Tavares' Second Goal Lifts Islanders Over Canadiens In OT

MONTREAL (AP) — John Tavares scored his second goal of the game 1:51 into overtime to lift the New York Islanders to a 5-4 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night.

Mathew Barzal, coming off his second five-point game of the season, had a goal and two assists to keep up his scoring binge for New York. Anthony Beauvillier and Adam Pelech also scored to help the Islanders win their third straight after a season-high five-game losing streak, and Thomas Greiss finished with a career-high 52 saves.

Nicolas Deslauriers, Paul Byron, Jonathan Drouin and Max Pacioretty scored for Montreal, which twice tied the scored after falling behind by two goals. Carey Price stopped 19 shots.

Pelech gave the Islanders a 3-2 lead 2:37 into the second period as he pounced on a loose puck after Barzal's shot was blocked and swept it in from the slot for his first of the season.

After the Canadiens turned the puck over on a blind, backhand pass by Alex Galchenyuk, Tavares scored on a short-handed breakaway at 5:36 to give the Islanders their second two-goal lead.

For the second time this season, Montreal lost a power-play goal to the "skate in the air" offside call after a video review showed Byron's skate a millimeter or two off the ice before Schlemko scored at 12:19.

Drouin banged in a rebound of Jakub Jerabek's shot with 44 seconds left in the second for his first goal in 14 games since Nov. 29.

Pacioretty, with a goal in a fourth straight game, tied it 4-4 on a power play as he tipped in Jeff Petry's point shot with just under 7 minutes remaining in regulation.

Montreal owned the puck in the opening minute, but when Barzal got it, he set up Beauvillier for a goal on the Islanders' first shot on Price 1:24 into the game.

Barzal then raced down the right side and put a shot over Price's left shoulder at 6:29 to make it 2-0. The rookie scoring leader now has three goals and seven assists in his last three games.

Deslauriers was alone on the doorstep to beat Greiss at 8:01 to pull the Canadiens within one, Jerabek picked up his first NHL point on the play.

Byron took the rebound of David Schlemko's shot off the end boards to tie the score with 7:50 remaining in the opening period.

NOTES: The Canadiens were without centers Phillip Danault (concussion) and Andrew Shaw (lower body), who were both injured in Saturday's shootout loss to Boston. Daniel Carr and Byron Froese returned to the lineup. ... The Canadiens claimed C Logan Shaw off waivers from Anaheim. He will join the team Tuesday in Boston. ... Barzal was coming off a two-goal, three-assist game in the Islanders' 7-2 win at the New York Rangers on Saturday. ... The Islanders were missing six injured regulars — forwards Josh Bailey, Nikolai Kulemin, Andrew Ladd and Casey Cizikas, and defensemen Calvin de Haan and Johnny Boychuk.

UP NEXT

Islanders: Host New Jersey on Tuesday night.

Canadiens: At Boston on Wednesday night.

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