MONTREAL — Sam Montembeault made 48 saves, Cole Caufield scored on a first-period power play and the Montreal Canadiens beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 1-0 on Wednesday night in the season opener for both teams.
Montembeault set an NHL record for saves in a season-opening shutout.
“Going into the Bell Centre, first game of the season, you want to do well,” Montembeault said. “Big crowd and everybody was excited for this game — but I just turned those nerves into energy. And it went well.”
Caufield scored at 7:48 of the opening period, finishing off a tic-tac-toe play with Juraj Slafkovsky and Kirby Dach. The Canadiens were 1 for 5 on the power play after going 0 for 30 in the preseason.
Anthony Stolarz made 26 saves for Toronto after expected starter Joseph Woll was held out of the lineup. Coach Craig Berube said Woll had “lower-body tightness.”
“You almost get 50 shots on net and you don’t get a goal — their goalie played well,” Berube after his first regular-season game behind Toronto’s bench.
Canadiens: Montembeault became the seventh Canadiens goalie with a season-opening shutout. He has two career NHL shutouts.
Maple Leafs: Toronto had trouble staying out of the penalty box with five minor penalties in the first 40 minutes. The Maple Leafs were 0 for 4 on the power play and hit three posts in the second period.
Midway through the second period, Montembeault made a glove save on a one-timer from the slot by Auston Matthews, the NHL goals leader last season with 69.
“We did more than enough to score more than one goal tonight,” Matthews said. “That didn’t happen.”
Caufield scored in the opener against the Maple Leafs for the third straight season. The 23-year-old American also had his 150th career point in his 206th game, becoming the fastest Canadien to reach that mark since Saku Koivu in 1997-98.
Both teams are back in action Thursday night. The Canadiens are at Boston, and the Maple Leafs visit former Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe and New Jersey.
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