Canadiens win late in OT
TORONTO — Montreal defenseman Josh Gorges scored with only 12.8 seconds left in overtime, and Carey Price made 43 saves in the Canadiens’ season-opening 4-3 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.
The Canadiens were badly outshot and thoroughly outplayed through two periods but found a way to hang around and win. They got some help from former teammate Mike Komisarek, who was in the penalty box for two Montreal goals.
Brian Gionta, Travis Moen and Glen Metropolit also scored for the Canadiens.
Matt Stajan had two goals, and Alexei Ponikarovsky scored one for Toronto.
Gorges went to the net and batted a rebound over goalie Vesa Toskala after Mike Cammalleri had taken the puck hard to the goal.
The Canadiens-Maple Leafs rivalry runs deeper than just history, with three fights, several scrums after the whistle and plenty of jawing back and forth.
Much of it centered on Komisarek, the Leafs defenseman who left Montreal during the summer to sign a $22.5-million, five-year deal.
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
