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Sports

Fleury shuts door again as Pens silence Habs

By Sports Network
Published | Updated

Montreal, QC (SportsNetwork.com) - Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside all 27 pucks for his league-leading fourth shutout, as Pittsburgh silenced Montreal by a 4-0 count at Bell Centre.

"I don't think I've had this many early in any season," Fleury said. "It says a lot for our team playing pretty solid, by being defensive and not giving the opposition too many chances. That makes it easy for me."

Beau Bennett totaled a career-high three points on goal and two assists, with Steve Downie, Brandon Sutter and Sidney Crosby providing one marker each for the Penguins, winners of three straight and 10 of their last 11.

Carey Price made just 18 saves in defeat for the Canadiens, whose season-high win streak was ended at six.

Bennett opened the scoring at 7:46, picking up a failed clear by Habs defenseman Nathan Beaulieu and whipping a shot inside the left post from between the circles.

Downie made it 2-0 at 9:43 by redirecting a pass from Kris Letang past Price at the left post.

Sutter increased the visitors' edge to three on a wrister inside the first minute of the second period and Crosby added a power-play score on a rebound from the right side of the crease with 31 seconds left before intermission.

"We lost momentum right from the start. They capitalized on our defensive faux pas for their first goal and bad coverage for the second," noted Canadiens head coach Michel Therrien. "This game put a lot into perspective -- we still have a lot of work to do."

Fleury turned away seven shots in the first period, needed to make only six stops in the second period and closed out his 32nd career whitewash with 14 saves over the final 20 minutes.

Game Notes

Pittsburgh improved to 10-2-1 this season when scoring first ... Pens defenseman Olli Maatta returned to action after a two-week absence following surgery to remove a cancerous growth on his neck ... In the first period, the Canadiens showed a brief video tribute to former head coach, the late Pat Burns, who was enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday night. Burns coached Montreal from 1988-92 ... Crosby produced his first goal in nine games ... Fleury is just the third Penguins goaltender to record a shutout in Montreal, with Dany Sabourin (31 saves, Jan. 19, 2008) and Tom Barrasso (25 saves, Dec. 1, 1997) the others.