MONTREAL — The Montreal Canadiens, led by a stellar performance from Josh Anderson, halted the New York Islanders’ point streak with a 5-3 victory at Bell Centre on Saturday. Anderson was the standout player, scoring two crucial goals, including one in a four-goal barrage by the Canadiens in the second period.
Montreal (13-13-4) secured only its second win in ten home games (2-6-2), with goalie Sam Montembeault making 30 crucial saves. “We knew coming in that we needed a big night out of ourselves,” Anderson stated, highlighting the importance of capitalizing on the Islanders’ back-to-back game schedule.
The Islanders (14-8-8) saw their eight-game point streak snapped (6-0-2), despite Brock Nelson’s two goals and Noah Dobson’s three assists in the third period. Goalie Semyon Varlamov made 36 saves but couldn’t prevent the Islanders from suffering their second regulation loss in 16 games (9-2-5).
Joel Armia opened the scoring for the Canadiens in the second period, and Anderson’s two goals followed, including a backhand through Varlamov’s legs. Cole Caufield praised Anderson’s all-around game and noted that his scoring would boost his confidence.
Caufield himself extended the Canadiens’ lead to 4-0 late in the second period, capitalizing on a Nick Suzuki pass. However, the Islanders mounted a third-period comeback, with Nelson scoring twice and Horvat adding another goal, bringing the score to 4-3.
Despite the Islanders’ rally, Christian Dvorak’s empty-net goal sealed the victory for Montreal. Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis reflected on the need to adapt to changing game scenarios, acknowledging the challenges of maintaining a lead in modern hockey.
NOTES:
- Anderson’s game marked his first multigoal performance since March 1, 2022.
- The Canadiens scored twice in 15 seconds or less for the second time in a week.
- Josh Horvat extended his point streak to an NHL career-high 10 games (16 points; seven goals, nine assists). There was no update on his condition following a collision with Dvorak.
- Noah Dobson joined Denis Potvin and Jeff Norton as the third defenseman in Islanders history to have 30 points in 30 or fewer games.
The Canadiens will look to build on this victory, while the Islanders aim to rebound from the setback in their upcoming games.
