Forward breaks tie late in 3rd; Meier gets assist in return from injury for New Jersey

Recap: Canadiens at Devils 1.17.24

By Mike G. Morreale

@mikemorrealeNHL NHL.com Senior Draft Writer

January 18, 2024

NEWARK, N.J. -- Cole Caufield scored the go-ahead goal and had an assist, and the Montreal Canadiens recovered for a 3-2 win against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Wednesday.

Caufield scored on a rebound from the slot at 15:29 of the third period to give Montreal a 3-2 lead. Luke Hughes and Alexander Holtz tied it 2-2 for New Jersey with consecutive power-play goals in the opening 1:38 of the period.

"It's tough to start a period with a [3:16] penalty kill but that stuff happens, and we knew that could happen," Caufield said. "I like the way we stuck together and found a way to win."

Juraj Slafkovsky and Joshua Roy scored, and Sean Monahan had two assists for the Canadiens (19-18-7), who have won two straight following three losses. Sam Montembeault made 28 saves in his sixth start in nine games.

"[New Jersey] had momentum, the crowd got behind them, but we took it upon ourselves to make a push, and we did," Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. "We had numerous shifts in a row in their zone and put pressure, made plays and got chances. We're able to fight back and get the third goal, got some good defensive plays and [Montembeault] was good. It's a big win."

MTL@NJD: Caufield jams home a loose puck to grab the lead in the 3rd

Nico Daws made 22 saves in his third straight start for the Devils (22-17-3), who have lost two in a row and are 1-3-1 in their past five games.

"We had a little breakdown on the last goal ... all we had to do was box out," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said. "Our goalie made the save (on the initial shot by Monahan). We just have to box out. It stings and stings even worse when there's five minutes left."

Timo Meier had an assist and four shots on goal in 20:41 of ice time in his return after missing six games with a mid-body injury sustained Dec. 30.

"It's frustrating, but what can you do?" Meier said. "You just got to keep going and stick with it, and if you do that it's going to come. We battled back and we shot ourselves in the foot by allowing a goal with about five minutes left."

Slafkovsky gave Montreal a 1-0 lead at 12:48 of the first period after scoring on a shot from the slot. Caufield had the primary assist on a waist-high slap-pass. The goal came 30 seconds after Montembeault denied Meier on a wrist shot in front of the net.

"It's pretty nice to play with [Caufield]," said Slafkovsky, who scored in his second straight game. "He's a special player and he can make plays like these. I'm just happy that I was in the right spot at the right time. It was kind of bouncing and I whacked it in."

MTL@NJD: Slafkovsky opens the scoring off of a sweet pass from Caufield

Roy extended it to 2-0 at 14:45 of the second period on a snap shot from the high slot off a 2-on-1 with Monahan. It was Roy’s first NHL goal in his third career game.

"He's shown poise and confidence," Caufield said of Roy. "He's been good in the defensive zone and obviously he's a special, gifted player offensively. I know there's many more to come."

Luke Hughes cut it to 2-1 on a wrist shot 47 seconds into the third on the power play, scoring from the right point through a screen provided by Meier. Holtz tied it 2-2 at 1:38 with another power-play goal on a slap shot from the top of the left face-off circle.

MTL@NJD: Holtz evens the score 50 seconds later

Montembeault made 10 saves in the second. He denied a backhand attempt by Erik Haula on a breakaway at 7:39 and turned away Nico Hischier alone at the right post during a New Jersey power play at 19:23.

"I was very proud of the guys," Montembeault said. "They didn't put their heads down when the game was tied, and they kept working."

The game marked the first meeting between the Nos. 1 and 2 picks in the 2022 NHL Draft, fellow Slovakia-born countrymen Slafkovsky (No. 1) and Devils defenseman Simon Nemec, who had an assist.

"I was trying to give it to him a little bit during the game, but I think he was pretty focused," Slafkovsky said with a grin.

NOTES: Caufield scored his sixth game-winning goal of the season, tied for third in the NHL behind Sam Reinhart (nine) of the Florida Panthers and Elias Pettersson (eight) of the Vancouver Canucks. …The Caufield, Nick Suzuki and Slafkovsky line has combined for 10 points (five goals) in their past three games. ... New Jersey defenseman Cal Foote had a game-high five blocked shots in 13:01 of ice time in his season debut. ... The Devils went 2-for-4 on the power play after going 0-for-12 in their previous five games.