(SportsNetwork.com) – The Winnipeg Jets will try to extend an eight-game point
streak on Tuesday night as they resume a road trip against the Montreal
Canadiens.
The Jets bounced back from a shootout loss to Pittsburgh with a 2-1 triumph
over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday in a shootout. Mathieu Perreault had the
winner in the sixth round.
After Colin Greening’s backhander was stopped in tight by Ondrej Pavelec,
Perreault skated slowly up the slot and wristed a shot past Craig Anderson on
the blocker side despite some subpar equipment.
“I think my last shift in overtime I blocked a shot with my stick and it was
cracked, but I didn’t know,” said Perreault. “If I shot it hard, I knew it
would snap. So I went in there and tried to put it in the corner.”
Tobias Enstrom scored Winnipeg’s lone goal in regulation and Pavelec made 37
saves for the Jets, who have gone 6-0-2 since a regulation loss to Tampa Bay
on Oct. 24.
Winnipeg won the opener of a five-game road trip and should stick with the
red-hot Pavelec tonight. The netminder has yielded one goal or fewer in five
of his past seven games, but is just 4-8-1 lifetime versus the Canadiens with
a 2.95 goals against average and .900 save percentage.
The Canadiens shoot for a third victory in a row after winning the opener of a
four-game homestand 4-1 over the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. Jiri Sekac and
Lars Eller finished with a goal and an assist each, while Brendan Gallagher
and Max Pacioretty also tallied.
Carey Price made 30 saves to help Montreal win back-to-back games following a
three-game slide.
“We made a lot of good decisions tonight,” said Price. “By moving the puck out
of our zone, we obviously were using our speed again. I thought we played a
pretty solid game, all around.”
Sekac netted his second career goal in his eighth game and will get a chance
to stick in the lineup as Rene Bourque was sent to the minors after clearing
waivers. The 22-year-old Sekac has dressed for the past two games after being
a healthy scratch for seven in a row.
Price is 11-4-3 with a 2.24 GAA and .922 save percentage in his career versus
the Jets, who have lost six of seven and nine of their last 11 against the
Habs.
Winnipeg had lost five straight in Montreal before recording a 2-1 victory at
the Bell Centre on Feb. 2.
