The Montreal Canadiens gave the Bell Centre crowd a lot to cheer about on Saturday night.
Montreal beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers 3-1 on home ice as they continue to jockey for playoff positioning in a tight Eastern Conference.
First-period goals from Patrik Laine and Cole Caufield helped the home side sprint out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
Mackie Samoskevich would get the Panthers within one early in the second period, but that was as close as Florida would come. Canadiens forward Christian Dvorak added an insurance marker midway through the third period — the 100th goal of his NHL career.
With the win, the Canadiens stayed within one point of the New York Rangers for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Montreal also has one game in hand on New York.
