Juraj Slafkovsky scored one goal and provided two assists, whilst Phillip Danault and Noah Dobson each recorded a goal and an assist as the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Ottawa Senators 4–2 on Saturday evening at the Bell Centre.
For Ottawa, Claude Giroux scored one goal and provided two assists as the Senators beat the Canadiens 4-3 at the Canadian Tire Centre.
The Canadiens had decided to field most of their veteran forwards in Montreal. They responded well, creating several scoring chances against a group labelled the ‘American League’ side in the Senators’ camp.
Chris Kreider also scored for the Canadiens. Jacob Fowler conceded two goals from 18 shots before being replaced by Samuel Montembeault after 30:43 of play. Montembeault was flawless against 14 shots.
Philip Tomasino and Tyler Boucher found the net for the Senators. Samuel Ersson made 22 saves.
The game also featured Montreal captain Nick Suzuki going up against his brother Ryan, who is with the Senators, for the first time at the NHL level.
The brothers’ parents were in the stands and the two coaches marked the occasion by having them meet at centre for the opening face-off.
Nick Suzuki, 27, is coming off his best season in the NHL yet, with a career-high 101 points and a Selke Trophy win. Ryan Suzuki, 25, was a first-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2019 and has appeared in two NHL games in his career. He signed with the Senators this summer after scoring 13 goals and 48 points in 66 games for the AHL’s Chicago Wolves last season.
In Ottawa, Sasha Pastujov recorded a goal and an assist, whilst Brett Berard and Alex Belzile also scored for the Canadiens. Jakub Dobes made 21 saves.
Drake Batherson, Wiliam Eklund and Carter Yakemchuk scored the Senators’ other goals. Linus Ullmark made 20 saves.
The main downside of the evening for the Canadiens was their performance when shorthanded. The Senators scored all six of their goals on the power play.
The Canadiens will kick off their season on Tuesday, when they travel to face the Toronto Maple Leafs.
With files from Sportsnet
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