Shane Pinto scored twice for the Ottawa Senators, who kept the Montreal Canadiens from clinching a playoff spot with a 5-2 victory on Friday that also snapped a six-game winning streak for the visitors.
The 24-year-old center’s two goals give him 50 for his career. Ridly Greig scored a goal and assisted on Pinto’s first. Dylan Cozens ended a 10-game stretch without a goal and Drake Batherson also scored. Michael Amadio tied a season high by helping on two goals. All six defensemen had an assist, with Thomas Chabot’s assist being the 300th point of his career.
Linus Ullmark earned his sixth win in his last seven starts by turning away 20 shots.
Christian Dvorak and Nick Suzuki scored for Montreal, with Juraj Slafkovsky, Cole Caufield, Joel Armia and Jayden Struble getting assists. Sam Montembeault stopped 28 shots as his personal five-game winning streak came to an end.
Ottawa fans were already celebrating before the game as the Senators (43-30-6, 92 points) played their first home game since clinching a playoff spot earlier this week. Pinto only added to their jubilation as he scored from the slot on the first shift just 28 seconds after the opening faceoff.
Cozens doubled the lead less than four minutes later. Greig made it 3-0 65 seconds into the second period, scoring from right in front of the crease off a behind-the-goal pass from Amadio. Jake Sanderson earned his 44th assist in setting up the play.
Dvorak got one back for Montreal with 17:34 left in the second as Armia sprung him from the neutral zone as he came onto the ice. It would stay that way for nearly 12 minutes despite the Canadiens (39-31-9, 87 points) getting two power-play chances during that span.
Failing to convert those haunted Montreal as Batherson scored with 5:46 remaining by redirecting Chabot’s shot from above the left faceoff circle. Suzuki, 78 seconds later, extended his points streak to seven straight games and 12 in 13 with a goal created by a poor clearance in the Senators’ end.
Ottawa held Montreal to just four shots on goal in the third period. Pinto capped the night on an empty-netter with 2:26 remaining.
–Field Level Media
