Tomas Hertl scored two goals and Logan Couture had a goal and an assist to lead the San Jose Sharks to a 4-0 win over the host Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday.
Matt Nieto also scored for the Sharks, who received two assists from Kevin Labanc, while Kaapo Kahkonen (3-5-2) made 28 saves to post his first shutout of the season.
The Sharks won for just the second time in their past seven games, while Montreal ended a two-game winning streak after getting shut out for the second time this season.
Leading 1-0 entering the third period, the Sharks put the game away by scoring twice in a 75-second span early in the period.
Hertl pushed the Sharks’ lead to 2-0 when he deflected Labanc’s shot past goaltender Jake Allen at the 2:29 mark of the period, with Nick Cicek also assisting on the play.
The Sharks extended their lead to 3-0 when Matt Benning hit Couture cutting between two defenders for a breakaway that Couture finished by sliding the puck in between Allen’s legs at the 3:44 mark of the period. Marc-Edouard Vlasic also assisted on Couture’s team-leading 13th goal of the season.
Hertl capped the scoring with an empty-net goal off assists from Labanc and Timo Meier with 2:14 remaining.
The Sharks needed just 93 seconds to take the lead in the first period.
Couture slid the puck to Alexander Barabanov, whose wrap-around attempt was stopped by Allen’s leg pad, but Nieto pounced on the rebound for a 1-0 advantage.
Allen (6-8-0) made 20 saves for the Canadiens, who went 0-for-6 on the power play and outshot the Sharks 28-24.
The Sharks continue their four-game road trip on Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs before visiting the Ottawa Senators on Saturday and the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday.
Montreal opens a four-game road trip against the Calgary Flames on Thursday before visiting the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday, the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and the Seattle Kraken on Dec. 6.
–Field Level Media
