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Maple Leafs snap 14-game losing streak vs. Canadiens with OT win

Jean-Yves Ahern / USA TODAY Sports

MONTREAL (AP) Auston Matthews scored his second goal of the game 48 seconds into overtime to lift the Toronto Maple Leafs over the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 on Saturday night.

Matthews finished a 2-on-1 counterattack with William Nylander, beating goalie Carey Price with a shot from the left circle for his fifth goal in five games.

James van Riemsdyk and Patrick Marleau also scored for Toronto, which ended a 14-game winless run against Montreal dating to January 2014.

Jeff Petry, Alex Galchenyuk and Jonathan Drouin scored for the Canadiens.

The Canadiens struck first as Petry took a drop pass from Drouin and fired a shot through traffic past Frederik Andersen at 2:19.

The Leafs replied with two goals in 44 seconds. A faceoff in the Montreal zone went to van Riemsdyk for a weak shot that went in off Petry, and then Matthews, while on an end-to-end rush, grabbed a weak clearing attempt by Jordie Benn and beat and an off-balance Price with a shot under the crossbar at 8:16.

Galchenyuk elected to shoot on a 2-on-1 on the power play for his first of the season. It was Montreal's first goal on a man advantage of the season, ending an 0-for-14 drought.

Drouin got his first goal as a Canadien 11:33 into the second when he redirected a diagonal pass from Karl Alzner, but Marleau tied it 1:10 later, lifting the puck just over the line after Price lost sight of it in the crease. The goal was confirmed by video review.

NOTES: Toronto has scored at least three goals in each of its five games this season. ... Leafs D Connor Carrick returned after missing two games with an upper body injury. ... Canadiens C Tomas Plekanec missed the morning skate with a flu, but was able to play.

UP NEXT

Maple Leafs: Play at Washington on Tuesday night.

Canadiens: Play at San Jose on Tuesday night.

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More AP hockey: https://apnews.com/tag/NHLhockey

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