Music: {allcanada} Bournival, Bourque, Price lead Canadiens past Stars

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

{allcanada} Bournival, Bourque, Price lead Canadiens past Stars

MONTREAL -- Michael Bournival and Rene Bourque scored, and Carey Price made 26 saves to lead the Montreal Canadiens to a 2-1 win Tuesday against the Dallas Stars at Bell Centre.

Raphael Diaz assisted on each goal for the Canadiens (8-5-0), who evened their record at home this season at 4-4-0.

Cody Eakin scored for the Stars (5-6-1), whose string of three straight games with a point (2-0-1) was snapped. They have not won consecutive games since Oct. 5 and 11, their second and third games of the season.

Each team was playing its second game in as many nights, with the Canadiens and Stars each winning Monday and traveling here afterward.

Stars goaltender Kari Lehtonen got the start in a 4-3 win at the Buffalo Sabres and made 22 saves. He again made 22 saves Tuesday but with a different result, tagged with his second loss in regulation, his first since opening night Oct. 3.

It was a homecoming of sorts for several members of the Stars.

Dallas forward Erik Cole was playing his first game in Montreal since the Canadiens traded him to the Stars in exchange for Michael Ryder and a third-round pick in the 2013 NHL Draft on Feb. 26. Unlike most former players who return to Montreal, regardless of the circumstances surrounding their departure, Cole did not get much of a reaction from the Bell Centre fans.

It was the first NHL game on Quebec soil for Stars forwards Alex Chiasson and Dominic Roussel. Chiasson spent his early childhood living just outside Montreal in Lorraine, Quebec; Roussel was born in France but moved to Quebec as a teenager.

Chiasson had more than 50 family and friends in the stands and he nearly gave them something to cheer for in the third period when he took a pass from Eakin and one-timed it from in tight, but Price was able to get across for the save.

The Canadiens scored the first goal for the eighth time in 13 games this season at 12:02 of the first period when a Diaz shot from the point was tipped in front by Bournival before bouncing in off the leg of Stars defenseman Stephane Robidas.

Bournival's goal gave the rookie seven points in his past seven games; center Tomas Plekanec's assist on the goal gave him nine points in his past seven games.

Montreal is 7-1-0 when scoring first.

Bourque made it 2-0 at 12:55 of the second period, tipping another Diaz point shot in front then burying his rebound for his fourth goal of the season.

The Stars cut the lead in half at 17:27 of the second when Eakin crossed the Montreal blue line and used Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban to surprise Price with a long wrist shot for his third goal of the season.

Eakin had an opportunity to tie it when he took a wrist shot from just about the same location with 45 seconds remaining, but this time Price made a glove save to preserve the victory.

Lightning Bolt - Pearl Jam