March 10, 2026; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens forward Brendan Gallagher (11) fights Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake McCabe (22) during the first period at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Image Rookies Oliver Kapanen and Philip Danault each scored in the first period to give the host Montreal Canadiens a 3-1 win over the struggling Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night.
Jake Evans converted an empty net goal with 28 seconds left in the third quarter to seal the Canadiens’ third win in four meetings with the Maple Leafs this season.
Jakub Dobe made 17 saves, including a stellar right pad stop from Toronto captain Auston Matthews, to improve to 11-1-2 in his last 14 games.
Montreal’s leading scorer Cole Caufield suffered an apparent injury and was limited to 10:27 of ice time. He was seen skating cautiously during TV timeouts and played sparingly in the third period.
Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson recorded an assist, extending his point streak to four games.
William Nylander scored in the second period and Joseph Wall stopped 30 shots for the Maple Leafs, who have lost eight straight (0-6-2) since the Olympic break.
Montreal dominated Toronto in the first period, posting an 18-5 shot advantage and building a 2-0 lead.
Kapanen backhanded a loose puck past Woll at the doorstep to open the scoring at 4:46 of the first period for his 20th goal of the season. Kapanen also scored in Montreal’s 5-2 loss to Toronto on October 8.
Less than 10 minutes later, defender Kaiden Guhle’s dump accidentally deflected and landed in front of the goal. Danault deftly handled the rolling puck and scored his fifth goal of the season. All of this was after he was acquired from the Los Angeles Kings.
Nylander scored from a sharp angle after converting a return pass through the slot from Easton Cowan to halve the deficit with 5:27 left in the second period. It was Nylander’s 22nd goal of the season and fourth during an ongoing six-game point streak.
–Field level media
