The Montreal Canadiens got their return to NHL action off to an explosive start on Saturday, defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins in overtime after a tight game.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi opened the scoring for the Canadiens 11:27 minutes into the first period. At 6:53, Nick Suzuki doubled the Canadian franchise’s lead with an opportunistic wrist shot from the left face-off circle.
The second period looked as if it would remain goalless until Sidney Crosby banked a shot in off Price’s skate to put Pittsburgh on the scoreboard at 9:55. This was quickly followed by a power-play goal at 12:34 where Bryan Rust pulled Pittsburgh level.
The score remained deadlock throughout the third period, with Pittsburgh forward Conor Sheary missing a crucial penalty shot with 3:03 remaining on the clock. Once the game entered overtime, Montreal forward Jonathan Drouin also missed a penalty shot which he tried to score off a backhand.
While it seemed as if the game would end all square, Jeff Petry pulled one out of the bag with 6:03 remaining, thereby handing the Canadiens a dramatic late victory and a thrilling restart to their NHL campaign.
