Max Pacioretty broke up a scoreless deadlock with 4:17 left to lift the Montreal Canadiens to a 1-0 victory over the New York Rangers on Thursday night.
Pacioretty sent a wrist shot from above the right circle that appeared to surprise Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist and squeeze inside the right post for his 22nd goal.
That was enough to give Carey Price his 26th win and third shutout of the season in a stellar 24-save effort for Montreal, which has won four in a row — three with Price in net.
Lundqvist made 25 saves for the Rangers, who have lost two straight following the All-Star break and managed only one goal. They were beaten 4-1 by the New York Islanders on Tuesday.
A game between Original Six rivals that was billed as a prime goalie duel proved to be every bit of that.
The netminders took turns in making spectacular saves. Lundqvist snared a shot by Pacioretty with a lunging reach of his glove in the first period that had him staring skyward. Price was every bit as impressive, stopping good chances in front by Kevin Hayes and defensemen Dan Girardi and Marc Staal.
Price truly shined in the third period, first when he denied Rick Nash on a short-handed breakaway, and then when he turned aside Martin St. Louis with a twisting, sprawling save that left him flat on his back.
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Montreal thought it took the lead with 1:56 left in the first when former Ranger Dale Weise ripped a shot that Lundqvist stopped with his pad. A video review ensued, and it appeared Lundqvist's pad was in the net at the time, but there was no conclusive evidence.
The Rangers held an 11-10 shots advantage after one, but trailed 19-16 through two periods.
The opening frame was particularly testy, a somewhat unusual scenario considering the teams hadn't met since New York's 5-0 home victory over Montreal on Nov. 23. The Canadiens won 3-1 in the first game of the season series on Oct. 25.
While there was only one fight in the first period — a bout between former Rangers forward Brandon Prust and Tanner Glass with 1:22 remaining — there were several other skirmishes and a near-fight between New York's Chris Kreider and physical Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban.
The two came together with 6:55 left in the first. Kreider was called for unsportsmanlike conduct, and Subban was whistled for embellishment. When the two finished serving their penalties, they jawed at each other as they left the box. Kreider dropped his gloves and grabbed Subban, who kept his gloves on and showed no real interest in fighting. The two returned to the penalty box because of more unsportsmanlike conduct.
The first-period ended with a rough scrum along the boards in the Rangers end that featured Montreal's Lars Eller throwing punches at Derek Stepan. Both were sent off for roughing, but Eller received an extra 2 minutes that gave New York its first power play.
NOTES: Price has allowed two goals or fewer in 14 of his past 15 appearances. ... RW Lee Stempniak and D John Moore rejoined the Rangers lineup after being healthy scratches against the Islanders. They replaced C J.T. Miller and D Matt Hunwick. ...
