MONTREAL — A timely goal for Nicklas Backstrom. Solid play in net from Braden Holtby.
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Business as usual for the Capitals, especially in Montreal.
Backstrom scored in the third period, Holtby made 20 saves and the NHL-leading Capitals beat the Canadiens 3-2 on Saturday.
"We haven’t been in many one-goal games lately," said Holtby, who has won his past 10 starts. "They made a good push and ramped up the intensity. They have some guys who aren’t afraid to crash the net. We knew we had to be aware of that. We kept them to one goal in those areas."
Washington improved to 12-0-2 in its past 14 games at Montreal. The Capitals’ last regulation loss at Bell Centre was on Jan. 10, 2009.
"They come at you in waves," said Carey Price, who made 27 saves for the Canadiens. "They’re a confident team right now. They make plays and come at you with speed. Their power play is a big threat out there."
Montreal was trailing 2-1 in the third when Canadiens forward Alexander Radulov was sent off for hooking Alex Ovechkin. Backstrom scored on the power play for his 15th goal at 5:16.
The Canadiens got one back when Max Pacioretty scored his team-leading 25th at 7:49, but the Capitals held on from there.
Game highlights: Peter Budaj posted his NHL-leading seventh shutout, Jeff Carter scored midway through overtime and the Kings won their fifth in a row, beating the host Flyers 1-0. Budaj, who wasn’t even on the Kings’ roster on opening night, extended his shutout streak to 144 minutes, 5 seconds. He made 17 saves. Budaj is filling in for starter Jonathan Quick, who hasn’t played since suffering a groin injury on opening night. "To be honest with you, if (Budaj) wasn’t playing how he is, we wouldn’t be in the position we are," Carter said. … Jarome Iginla had a goal and an assist, and the host Avalanche broke a nine-game losing streak by beating the Jets 5-2. "Today felt different than a lot of games," Iginla said. "We know we’re a better group than we’ve been playing. … This game it just felt like we went out and played as hard as we could and had fun doing it."
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