ReportWire

Tag: Cole Caufield

  • Predators win 6-3, extend Canadiens’ losing streak to 6

    Predators win 6-3, extend Canadiens’ losing streak to 6

    [ad_1]

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mattias Ekholm, Tommy Novak and Roman Josi each had a goal and an assist to lead the Nashville Predators to a 6-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night.

    Cody Glass, Colton Sissons and Matt Duchene also scored and Juuse Saros made 24 saves for Nashville. Nino Niederreiter had three assists and Mikael Granlund added two.

    “We haven’t scored too many goals this year, so it’s nice to see, and hopefully that can open up some floodgates for the future,” Ekholm said.

    Cole Caufield, Josh Anderson and Brendan Gallagher scored and Sam Montembeault stopped 28 shots for the slumping Canadiens, who have lost six straight and nine of 10.

    Montreal has allowed 22 goals in the last three games.

    “We shot ourselves in the foot early,” coach Martin St. Louis said. “We can’t kill a penalty right now to save our life. We’ve got to get better in that department. And I think you end up chasing the game all the time.”

    Nashville scored three times in the first 10:42, including a power-play goal by Glass at 4:10. Glass played in his 100th NHL game.

    “I think we’ve been working hard in practice and stuff like that,” Glass said. “It was nice to get a quick one, and then to put up six was a really good feeling for our team.”

    Filip Forsberg, the NHL’s reigning First Star of the Week, assisted on Sissons’ first-period goal. He extended his point streak to four games. Forsberg has five goals and three assists during that span.

    SAVARD RETURNS

    Montreal defenseman David Savard returned to the lineup after missing 13 games with an upper-body injury. He had two shots on goal in 22:43 of ice time.

    PK WOES

    Montreal permitted two power-play goals by Nashville in four attempts. One second separated the Predators from converting another with the man advantage, as Ekholm’s goal at 10:42 of the first came just after Gallagher’s high-sticking penalty expired.

    During their six-game slide, the Canadiens have given up 12 power-play goals in 22 times shorthanded.

    “It’s tough,” Savard said. “We’ve got to find ways to put it deep, put more pressure maybe a little bit and make sure every time we have a chance to clear it, it goes all the way down 200 feet.”

    FABBRO SCRATCHED

    Predators defenseman Dante Fabbro was a healthy scratch. His place in the lineup was taken by Roland McKeown, recalled Monday from Milwaukee of the AHL.

    Fabbro, a first-round draft pick, has one goal and six assists in 34 games this season. He is in the second year of a two-year contract and is slated to become a restricted free agent in the offseason.

    UP NEXT

    Canadiens: Host the New York Rangers on Thursday.

    Predators: Begin a five-game Eastern road trip Thursday at Carolina.

    ———

    AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Canadiens score 2 goals in 7 seconds, beat Kraken 4-2

    Canadiens score 2 goals in 7 seconds, beat Kraken 4-2

    [ad_1]

    SEATTLE — Cole Caufield and Josh Anderson scored seven seconds apart in the second period and the Montreal Canadiens snapped a two-game skid with a 4-2 win over the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night.

    Canadiens rookie Johnathan Kovacevic and Seattle rookie Shane Wright scored their first NHL goals.

    Kovacevic was acquired by Montreal in October after being placed on waivers by Winnipeg. He has found regular playing time with the Canadiens this season, and has three assists to go with his goal.

    “It’s been a dream come true, really,” Kovacevic said. “It’s been something that I’ve worked forward to. Everyone has a different path, and I feel like I’ve taken kind of a long road to get here. And that kind of comes with more gratitude. I have a lot of appreciation for where I’m at.”

    After Kovacevic put Montreal on the board at 12:56 in the first period, Wright tied it at 15:30.

    It was Wright’s first game back after a five-game conditioning stint with the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds. Wright’s goal came against a Montreal squad that passed on him with the No. 1 pick of the 2022 NHL draft. Oliver Bjorkstrand and Yanni Gourde assisted.

    “It’s a great feeling,” Wright said. “I don’t really remember a whole lot of the play; I kind of blacked out at the celebration there. (I) was super excited, obviously.”

    Caufield and Anderson answered in the second, scoring at 2:05 and 2:12, respectively, to give Montreal a 3-1 lead. Nick Suzuki assisted on Caulfield’s score, and Christian Dvorak and Juraj Slafkovsky picked up assists on Anderson’s goal.

    The Canadiens added to their lead at 18:40 in the second when Rem Pitlick made it 4-1, with assists going to Joel Edmundson and Jake Evans.

    Seattle answered with one second left in the period, as Jared McCann scored with an assist from Andre Burakovsky.

    Jake Allen made 31 saves for Montreal.

    Seattle goaltender Martin Jones stopped 12 shots.

    Though the Canadiens went into the final period with a two-goal lead, Allen wasn’t about to relax.

    “There’s not many leads that are safe anymore,” he said. “It’s not like it was 10 years ago when you’re up three goals, you pretty much lock it down. This game is all about offense. You’ve just got to be able to manage the game better, play the game within the game, and I thought we did a better job in the third period tonight with that.”

    The Kraken’s two consecutive losses come on the heels of their franchise-record seven-game winning streak, which ended with a 5-1 home loss to Florida on Saturday. Seattle completed a 1-2 homestand, while Montreal went 2-2 on its four-game trip.

    After a tough 7-6 loss Monday to Vancouver in overtime, Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis was happy his team bounced back.

    “We found a way to stay in it, get a point, and then get back at it tonight,” St. Louis said. “Was it a perfect game plan for us? Absolutely not. We found a way, and that is what this league is all about.”

    NOTES: Seattle forward Morgan Geekie returned to the ice after missing the past three games with an upper-body injury. … Caufield and Anderson’s two second-period goals marked the fastest two goals on the road in franchise history.

    UP NEXT

    Seattle: At the Washington Capitals on Friday.

    Montreal: Host the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.

    ———

    AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

    [ad_2]

    Source link