In Pittsburgh, the Penguins’ Marcus Pettersson scored midway through extra time on Saturday for a3-2 win for the Pens over the visiting Montreal Canadiens.
“I don’t think I’m going to get a lot of chances to score in overtime, but it felt huge,” Pettersson said. “Going into the break, earn two points, battle back once again but this time come out on the right side. It brings some juice into the break, so to speak. Got to take advantage of it.”
Tristan Jarry made 25 saves in the win.
The Penguins moved to 22-17-7.
Montreal took a 1-0 lead at 15:53 of the opening stanza on a marker from Kaiden Guhle.
The Pens tied it in the middle frame when Lars Eller scored at 4:05.
“The most important thing in my mind was getting the two points,” Eller said. “That’s what I’m the most happy about. These points were crucial for us going into this break with a little bit better feeling getting three out of four in the last two (games). It wasn’t our best game. We were fighting it a little bit.
“We’re never quitting. We’re never giving up. We find a way, even when we’re not playing at our best, to come back into games and get points. That’s huge. Just happy, most of all, about the two points.”
Montreal dropped to 20-21-8.
“We played hard. We played strong. We just didn’t get the result,” Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. “Recharge. Just recharge. Get ready for a push.”
The Habs reclaimed the lead, 2-1, on a power play strike by Juraj Slafkovsky at 12:23 of the second period.
“That’s what I’ve been looking for my whole life,” Slafkovsky said. “I want to be the difference maker. I want to be the man. I’m working myself up there. Hopefully, one day, I’ll be there.”
Pittsburgh tied, it, 2-2, when Jake Guentzel scored midway through the third period.
“It was incredible. It’s one of the better ones that we’ve seen in a while,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said of the pass. “He has eyes in the back of his head. I don’t know how he knows he’s there or saw him. We grow accustomed to it. He makes so many plays, but that one was certainly a highlight-reel goal.
“We had quality looks. It seemed like a struggle to find the back of the net. I really liked our game in the third period. I thought the guys played real determined and we got a lot of momentum. Just a huge goal at a key time to give us an opportunity to get the win.”
Jake Allen made 30 saves in the loss.
“Obviously, we want a ‘W,’” Allen said. “But guys competed hard, played hard. Continuation from our last game. A lot of compete. A lot of effort. We got one of the two (points), but guys still should keep our heads high heading into this bye week, enjoy the week off and get regrouped here.”
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