Coyle scores twice, Blue Jackets stay in playoff hunt with 5-2 win over Canadiens

MONTREAL (AP) — Charlie Coyle scored twice as the desperate Columbus Blue Jackets rolled to a 5-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night.

Boone Jenner, Sean Monahan and Kirill Marchenko also scored while Jet Greaves stopped 20 shots for Columbus, which is fighting to make the playoffs for the first time since 2020. Adam Fantilli added two assists.

The Blue Jackets sit outside the playoff picture, two points behind the Philadelphia Flyers for third place in the Metropolitan Division.

Cole Caufield — with his 51st of the season — and Josh Anderson scored for playoff-bound Montreal two nights after Caufield scored his 50th in an electric 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Jakub Dobes made 28 saves.

Defenseman Noah Dobson exited in the second period after blocking a Zach Werenski slap shot with his left hand. Canadiens rookie Ivan Demidov also went to the dressing room in the third when he was hit headfirst into the boards by Werenski, but he returned later in the period.

Montreal (104 points) fell from second to third in the Atlantic Division behind Tampa Bay (104 points), which holds the regulation-wins tiebreaker over the Canadiens. The Buffalo Sabres lead the division at 106 points with two regular-season games remaining for all three teams.

Up next

Blue Jackets: Host the Boston Bruins on Sunday.

Canadiens: Visit the New York Islanders on Sunday.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl