March 3rd, 2005
The
Montreal Canadiens (28-26-11) are on the road to Madison Square Gardens and a visit with the
New York Rangers (37-18-8). The Canadiens are 1-2-0 against the Rangers this year including a 4-0 win the last time the played in New York.
Montreal grabs a 1-0 lead at 5:05 of the 1st period with C
Jeff Pilbeam's 13th goal of the year.
Pilbeam's shot from the right face off dot is assisted by RD
Steven Thornton and LD
Dominick Heatherington. Montreal goes up 2-0 at 16:42 with C
Dean Casey's 24th goal of the season. RW
Joey Mariani's shot hits
Casey in front of the net and beats the Rangers goalie. RD
Colton Knoll got the 2nd assist. The 1st period ends with the Rangers outshooting Montreal 14-8.
The Rangers make it 2-1 for Montreal at 17:09 of the 2nd period with a PP goal by LW
Francois Roy. Roy's shot from the slot beats G
Bill Wolfenbarger for his 29th goal of the year. The 2nd period ends with the shots 18-16 for the Rangers.
The Rangers tie the score 2-2 at 1:46 of the 3rd period with RW
Jeff Duke's 6th of the year.
Duke's scores from the slot. The Rangers go up 3-2 with another PP goal as Montreal has taken 4 minor penalties in the 3rd period. RW
Lukas Kocian tips one past
Wolfenbarger for his 27th of the season at 15:44. The Rangers add an empty netter at 19:46 with LW
Francois Roy's 30th goal from out side the left face off circle. The final shots are 33-22 for the Rangers.
Rangers 4
Montreal 2
Rangers LW
Francois Roy had 2 goals and an assist and was the 1st star in his 350th career NHL game. The 30 year old now has 30 goals and 73 points with 32 PIMs and a +16 rating in 64 games. Roy has set a career high for points this season exceeding the 60 points he had last year in 72 games for the Rangers.
Boston Bruins LW
Taneli Mattila had a goal and 2 assists in a 7-4 win over the Devils. The 31 year old now has 21 goals and 56 points with 18 PIMs and a +5 rating in 66 games. Mattila had a career high 22 goals in 72 games for the Bruins during the 2002-03 season.
New York Islanders C
Aleksandr Enukidze had a goal and an assist in a 4-3 win over the Flyers. The 22 year old now has 25 goals and 57 points with 16 PIMs and a +12 rating in 66 games. Enukidze set a career high this year with 25 goals, exceeding his previous high of 16 in 72 games set in 2002-03 with the Islanders.