National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
San Jose 4, Montreal 0
When: 10:00 PM ET, Monday, March 2, 2015
Where: SAP Center at San Jose, San Jose, California
Referees: Brad Watson, Dean Morton
Linesmen: Steve Miller, Jay Sharrers
Attendance: 17236

Sharks 4, Canadiens 0: Newcomer Ben Smith and Joe Pavelski each recorded a goal and an assist while Alex Stalock posted his fourth career shutout as San Jose salvaged the finale of its four-game homestand.

Defenseman Matt Irwin and Patrick Marleau also scored for the Sharks, who snapped their eight-game home slide (0-6-2). Stalock made 20 saves en route to his second blanking of the season as San Jose registered its third consecutive shutout over Montreal.

Carey Price turned aside 33 shots for the Eastern Conference-leading Canadiens, who have lost four in a row and nine of the last 12 meetings with San Jose. Montreal allowed two power-play goals on three chances while going without an opportunity as it had its four-game winning streak halted.

The Sharks drew first blood less than seven minutes into the contest, when Smith - who was acquired from Chicago earlier in the day - tipped defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic's shot from the left point past Price at 6:51. Pavelski doubled the lead during a power play with 47 seconds left in the first period as his tip of blue-liner Brent Burns' left-point shot caromed off the left post and the goaltender's leg before entering the net.

Irwin made it 3-0 at 6:28 of the middle session with a blast from the left point that found the top right corner of the net through a screen. Marleau put things out of reach with 6:53 remaining in the third as he redirected a pass from high in the left faceoff circle by Pavelski for a man-advantage tally.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Pavelski's power-play goal was his 17th of the season, drawing him within one of league-leader Alex Ovechkin of Washington. ... Smith was obtained along with a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2017 draft for C Andrew Desjardins. ... San Jose also traded RW Tyler Kennedy to the New York Islanders for a 2017 conditional seventh-rounder. ... D Jeff Petry logged 18:15 of ice time in his debut with Montreal after being acquired from Edmonton for two draft picks earlier Monday, but C Brian Flynn and C Torrey Mitchell - who were obtained from Buffalo - were not in the lineup.
Top Game Performances
 
Montreal   San Jose
N/A Points Joe Pavelski 2
N/A Goals Joe Pavelski 1
N/A Assists Joe Pavelski 1
N/A Power Play Goals Joe Pavelski 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Carey Price .892 Save Percentage Alex Stalock 1.000
Carey Price 33 Saves Alex Stalock 20
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Montreal 20 0 0-0 1-3 6 24
San Jose 37 4 2-3 0-0 10 41
Upcoming Games
  • San Jose will play their next game on the road against Vancouver. The Sharks have a W/L % of .467 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Montreal will play their next game on the road against Anaheim. The Canadiens have a W/L % of .683 after a win and .591 after a loss.