Dallas Stars rout Montreal Canadiens with 3-0 shutout -NHL Update
Mike Ribeiro, Dallas’ veteran centre player, was back in the city where it all began in Montreal and luckily, for him, the nervousness he faced going against his original draft team turned into good fortune as the Stars routed Canadiens with a 3-0 shutout,
Tuesday night, February 21, 2012, at the sold-out Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
The 32-year-old Montreal native was drafted as the 45th overall pick during round-two of the 1998 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft by the Canadiens.
"I didn't know what to expect, a lot of players who came back when I played here, the people used to boo them," Ribeiro said. "I wasn't sure for today, but the fans have always been behind me. It was kind of nice and surprising and a little emotional after
the first star, so I decided to salute them and say thank you in my way to them."
Ryan Garbutt potted his first goal of the 2011-2012 NHL regular season at the 14:12 mark of the opening period while both teams failed to score a single in the next.
Dallas gave Montreal more than enough chances with four straight penalties and as many power play opportunities for Canadiens, but could not capitalise on a single chance throughout.
Ribeiro put up his first goal of the night against his former team of six seasons while Tom Wandell secured the match with his fourth of the year less than a minute later.
Kari Lehtonen played focused in the net by blocking all 31 attempts taken on his net by Montreal while Carey Price of the Canadiens fell short on three of 33 chances.
"Dallas was better than us, plain and simple, all the way through," Canadiens centre, Lars Eller, said. "I can't stand here and make a deeper analysis than that because that's how simple it is."
Dallas will be looking to move on forward with some new gained momentum as they are to playoff against Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, which will be a must win match as they remain short of two points to tie the eighth place Los Angeles Kings.
Montreal on the other hand has the next against Washington Capitals on Friday.
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