MONTREAL — Patrik Laine scored on the power play again, and the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Detroit Red Wings on consecutive nights with a 5-1 win Saturday.
Laine found twine for the eighth time — all with the man-advantage — in nine games since returning from a pre-season knee injury. The Finnish winger beat Alex Lyon with an attempted pass from the left circle at 19:21 in the first period.
Juraj Slafkovsky, Jake Evans, Emil Heineman and Brendan Gallagher also scored for Montreal (14-16-3), which extended its win streak to a season-high three games. Nick Suzuki and Lane Hutson pitched in with two assists.
Sam Montembeault stopped 20 shots in his ninth consecutive start — and second against Detroit in 24 hours. The Canadiens defeated the Red Wings 4-2 in Detroit on Friday.
Joe Veleno opened the scoring early in the first for Detroit (13-16-4), while Alex Lyon made 19 saves.
TAKEAWAYS
The Canadiens look like a different team with Laine in the lineup. Montreal is 6-3-0 since his debut on Dec. 3.
The Red Wings dropped to seventh in the Atlantic Division behind Montreal. Veleno, a 24-year-old from Montreal, scored in his third straight game after scoring once in his first 26 to start the season. Detroit didn’t have many other bright spots in a difficult game where the power play went 0-for-4.
KEY MOMENT
Laine scored the game-winner on Friday night with a one-timer that broke Moritz Seider’s stick en route to the back of the net. Midway through the first Saturday, Laine snapped Seider’s stick with a blistering shot again — only this time the puck deflected into the netting.
KEY STAT
Laine became the first player on record (since 1933-34) to score eight straight power-play goals for a team. He also became the third forward to score his first eight goals of a season with the man-advantage, joining Yvan Cournoyer (1966-67, 1965-66) and Owen Nolan (1995-96).
UP NEXT
Red Wings: Host the St. Louis Blues on Monday.
Canadiens: Visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 21, 2024.
Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press