GAME RECAP | Toronto Maple Leafs vs Montreal Canadiens Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1. [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAxMTUyOTAyMTgwMzgyNDkw/final-score---leafs.png] Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1. CANADIENS LINEUP Forward lines 40 Joel Armia 91 Sean Monahan 17 Josh Anderson 70 Tanner Pearson 71 Jake Evans 11 Brendan Gallagher 97 Joshua Roy 62 Owen Beck 56 Jesse Ylonen 53 Jan Mysak 13 Mitchell Stephens 85 John Parker-Jones Defense pairings 54 Jordan Harris 94 Logan Mailloux 72 Arber Xhekaj 27 Gustav Lindstrom 92 Nicolas Beaudin 52 Justin Barron Goaltenders 30 Cayden Primeau 95 Strauss Mann Out of the lineup Scratches: Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Kirby Dach, Juraj Slafkovsky, Gabriel Bourque, Brandon Gignac, Jared Davidson, Lias Andersson, Filip Mesar, Emil Heineman, Alex Newhook, Michael Pezzetta, Sean Farrell, Xavier Simoneau, Lucas Condotta, Nathan Legare, Kaiden Guhle, David Reinbacher, Mike Matheson, David Savard, William Trudeau, Jonathan Kovacevic, Mattias Norlinder, Brady Keeper, Jakub Dobes, Sam Montembeault, Jake Allen. Injuries: Christian Dvorak (lower body), Carey Price (lower body), Chris Wideman (upper body) GAME REPORT The Maple Leafs won the first of three consecutive matches against the Canadiens by a score of 2-1. Both of Toronto's goals were scored in the second period, while Josh Anderson cut the deficit to one with his second goal of the pre-season with 5:21 remaining in the final frame. Friday's game was being hyped to be physical and fantasy matchmakers were hoping that Arber Xhekaj and Ryan Reaves drop the gloves. With this contest having no impact to the standings, it wouldn't be wise for both players to go out of the way looking for a combat. The match was disputed with minimal scrums and no bad blood. That might change by Monday when the teams will be opponents for the third time in four days. Montreal did not capitalize on Toronto's indiscipline and failed to convert on their six power play opportunities. The silver lining is that their most dangerous weapons such as Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki and Kirby Dach were not in uniform. The Maple Leafs had several chances on their penalty kill and Matthew Knies took advantage a turnover by Justin Barron and the remaining individuals wearing the home jersey on the ice were not ready to take action on the sequence. In goal, Cayden Primeau played the full 60 minutes and made 24 stops. He was unlucky in Toronto's second goal as Mikko Kokkonen's shot from the point hit a body before crossing the red line. With only three games remaining before the season opener, Friday may have played his final full game before management settles on the season opening roster. The fans in the arena witnessed a lackluster performance from both squads. Martin St. Louis noted post game that his team lacked execution. GAME STATISTICS Canadiens (1-2-0) Shots: 25 Face-off %: 57 Power play: 0/6 Penalty minutes: 4 Hits: 11 Blocks: 19 Maple Leafs (2-0-1) Shots: 26 Face-off %: 43 Power play: 0/2 Penalty minutes: 12 Hits: 12 Blocks:21 SCORING SUMMARY Canadiens Scorers 1st period: No scoring 2nd period: No scoring 3rd period: Anderson (2) OT: n/a SO: n/a Maple Leafs Scorers 1st period: No scoring 2nd period: Knies (1)-SHG, Kokkonen (1) 3rd period: No scoring OT: n/a SO: n/a Goaltenders MTL: Primeau (L) 1-1-0 OTT: Samsonov (W) 1-0-0, Petruzzelli CANADIENS PLAYERS OF THE GAME * undefined * undefined * undefined VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwLDSypYNto[/embed] POST-GAME QUOTES Owen Beck Montreal Canadiens forward Owen Beck addresses the media following the 2-1 loss to the Maple Leafs at the Bell Centre on Friday. GAME PREVIEW Check out the game preview here: Canadiens Arber Xhekaj Ready to Face the Leafs | PREVIEW: TOR @ MTL [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/montreal-canadiens/game-day/canadiens-arber-xhekaj-ready-to-face-the-leafs-preview-tor-mtl] UP NEXT The Original-Six rivals will square off for the second time of their three-game sequence on Saturday. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 pm ET on Saturday, September 29th at the Bell Centre. A free issue of The Hockey News [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAwNTk3MTk4Mzc0MTE4Nzc2/hockeynewsad.jpg] A free issue of The Hockey News
