Recap – 3 Stars, Highlights, Presser: Habs Take Early Lead Then Rely on Price

Game 76 Away game 38 | Saturday March 29, 2014
	Game Recap: The Canadiens scored twice (Thomas Vanek, Max Pacioretty) in the opening period and then turned the game over to their goaltender. Carey Price was superb as the Panthers outshot the Habs 27-8 in the final 40 minutes.  Montreal went 0-for-5 on the power-play against the 30th ranked team on the penalty-kill with arguably Florida’s weakest goalie in the net.   Plus / Minus ▲  Carey Price, Thomas Vanek, Andrei Markov, Max Pacioretty, David Desharnais, Alexei Emelin ▼   Rene Bourque
4	1

Boxscore:

Summary:
Goal Scorers: MTL  Vanek(27), Pacioretty(34), Pacioretty(35), Desharnais(15)-EN FLA  Boyes(19) Goalies: MTL Price (W)  32-18-5 FLA Ellis (L)  5-9-0

Shots on Goal:

NHL Three Stars
	Max Pacioretty  MTL   Thomas Vanek  MTL  Carey Price  MTL

Coach Michel Therrien

• “The chemistry is there; [David Desharnais, Max Pacioretty and Thomas Vanek] have a lot of fun playing together and they were dominant again tonight.”
• “We’ll see at the end. Our goal is to make the playoffs. We’re in a playoff mindset right now. We gotta play hard. It’s going to be a good hockey game (on Tuesday against Tampa Bay.) For us, it’s the way we play.”  
• “[Mike Weaver] brings stability. He’s really solid, he’s been a great addition for us. I think that he’s fit really well with our club. He’s killing penalties, he’s doing a lot of good things.”
• [Josh Gorges] is doing good. I think he’s on the right track. But honestly, I’m not quite sure when he’s gonna be able to practice.”

Forward Max Pacioretty

• “It’s a good feeling. I haven’t been able to score against this team so it’s nice to come into this building a put a few on the board.”
• “[Scoring 35 goals] is nothing magical, I want to improve every year.”

Goalie Carey Price

• “Obviously, we’re trying to make a push toward the playoffs. It’s all about timing and being able to play well at the right time.”

Panthers head coach Peter Horachek

• “(Carey) Price was the biggest difference. They’re a very mature team that capitalizes on their chances.”

Panthers forward Brad Boyes

• “They capitalized on their chances. They’re a good team. I don’t think they played their best, but they found a way to win.”
• “No finish. We generated a lot of shots, a lot of chances.  Again, a lack of scoring obviously hurt us.”

To look back at the full lineups for tonight’s game, check the Game Day preview.

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