After winning their 2009 playoff series 4-3, the Montreal Canadiens bested the Pittsburgh Penguins once again, going 3-1-0 in the two teams’ 2010-11 season series. This time around, Carey Price turned aside all 26 shots to spoil Pittsburgh’s 200th consecutive home sellout.
The Habs only needed 20 shots to score those three goals. Michael Cammalleri scored a goal and an assist while Travis Moen and Tomas Plekanec also generated tallies for the Canadiens.
While it was a nice afternoon for Price (who recorded his eighth shutout and 33rd win of the 2010-11 season), it wasn’t so great for Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury was pulled from the game about seven minutes into the second period after allowing three goals on only 12 shots. Brent Johnson made eight saves in relief work for the Pens.
The Canadiens find themselves only two points behind the Boston Bruins for the Northeast Division lead, although Boston holds one game in hand. Still, the B’s have lost four games in a row, so Montreal has a legitimate chance to catch up on their now-even-more-hated rivals.
Meanwhile the Penguins remain four points behind the Philadelphia Flyers for the Atlantic Division title and Philly also has two more games remaining. Pittsburgh is also in risk of losing home ice in the first round, as the Tampa Bay Lightning could move into a fourth-place tie with the Pens by beating the Florida Panthers tonight.
Then again, maybe the Penguins should just stop wearing those questionable Winter Classic duds, as they’ve apparently only scored three goals in the three games they’ve worn them.