Pro Sports

Huberdeau has 4-point game, Panthers beat Canadiens 6-5

Posted December 30, 2019 6:00 am

By BILL WHITEHEAD

Florida Panthers left wing Jonathan Huberdeau (11) skates with the puck as Montreal Canadiens center Phillip Danault (24) defends during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) - Florida's top line made sure the Panthers' good start to the weekend turned into a great one.

Jonathan Huberdeau scored two goals in just over 30 seconds and added two assists, and Florida's top line had a nine-point game as the Panthers beat the Montreal Canadiens 6-5 on Sunday night.

Aleksander Barkov had two goals and an assist and Mike Matheson added a goal and two assists. Noel Acciari also scored and Evgenii Dadonov finished with two assists. Sergei Bobrovsky made 37 saves.

The top line of Huberdeau, Barkov and Dadonov notched four goals and five assists as Florida earned four points this weekend in regulation wins over Atlantic Division rivals Detroit and Montreal.

'œHuby was special tonight,'ť Florida coach Joel Quenneville said. 'œHe had several nice looks, great plays. He had the puck on his stick a lot. I thought that line played well together.'ť

Jeff Petry had a goal and two assists, Tomas Tatar and Max Domi each added a goal and an assist, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Shea Weber also scored. Nick Suzuki assisted on three goals. Carey Price started his seventh straight game and made 28 saves.

Acciari grabbed a loose puck and scored at 4:34 for his 13th of the season on Florida's second shot in the first meeting between the teams this season.

Barkov beat Price between the pads on a spectacular breakaway last Feb. 17, and added another highlight-reel effort, scoring on a sweeping, blind backhander at 6:33 for his 12th of the season and a 2-0 lead.

'œCarey Price is one of the best goalies to ever play this game,'ť Barkov said. 'œHuge respect for him. Just playing against that team. ... I feel like there's extra motivation, good crowd here always. It gets us going.'ť

Tatar's team-leading 16th goal at 13:31 put the Canadiens on the board on their first power play.

Petry and Domi scored in the first 2:12 of the second. Barkov countered with his second goal of the game at 3:41, tying the score at 3-all.

Huberdeau, whose four points tied a career high, scored twice in a 35-second span for a 5-3 lead. His first goal at 13:30 from a poor angle caromed in off Ben Chiarot's skate. Barkov sprung Huberdeau with a long diagonal pass, freeing the left wing for an open shot from the left circle, and the Quebec native rifled in a shot for his team-high 16th at 14:05.

'œI'm not even surprised,'ť said Huberdeau of Barkov's dazzling long feed. 'œHe makes some great passes and is such a good player. He found me, and everything was working.'ť

Matheson sent in a shot 45 seconds into the third that hit Weber's stick, and Kotkaniemi answered on the power play at 4:11, while Weber scored at 18:08 with the extra skater on.

Price has allowed 17 goals in four games and dismissed any notion of fatigue when asked if he was fresh.

'œAs a daisy,'ť he replied.

Coach Claude Julien said he didn't like his club's defensive play.

'œYou can't be playing pond hockey in this league and expect to come out and win hockey games,'ť Julien said. 'œYou score nine goals in the last two games - five tonight, four (Saturday) - that should be enough on the road to win hockey games if you play well defensively.

'œWe're sloppy. Everybody's to blame.'ť

NOTES: Price played for just the second time in both of back-to-back contests, going 0-1-1 against Columbus and Ottawa on Nov. 19-20. '¦ F Jordan Weal played in his 200th NHL game. '¦ Domi's goal was his 100th point with Montreal and gave him a five-game goal streak, and Suzuki's three points set a career high. '¦ Huberdeau became the second-fastest Florida player to reach 50 points (38 games); Pavel Bure did it in 34 games in the 1999-2000 campaign. '¦ D Aaron Ekblad returned after missing Saturday's 5-4 win over Detroit.

UP NEXT

Canadiens: At Carolina on Tuesday.

Panthers: At Columbus on Tuesday.

___

More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Montreal Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry (26) reacts after scoring a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky falls to the ice after making a save during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Montreal Canadiens, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

Montreal Canadiens center Phillip Danault (24) and Florida Panthers right wing Evgenii Dadonov (63) fight for the puck during the third period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

Montreal Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher (11) goes for the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) falls to the ice as Montreal Canadiens left wing Artturi Lehkonen (62) pursues during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

Montreal Canadiens center Phillip Danault (24) skates with the puck as Florida Panthers left wing Jonathan Huberdeau (11) defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

The puck gets past Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (31) for a goal scored by Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) The Associated Press

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