NEW YORK, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- Yanic Perreault collected a goal and an assist during a 3:32 span in the second period Friday night as the Montreal Canadiens pulled away for a 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers.
The Canadiens lost all four games against the Rangers last season, totaling only five goals. But they gained confidence during last season's playoff run and took advantage of good fortune and scoring chances in the second period Friday night.
The turning point came with the contest knotted at 1-1 midway through the second. Petr Nedved's shot squeezed under Canadiens goaltender Jose Theodore, but defenseman Andrei Markov shoveled the puck out of the crease with his left glove.
On Montreal's ensuing rush, Mike Richter stopped two shots from defenseman Stephane Quintal, but Joe Juneau flicked the rebound into the open net at 9:07, giving the Canadiens a 2-1 lead.
On the power play, Perreault redirected Oleg Petrov's slap shot from the left point at 12:39, opening a 3-1 advantage.
Mikael Samuelsson scored for the Rangers, who slipped to 31-33-13 all-time in home openers. Rebuilt since missing the playoffs for the fifth straight year, they opened the season with a 4-1 victory at Carolina Wednesday night.
