The Canadiens beat the Penguins 5-4 at the Bell Centre on Saturday night. It was their fifth straight win, per the AP, and it came in regulation. Josh Anderson had two goals and an assist. The AP also credits Chris Kreider with a goal and an assist, and says Oliver Kapanen and Alexandre Texier scored as well. The AP said Montreal returned home from an undefeated four-game Western trip.
The box score shows how the game went. It was 2-2 after one period. Montreal scored three times in the second to lead 5-3, and that margin held until late. Sidney Crosby scored in the third, his third point of the night, to make it 5-4, according to the Penguins' recap, which Yahoo Sports and Pensburgh both ran. Our box score has him with a goal and two assists. Pittsburgh could not find the equalizer. Sergei Murashov stopped 22 of 27 shots in the Penguins' net and was credited with 57:40, which fits with the goalie being pulled late. Jacob Fowler made 25 saves on 29 shots for Montreal.
Pittsburgh scored once on the power play in three chances. Montreal went 0-for-3 with the man advantage. The Canadiens made up for it by blocking 22 shots to the Penguins' nine and outhitting them 22-13. They also won 32 of 56 faceoffs. Shots were close, 29 for Pittsburgh and 27 for Montreal.
The outlets don't agree on Montreal's record. The AP puts the Canadiens at 9-3-2. BenchScout's standings table has them at 8-3, fourth in the Atlantic Division, with a streak of W4. That count may not yet include Saturday's result. Our table also shows Kapanen at 0 points through six games, even though the reporting credits him with a goal. The full-game box score is the better source for the night's scoring.
Before Saturday, Montreal had won 2-0 at St. Louis on Tuesday and 5-2 at Dallas on Thursday. Anderson now has a multi-goal night to add to a season line that our table, which may lag, shows as 4 goals and 2 assists in 13 games, with 14 penalty minutes.
Pittsburgh is 5-7 and sixth in the Metropolitan Division. It has lost two straight, 4-3 to Utah on Thursday and now this game. Crosby's season line in our table is 3 goals and 4 assists in 13 games with a minus-8 rating, so Saturday was a strong night for a player who has been struggling. It still didn't produce a result.
Both teams are at home on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Montreal hosts Winnipeg, and Pittsburgh hosts Vegas.
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