Canadiens stay hot with low-scoring defeat of Blue Jackets

Zachary Bolduc scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and assisted on Montreal's other goal in a 2-1 win for the Canadiens against the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.

Jayden Struble also scored for the Canadiens (40-21-10, 90 points), who have won three straight. Jakub Dobes made 25 saves.

Damon Severson scored and Jet Greaves made 18 saves for the Blue Jackets (38-23-11, 87 points), who have lost two of their last three games.

Bolduc put Montreal ahead 2-1 at 4:36 of the third. He received a cross-ice feed from Jake Evans on the rush and snapped it short side from the left circle.

The Blue Jackets controlled the game through the first half of the first period, building up an 8-1 advantage in shots on goal and 16-1 in total shot attempts in the first eight minutes.

But it was the Canadiens who struck first to take a 1-0 lead at 9:54. Lane Hutson won a puck battle behind the net and rimmed it down the right wall to Bolduc. Bolduc took the puck to the middle above the circles and fed it to Struble at the left faceoff dot, with the defenseman firing a snap shot short side over Greaves' right shoulder.

Hutson's assist on the tally was his 70th point of the season (11 points, 59 assists), becoming the fourth different defenseman in franchise history to reach the mark.

Severson converted on a 2-on-1 rush to tie it 1-1 at 12:17 of the opening period. Struble couldn't control a puck in the neutral zone and Boone Jenner collected it. He skated down the left side as Severson jumped up to join him and then dished it under Struble's stick over to Severson, who wired it past Dobes' blocker from the right hash mark.

Columbus had its best chance to take the lead with just over two minutes remaining in the second period. Severson spotted Mason Marchment between Montreal's defenseman inside the Blue Jackets' blue line and sprung him with a pass for a breakaway, but Dobes extended his left pad to deny Marchment's backhand attempt.

--Field Level Media