didn’t have a perfect game, but sometimes it takes a game like this where you want to win so bad,” Matheson said. It would have been tough on morale if we hadn’t won. »
Montembeault managed to close the door at the end of the game.