Markstrom makes 26 saves, Flames defeat Canadiens for third straight win

MONTREAL -- Jacob Markstrom made 26 saves, and the Calgary Flames won their third straight game, 4-1 against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Wednesday.

Mark Giordano had a goal and an assist for the Flames (19-21-3), who won the opener of a two-game set following a 3-2 overtime victory at the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday.
It was the first of five games between the teams in 13 days. They will play here again Friday.
"I think we're pretty focused on how we have to play to beat Montreal," Calgary coach Darryl Sutter said. "We knew that last night we were going to have to check our [rear ends] off to try and win that game. We did, and I think that in the first period we came out and played really well."
Brett Kulak scored his first goal in two years for the Canadiens (18-13-9), who have lost four of five.
Montreal is in fourth place in the seven-team Scotia North Division, four points ahead of Calgary, which has played three more games. The top four teams will qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"We're not looking for any excuses," Kulak said. "We know it was in our favor to come in and have the jump on them, and they played hard and it's that time of year. It's going to be tight all game and it's just the little things that are going to make the difference between winning or losing."
Jake Allen made 30 saves and is 1-4-0 in five straight starts with Carey Price out because of a lower-body injury.
"He battles and he comes ready to play, and I think he's given us great performances every time he's in the net," Kulak said.
The Flames took a 1-0 lead at 3:58 of the first period when Noah Hanifin scored off a face-off. Mikael Backlund drew the puck back to the left point, and Hanifin shifted to his right and beat Allen with a slap shot.

Giordano made it 2-0 when he scored 29 seconds into the second period on a slap shot from the left point.
"We need to do a better job of clearing out the net front and giving our goalies a better chance to see the puck because if they're shooting from that far out, they should be able to see the puck," Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry said.
Kulak scored his first goal since March 28, 2019 at 10:55 of the second period to cut it to 2-1. Josh Anderson swiped the puck ahead to the neutral zone and Jonathan Drouin made a backhand pass to Kulak, who carried it down the middle and got past Hanifin before shooting past Markstrom stick side.
Josh Leivo gave the Flames a 3-1 lead when he scored on a backhand over Allen's right pad at 12:49 of the third period.
Sean Monahan scored an empty-net goal at 18:50 for the 4-1 final.
"We have to play fast against these guys," Hanifin said. "And I thought we've done that the last few times we've played them. But we've got four more games against them and they're going to ramp up. But we're going to ramp up as well and it's going to be a huge game coming up."
Markstrom has won four straight starts against Montreal. The Flames have outscored the Canadiens 11-3 since a 4-2 loss at Calgary on Jan. 28.
"Our games against Montreal have been great," Markstrom said. "I've been getting a lot of support and just been feeling good."
NOTES: Giordano passed
Al MacInnis
with his 23rd game-winning goal, the most by a Flames defenseman. … Price skated before the game for the first time since he aggravated a lower-body injury April 5. … Canadiens forward Joel Armia had three shots on goal and three hits in 13:37 of ice time after he missed eight games due to NHL COVID-19 protocol. … Montreal defensemen Erik Gustafsson and Jon Merrill will join their new teammates prior to a two-game set at the Edmonton Oilers next Monday and Wednesday. Gustafsson was traded to the Canadiens by the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday after Merrill was acquired in a trade with the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday. Each must quarantine for seven days upon arrival in Canada.