Canadiens break ice with 5-1 rout
Associated Press
MONTREAL — Michael Cammalleri and the Montreal Canadiens finally solved Michael Leighton.
Cammalleri scored in the first period to end Montreal's two-game drought against Leighton, leading the Canadiens to a 5-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference final last night.
Tom Pyatt and Dominic Moore had a goal and assist apiece for Montreal, which earned its first win in the series. Brian Gionta and Marc-Andre Bergeron also scored as Leighton's shutout streak was snapped at 172:05.
"It's a big deal for us, don't get me wrong," Cammalleri said. "But for us, we like the way we play, and we thought the goals were going to come."
Philadelphia's Simon Gagne foiled Jaroslav Halak's shutout bid by scoring 8:22 into the third period.
The Flyers had won six straight, dating to their second-round series win over Boston during which they overcame a 3-0 series deficit. It was Leighton's first loss in five starts since taking over for injured Brian Boucher.
The eighth-seeded Canadiens are proving to be very resilient this postseason. Montreal already has rallied to eliminate top-seeded Washington and Pittsburgh.
"We are a much better team when our backs are against the wall," Gionta said. "We've dealt with it all year."
PHILADELPHIA 0 0 1 — 1
MONTREAL 2 1 2 — 5
First period—1, Montreal, Cammalleri 13 (Subban, Hamrlik), 7:05. 2, Montreal, Pyatt 2 (Lapierre, Moore), 16:52. Penalties—O'Byrne, Mon (delay of game), :27; Carcillo, Phi (tripping), 10:21; Pronger, Phi (tripping), 18:27; Coburn, Phi (hooking), 19:35.
Second period—3, Montreal, Moore 4 (Pyatt, Gorges), 11:33. Penalties—Lapierre, Mon (slashing), 6:09; Leino, Phi (hooking), 8:24; Timonen, Phi (roughing), 13:03; A.Kostitsyn, Mon (roughing), 13:03.
Third Period—4, Montreal, Gionta 8 (Hamrlik, Subban), 2:00. 5, Philadelphia, Gagne 7 (Carcillo, Pronger), 8:22. 6, Montreal, Bergeron 2 (Subban, Gomez), 19:29 (pp). Penalties—Coburn, Phi (roughing), 3:37; Plekanec, Mon (roughing), 3:37; Gorges, Mon (holding), 14:07; Pronger, Phi (interference), 18:09; Briere, Phi (slashing), 18:09; Hartnell, Phi, major (fighting), 18:09; Richards, Phi (roughing), 18:09; Hamrlik, Mon, major (fighting), 18:09; Spacek, Mon (roughing, slashing), 18:09; Coburn, Phi (closing hand on puck), 19:01.
Shots on Goal—Philadelphia 9-9-8—26. Montreal 17-11-10—38. Power-play opportunities—Philadelphia 0 of 3; Montreal 1 of 6. Goalies—Philadelphia, Leighton 4-1-0 (38 shots-33 saves). Montreal, Halak 9-7-0 (26-25).
A—21,273 (21,273). T—2:35.
CONFERENCE FINALS
All times Hawai'i
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Philadelphia 2, Montreal 1
May 16: Philadelphia 6, Montreal 0
May 18: Philadelphia 3, Montreal 0
Yesterday: Montreal 5, Philadelphia 1
Tomorrow: Philadelphia at Montreal, 9 a.m.
Monday, May 24: Montreal at Philadelphia, 1 p.m.
x-Wednesday, May 26: Philadelphia at Montreal, 1 p.m.
x-Friday, May 28: Montreal at Philadelphia, 1 p.m.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Chicago 2, San Jose 0
May 16: Chicago 2, San Jose 1
May 18: Chicago 4, San Jose 2
Today: San Jose at Chicago, 2 p.m.
Sunday, May 23: San Jose at Chicago, 9 a.m.
x-Tuesday, May 25: Chicago at San Jose, 3 p.m.
x-Thursday, May 27: San Jose at Chicago, 2 p.m.
x-Saturday, May 29: Chicago at San Jose, 2 p.m.
x-if necessary