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Galchenyuk nets OT winner as Habs grab 2-0 lead

Apr 18, 2015 - 3:59 AM Montreal, QC (SportsNetwork.com) - Alex Galchenyuk scored the game-winner 3:40 into overtime as the Montreal Canadiens took a 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators in Game 2 of this Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.

The game-winner was scored when Tomas Plekanec picked off a bad clear at the top of the left circle and dished it down low for Brendan Gallagher, who got a shot on net from a sharp angle that Andrew Hammond turned aside. The rebound, though, came to the right circle where Galchenyuk fired a turnaround shot that found the back of the net for the win.

"We knew it was going to be a tough game," Galchenyuk said. "We wanted to win this one bad. We're happy we got the win."

Montreal now leads this best-of-seven series 2-0, and the matchup shifts to Ottawa for the next two games with Game 3 set for Sunday night.

"The reality is we're down two. We have to find a way to win a game," Senators head coach Dave Cameron said.

Max Pacioretty and P.K. Subban scored in regulation, while Carey Price made 29 saves for the Canadiens, who had taken a 4-3 victory in Game 1.

Clarke MacArthur and Patrick Wiercioch scored and Hammond finished the game with 39 saves for the Senators.

The Senators took a 1-0 lead with just 1:18 showing on the first period clock as MacArthur let fly with a wrister from the slot that went over the glove of Price.

Montreal dominated the second period, outshooting Ottawa 14-3 and scoring twice in the frame to take the lead.

The Canadiens tied the game on the power play at 7:18 off a crisp passing play. Andrei Markov held the disc in the high slot and slid it over to the left circle for David Desharnais, who sent it over to the right circle where Pacioretty slipped home a low wrister.

A turnover in the neutral zone led to the Canadiens taking a 2-1 lead at 16:30 as the team got the puck into the Ottawa end and a shot saw the rebound come out to the left boards. Devante Smith-Pelly eventually worked it out and fired a pass over to the right side where it bounced off the boards and came to the circle where Subban one-timed it in.

Ottawa tied the game with 6:35 to play in the third on the power play as Mark Stone swept the disc from the right corner to the low circle where Wiercioch made a move and snuck home a low shot between the pads of Price.

Game Notes

Pacioretty returned to play after missing the final two games of the regular season and Game 1 of this series with an upper-body injury ... Stone had been a game-time decision for Ottawa after suffering a microfracture in his right wrist off a slash from Subban in Game 1 ... The Canadiens were eliminated by the Senators in five games in the first round of the 2013 playoffs ... Ottawa was 1-for-3 on the power play while Montreal went 1-for-6 ... Stone finished with two assists, while Desharnais also had two helpers.