Canadiens 4 - 3 Hurricanes
Final - 2OT
  for this game

Gionta, Canadiens beat Hurricanes in SO

Nov 24, 2011 - 6:47 AM Raleigh, NC (Sports Network) - Brian Gionta scored the game-winning goal in the third round of the shootout, sending the Montreal Canadiens to a 4-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes at RBC Center.

Gionta, the Canadiens' captain, moved in slowly on Cam Ward, deked once and fired it past the netminder to the glove side for the winner.

Lars Eller, Mike Cammalleri and Travis Moen lit the lamp in regulation, while Carey Price made 30 saves in net for Montreal.

Brandon Sutter and Jiri Tlusty each had a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes, who had their two-game winning streak halted. Anthony Stewart also lit the lamp.

"We have parts of our game that we just have to try to improve," said Carolina head coach Paul Maurice.

Ward made 31 saves in defeat.

Carolina opened the scoring just 34 seconds in, when Tlusty got a pass at the point from Sutter and wristed a soft shot on net that fooled Price and snuck past him to give the Hurricanes the 1-0 lead.

The Hurricanes struck again at the six-minute mark of the opening period when Brett Sutter carefully popped a loose puck off the top of the net and back down onto the ice. Sutter then fed it behind the net to Tim Brent, who then found Stewart, and the big forward one-time it past Price for a quick 2-0 edge.

The Canadiens cut it to a one-goal game at 9:06 of the second stanza while shorthanded when Raphael Diaz fired one from the point that was stopped by Ward, but Eller was on the doorstep to direct it into the cage to make it 2-1.

Montreal knotted it at two just 27 seconds into the third period. P.K. Subban took a pass at the left point and fired one on net that was deflected past Ward in front by Cammalleri.

Brandon Sutter put the 'Canes back in front at 3:08 of the third stanza when he raced down the center lane in on net and got a nice feed from Patrick Dwyer before one-timing it past Price from in close to make it 3-2.

But Montreal had an answer in Moen, who directed the puck past Ward at 4:37 of the final period off a right point shot from Yannick Weber to forge a 3-3 deadlock.

Game Notes

Nine of the last 14 games between the teams have been decided by one goal...The Canadiens lead the all-time series, 93-62-23-1...Montreal finished 0-for-3 with the man advantage, while Carolina went 0-for-4 on the power play...The Canadiens will face Philadelphia on Friday, while Carolina will host the Winnipeg Jets, also on Friday.






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