Morgan Rielly scored the go-ahead goal in the third period Wednesday night and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the visiting Montreal Canadiens 5-2 in the season opener for both teams.
Bobby McMann, Calle Jarnkrok, Auston Matthews (empty net) and William Nylander (empty net) also scored for the Maple Leafs.
Nylander, Steven Lorentz and John Tavares each had two assists, and Rielly added an assist. Toronto goalie Anthony Stolarz stopped 29 shots.
Oliver Kapanen and Zack Bolduc scored while Sam Montembeault made 22 saves for the Canadiens.
Toronto took a 3-2 lead on Rielly’s goal from the slot at 9:02 of the third period after Matthew Knies was foiled on a breakaway. Montreal defenseman Lane Hutson lost his stick after coming close to scoring before Knies broke out on his sortie.
Montembeault was removed for an extra attacker and Matthews won a race for the puck deep into the Montreal zone before knocking the puck into the empty goal at 18:28 of the third. Nylander followed suit with his empty-netter at 19:45.
Montembeault was tested twice early before McMann tipped in Nylander’s shot at 1:00 of the first period after Tavares gained possession following a faceoff.
Kapanen scored his first NHL goal at 5:39 of the first to tie the game while the Canadiens were short-handed. He picked off an errant pass in the neutral zone, skated into the Toronto zone unimpeded before unleashing a shot from the right circle.
The improving Canadiens pressed the Maple Leafs and made them look disorganized for parts of the opening 20 minutes that looked very much like an opening-night contest.
Montreal took the lead at 1:30 of the second period when Bolduc slipped in a backhand from the edge of the crease on a rebound from Brendan Gallagher’s shot.
Toronto responded at 5:40 of the second when Jarnkrok pounced on the rebound from Rielly’s shot and scored on a shot through the five-hole. Lorentz was along the barrier when he kicked the puck back to Rielly.
Tavares hit the post on a 35-foot wrist shot at 18:24 of the second before Montreal threatened with a couple of chances on goal to end the period.
–Field Level Media
