Montreal defenseman Andrei Markov scored late in overtime on a power play to send the New Jersey Devils to their first loss of this NHL lock-out shortened season after a rally by the Devils in the third period fell short. Montreal won the game by a score of 4-3. With the loss, the Devils fell to 3-0-1 on the season, but still picked up a point.
The Devils were once again guilty of sloppy play and the young and quick Montreal team capitalized on numerous mistakes to take advantage. The Devils were able to get a second period goal from Patrik Elias, and two third period goals from David Clarkson and Dainius Zubrus to send the game to overtime. Elias finished with a goal and two assists to record his team leading 900th point of his career, tying Tony Amonte for 96th place on the NHL all-time points list and now ranks ninth among active players.
“It’s great,” Elias said of reaching 900 points. “I enjoy it and I enjoy doing it here in Montreal. It’s a great hockey town and I always like to play here. So, it’s a nice accomplishment. I don’t know if I’ll get my 1,000th in New Jersey. Maybe.”
The 36-year-old Elias will become an unrestricted free agent after this season and there have been no negotiations on a new contract.
The Canadiens, who had a 32-25 shot advantage, posted a rare win over Brodeur, who is 43-19-5 against Montreal in his lengthy career. New Jersey had won their last eight games at the Bell Center.
Peter Harrold, Adam Larsson, and Krystofer Barch were healthy scratches for New Jersey. Adam Henrique remains on injured reserve and is expected to be back in the line-up in about a week. The Devils now look to rebound from their first loss of the season as they head to Boston for a match-up with the Bruins on Tuesday night.
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