Reimer, Panthers blank Canadiens for fifth straight win

SUNRISE, Fla. -- James Reimer made 38 saves for his second shutout in three games, and the Florida Panthers defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-0 at BB&T Center on Saturday.

Connor Brickley had a goal and an assist, and Vincent Trocheck scored for Florida (17-16-5), which has won a season-high five straight games.
Carey Price made 31 saves for Montreal (16-19-4), which has lost four in a row.
WATCH: [All Canadiens vs. Panthers highlights]
Reimer, who was making his 11th consecutive start with Roberto Luongo out because of a lower-body injury, had 38 saves in a 1-0 victory against the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 23.
"You just have to stay in the moment and try to make saves," Reimer said. "You don't put too much expectation on yourself; you just come to the rink and try to give the boys a chance. When you're feeling [confident], the puck is big and you're reading plays. It's just doing the little things that can attribute to [success]."
Brickley scored at 4:08 of the second period after Mark Pysyk's shot from the point was blocked in front of the net. Brickley gathered the puck with his back to the net, spun around and beat Price with a wrist shot to the short side.
Brickley scored shortly after being moved from the third to the second line with Trocheck and Denis Malgin.

"Brickley has been real solid," Panthers coach Bob Boughner said. "I thought Trocheck's line was a little stagnant in the first period, and we made that change and Brickley put some energy in that line."
Trocheck made it 2-0 at 11:49 of the third period when he redirected a centering pass from defenseman MacKenzie Weegar into an open net on a 2-on-1 rush.
The Canadiens were shut out for the sixth time this season. They have scored three goals during their losing streak.
"I honestly know that those guys in there, the will and the desire was there," Montreal coach Claude Julien said. "Having said that, again, you don't score goals, you don't win hockey games. We had net-front presence tonight. That was there. We didn't get enough shots probably from the slot area, from those danger areas. There's a lot of guys that are squeezing their sticks right now and are feeling the pressure and because of that you're seeing a lot of things that are frustrating to watch for everybody."
Montreal ended a season-high seven-game road trip (2-5-0).
The Panthers ended a four-game homestand and will start a five-game trip Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild.

"Now that it's going good for us, it's fun," Reimer said. "A year can be a roller coaster. Sometimes things go your way; sometimes they don't. You just have to take it in stride and enjoy it when it's going well."

Goal of the game

Trocheck's goal at 11:49 of the third period.

Save of the game

Reimer's save on Charles Hudon at 18:09 of the second period.

Highlight of the game

Price's save on Denis Malgin at 18:45 of the first period.

They said it

"We're all just trying to support each other and work hard every day to get out of it. I'm sure no one in this room has really had to deal with this adversity. I sure haven't in my career. It would do no good to be negative about it. Yeah, I'm [ticked] off and I want results just as much as the next person. More. I take pride in the results I've had in my career. I can't speak for everyone else, but many frustrations kind of creep in and it's definitely there, but I can't let it take over my game and my mindset." -- Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty
"It's getting there, [but] I don't think it's where it needs to be yet. Obviously we've won five in a row and we're doing some good things. At the same time, we haven't played a full 60 minutes like we want. It's just a matter of putting it all together and playing a full three periods." --Panthers forward Vincent Trocheck on Florida's confidence level

Need to know

Montreal did not have a power play for the first time this season. … Canadiens defenseman David Schlemko returned to the lineup after missing two games because of the flu. … Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad had a game-high five blocked shots. … Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau's sister, Josiane, sang the Canadian national anthem.

What's next

Canadiens: Host the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TSN2, RDS, NBCSCA, NHL.TV)
Panthers: At the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; FS-N, FS-F, NHL.TV)