Canadiens overcome Auston Matthews, Maple Leafs

TORONTO-- Andrew Shaw scored 1:06 into overtime to give the Montreal Canadiens a 3-2 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre on Saturday.
"It feels great; it's that time of year where we need to start bearing down and getting ready for those tight games," Shaw said. "The team played great, Carey [Price] was really good for us, and to get the two points is a step in the right direction."
Auston Matthews scored twice, including his 30th goal of the season, which tied the game 1:19 into the third period, for Toronto (28-20-13). Matthews is the third rookie in Maple Leafs history to score 30 goals in one season, joining Wendel Clark (34) in 1985-86 and Daniel Marois (31) in 1988-89.

WATCH: All Canadiens vs. Maple Leafs highlights
"I didn't think like that," Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock said when asked if he expected Matthews to score 30 goals. "I just thought, 'Let's make him better each and every day.' I know he's an elite player, I never spent any time thinking about what his stats would be, just that he would help us win. That's what I like about him: He helps you win because he plays right. He's going to be our No. 1 center here, if he's not already, in no time. He'll be the guy who's driving our franchise."
Price made 32 saves for Montreal (33-21-8), which is 2-4-0 in its past six games.
"I just thought he moved around well, he found those pucks and he tracked them well," Canadiens coach Claude Julien said. "That's the Carey Price we've got used to seeing and it's nice to see him back playing that same way. He's given us a chance to win and he's also given us confidence because we know if there's a breakdown, he's making the save."

The Canadiens swept the four-game season series with the Maple Leafs, who scored first Saturday for the first time. Montreal is five points ahead of Toronto for first place in the Atlantic Division.
Matthews' shot deflected off Montreal defenseman Alexei Emelin in the slot and fooled Price to put the Maple Leafs up 1-0 at 10:54 of the first period.
"They gave us everything we could handle, but we pushed back and did a great job of staying focused, even down 1-0," Julien said. "It was important for us to not panic and stay the course and we did."
Toronto outshot Montreal 12-5 in the second period but the Canadiens scored twice to take a 2-1 lead. Max Pacioretty tied it 1-1 at 7:29 with a power-play goal, one-timing a pass from Alex Galchenyuk, who scored at 16:21.
"Every night, [Price is] great," Montreal defenseman Shea Weber said. "You know what you're going to get with him and that's why he's one of the best in the world."
Matthews tied it 2-2 when he deflected a centering pass from Zach Hyman past Price at the top of the crease. His 30 goals are tied with Patrik Laine of the Winnipeg Jets for the NHL rookie lead and four behind Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the overall lead. It's the first time since the NHL Draft was introduced in 1963 that the top two picks (Matthews, Laine) each scored at least 30 goals the following season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Goal of the game

Nikita Nesterov passed to Galchenyuk, who had gotten away from Maple Leafs forward Nazem Kadri behind the net. Galchenyuk controlled the puck with his skates and put a shot high to the glove side.

Save of the game

With the Canadiens killing a penalty at 13:57 of the second period, Price moved quickly to his left to make a save on Matthews and keep the score 1-1.

Highlight of the game

Matthews had a breakaway 56 seconds into overtime with a chance to complete a hat trick, but Price made the save with the shaft of his stick.
"Just got a knob on it," Price said. "Any player will tell you he hates that, but I'll take it."

Unsung performance of the game

Maple Leafs defenseman Matt Hunwick knocked the puck off the goal line at 4:55 of the first period with Canadiens forward Torrey Mitchell trying to push it across.

They said it

"He's all right; I think he'll be a good player in this league. He's a special talent, very aware of all of his surroundings. A quick shot, quick release, they've got a good one with him." -- Canadiens goaltender Carey Price on Auston Matthews
"Of course, it's obviously a pretty frustrating loss for us. I thought we did everything that we could to win the game and we just came up short, so obviously it's not the best feeling." -- Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews on losing four games to the Canadiens

Need to know

Price won his 259th game to pass Ken Dryden for third place in Canadiens history. ... Maple Leafs forward Tyler Bozak did not play because of a cut on his hand. Babcock said he expects him to be back Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks. … Jake Gardiner's assist on Matthews' first goal was his 32nd point of the season, an NHL career high for the 26-year-old.

What's next

Canadiens: At the New Jersey Devils on Monday (7 p.m. ET; MSG+, SNE, RDS, NHL.TV)
Maple Leafs: At the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday (10:30 p.m. ET; CSN-CA, SNO, NHL.TV)