OTTAWA, Ontartio (AP) — Bobby Ryan’s third-period goal snapped a tie and lifted the Ottawa Senators to a 6-4 victory over the Boston Bruins in a back-and-forth game on Thursday night.
The surging Senators moved within two points of the Bruins in the race for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Ottawa has a game in hand.
Kyle Turris netted two goals, and Milan Michalek, David Legwand and Jean-Gabriel Pageau also scored for the Senators.
Andrew Hammond, making his fifth straight start, faced 35 shots and improved to 12-0-1 in his first 13 NHL starts. Ottawa native Ryan Spooner led the Bruins with two goals.
Carl Soderberg and Torey Krug also scored, and Tuukka Rask faced 32 shots as Boston dropped its third straight. The shots were 7-1 in favor of Montreal at that point.
Price was busier in the second period. The league leader in save percentage and goals-against average made back-to-back stops on Nathan Gerbe and Alexander Semin midway through the frame before making a toe save on Brad Malone a minute later.
The Canadiens rewarded their goalie’s efforts late in the period by padding Montreal’s lead. On a delayed penalty against Carolina, Desharnais made it 3-0 at 18:48 by sneaking behind an unsuspecting Eric Staal to tap in a cross-crease pass by defenseman Tom Gilbert.
With an assist on the goal, Weise recorded his first multi-point game since Feb. 8.
The Hurricanes pressed for a goal in the third period as they outshot Montreal 17-4. But it was Pacioretty who found the back of the net at 14:46— banking the puck in off Khudobin from a tough angle.
With 90 seconds on the clock, Price preserved his shutout by stopping Victor Rask on a breakaway.
NOTES: Cam Ward missed the game with the flu. Montreal-born Danny Biega, recalled from the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday, played his first career NHL game. The 23-year-old finished with a minus-2 rating. … Staal is without a point in his last four games.
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