David Desharnais scored two goals and added an assist and Erik Cole posted a goal and two assists to lead a six-goal Montreal offensive barrage, vaulting the lowly Canadiens to a 6-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings, the NHL's top club, 7-2 Wednesday night at Bell Centre.
Red Wings Vs. Canadiens: Desharnais, Cole Lead Habs To 7-2 Pummeling Of Wings
With Detroit leading the League with 67 points and having won their last seven games, coupled with Les Habitants still struggling mightily, it seemed a blowout was probably to be expected. It’s just doubtful that anyone would have predicted the outcome to end up in the Canadiens’ favor.
With Detroit leading the League with 67 points and having won their last seven games, coupled with Les Habitants still struggling mightily, it seemed a blowout was probably to be expected in this meeting of Original Six clubs. It’s just doubtful that anyone would have predicted the outcome to end up in the Canadiens’ favor.
It was a night of many firsts early on for the home team, as newcomer Rene Bourque, playing in his fourth game in Montreal since being acquired from Calgary last week, scored his first goal as a Canadien. Scott Gomez sent a pass from the left wing side across the crease that hit off Bourque's leg as he tangled with Niklas Kronwall in front of goaltender Jimmy Howard, and it banked into the Detroit net for a 1-0 Montreal lead at 5:08.
The Habs would double their lead midway through the opening period when defenseman Alexei Emelin took an Andrei Kostitsyn feed and scored his first career NHL goal from the top of the right faceoff circle.
Desharnais and Tomas Plekanec added late goals for Montreal, who chased Howard at the end of the period. Howard's replacement, Ty Conklin didn't fare much better, as he was greeted with early second period goals by Max Pacioretty and Desharnais' second of the night to make it a 6-0 margin.
The Red Wings weren’t mounting much of a retaliation to the Canadiens’ attack, as they had managed to record just eight shots on goal at the point in the game when they were trailing by six goals.
Detroit's Jiri Hudler scored both Red Wings' goals in the third period, ending Carey Price's shutout bid just 21 seconds into the third period when he rifled a shot over the Montreal netminder's glove side shoulder. Hudler now has 15 goals on the season.
Red Wings' captain and one of the League's best defensemen Nicklas Lidstrom was scratched due to a bout with the flu, and his teammates looked lost in their own zone in his absence. This was accentuated late in regulation, when Lars Eller's pass across the Detroit crease was rammed home by Cole as Wings' blueliner Jakub Kindl did little to deter the winger from picking up his 19th goal of the year with just 1:23 remaining in regulation to set the final score.
Bourque and Pacioretty each had a goal and assist, while defenseman Tomas Kaberle added two helpers.
Howard, the NHL’s leader in wins, yielded four goals on just 12 shots and took the loss, dropping his record to 30-11-1. After losing four straight decisions (0-3-1), Price stopped 25 of 27 shots to win his second consecutive game and even his record at 17-17-8.
See More:
