Allen gets first win since November, Canadiens defeat Senators

MONTREAL-- Jake Allen made 29 saves for his first win since Nov. 27, and the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Ottawa Senators 5-1 at Bell Centre on Saturday.

Cole Caufield scored in a fourth straight game for Montreal (17-36-9), which is 9-3-2 after winning eight of its first 48 games.
"Our team played an exciting game tonight, so lots to be proud of," Canadiens forward Paul Byron said. "And Jake was incredible, so we've got to thank our goalie for keeping us in the game."
Allen was 0-7-2 in his previous nine starts. He had not played since Jan. 14, his one game since Dec. 14, before returning from injury to play Thursday in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Dallas Stars.
"I know just from watching up in the stands last game, I thought he played phenomenal," Canadiens forward Josh Anderson said. "And coming in tonight he made some huge saves right off the start and kept us in the game. We've got a lot of confidence in our team right now, and I love just how we go into every game expecting to win. So it's a good mindset from everybody."

Filip Gustavsson made 22 saves for Ottawa (22-35-5), which has lost four of five.
"We made a couple of obviously major mistakes that ended up in the net," Senators coach D.J. Smith said. "We had lots of chances, Grade A chances, and Allen made a lot of saves and he's probably the difference."
Jake Evans gave Montreal a 1-0 lead at 16:32 of the first period with a wrist shot after linemate Michael Pezzetta forced a turnover in the offensive zone.
Josh Norris tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal at 18:51.
Paul Byron put Montreal up 2-1 at 2:42 of the second period, and Caufield made it 3-1 at 4:23 with his fifth goal in four games. His streak is the longest by an NHL rookie this season.
"We talked about not giving up odd-man rushes, and we gave one up to him, and he's a legitimate scorer," Smith said.
Caufield has scored 12 of his 13 goals in 17 games since Martin St. Louis replaced Dominique Ducharme as Canadiens coach on Feb. 9.
"I think he's playing with a lot of swagger right now," Anderson said. "He's feeling good, he's making great reads out there, really confident as you guys can see."

Joel Armia's power-play goal at 19:27 increased the lead to 4-1.
Brett Kulak made it 5-1 at 8:14 of the third period. He took a touch pass from Nick Suzuki after entering the zone on the right side before cutting into the slot to score with a wrist shot.
"We battled, we worked hard, but a tough outcome," Senators forward Adam Gaudette said.
NOTES: Anderson had an assist on Kulak's goal after missing two games because of a lower-body injury. "Obviously there is some stiffness, but overall I felt pretty good as the game went on and had my legs out there," Anderson said after playing 16:06. ... Caufield, who has scored seven points (five goals, two assists) during his streak, is the fifth Montreal rookie in the past 20 years to have a goal streak of at least four games (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (2018-19), Matt D'Agostini (2008-09), Chris Higgins (2005-06), Marcel Hossa (2002-03)). No Canadiens rookie has had a longer goal streak since 1951-52, when Bernie Geoffrion scored in five straight games on his way to winning the Calder Trophy voted NHL rookie of the year. ... Suzuki has scored 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) in his past 13 games. ... Canadiens forward Jonathan Drouin did not have a point in 13:57 after missing 22 games because of a wrist injury he sustained on Jan. 20.