Canadiens defeat Jets, extend lead for fourth in North

MONTREAL --The Montreal Canadiens extended their lead for fourth place in the Scotia North Division, handing the third-place Winnipeg Jets their sixth straight loss, 5-3 at Bell Centre on Friday.

Nick Suzuki had two goals and an assist, and Jake Allen made 19 saves for Montreal (22-18-9), which leads the fifth-place Calgary Flames by six points and moved within four points of Winnipeg. The top four teams qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"We know how important these games are coming to the end of the season," Suzuki said after the Canadiens came back to win for the second time this season after trailing by multiple goals. "We're missing a few key pieces and a lot of guys stepped up big tonight. And, yeah, I don't think we should be scared to be down. We're a good team. We can come back, so it's definitely a confidence boost for our group."
Trevor Lewis scored twice for Winnipeg (27-20-3). Connor Hellebuyck made 30 saves in his NHL-leading 41st start and seventh straight.
"I think adversity is a good thing," Lewis said. "It's a good thing we're going through it now and not in a couple weeks, so I just think we learn from it. It doesn't come easy sometimes, so you've just got to find a way through it. I think everyone's got to simplify things and get back to the grind and what got us here, and I think we'll be better for it."

Suzuki scored his second goal on a power play at 15:10 of the third period to give the Canadiens a 4-3 lead after they trailed 2-0 and 3-1. Tyler Toffoli scored into an empty net to make it 5-3 at 18:37.
"It's a good lesson for us," Montreal defenseman Ben Chiarot said. "... You have to continue to stay in the game, stay in the fight and continue to push, and I thought our guys did a great job of that tonight, not kind of feeling sorry for ourselves, we're down two goals, and shutting it down. We continued to push and kept playing, and I was proud of the way that we responded after that."
Artturi Lehkonen scored on a wrist shot into the top left corner to pull Montreal within 3-2 at 13:44 of the second period. Joel Armia tied it 3-3 on a power play at 18:14, scoring on a shot from the slot after Suzuki's shot was blocked.

Paul Stastny gave Winnipeg a 1-0 lead at 18:25 of the first period, getting behind the defense after controlling Dylan DeMelo's saucer pass.
Lewis scored on a wrist shot over Allen's glove to make it 2-0 at 2:20 of the second period. Jansen Harkins got the assist for his first point in 22 games this season.
Suzuki cut it to 2-1 at 4:58 before Lewis made it 3-1 with his second goal of the period at 11:47. Canadiens defenseman Erik Gustafsson overskated the puck after it went to him on a face-off in the offensive zone, and Lewis carried it down the right side on a 2-on-1 with Harkins before scoring with a wrist shot that went in off Allen's left shoulder.
"You get to 3-1 and you're feeling good about your game," Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice said. "And normally there's enough positive feeling on the bench that [if] one bad thing goes on you, you'll be able to hold on. So even coming out into the third, you know at three, you're not dejected by it, they're going a little better. Yeah, that's a tougher one for sure."
Gustafsson replaced Canadiens captain Shea Weber, who was unable to play because of an upper-body injury.
Montreal coach Dominique Ducharme said Weber sustained the injury during a five-game road trip that ended Monday at Calgary. He played 21:48 in a 4-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday.
"It wouldn't be fair to disclose exactly what he's got right now, so we won't do that," Ducharme said. "They're running more tests tomorrow, and hopefully he'll be back soon."
NOTES:Five of Stastny's 13 goals this season have been scored against the Canadiens. … Montreal trailed the Edmonton Oilers by two early in the third period April 5 before rallying for a 3-2 overtime win at home. … The Jets won the season series against the Canadiens 6-3-0.