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MONTREAL (AP) -- The Montreal Canadiens aren't allowing injuries to affect their playoff push.
Jeff Hackett made 33 saves, including 14 in the second period, in the Canadiens' 3-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night.
|  | | Montreal's Dainius Zubrus sends Carolina's Bates Battaglia flying with a first-period hip check. |
Benoit Brunet, Jesse Belanger and Brian Savage scored for Montreal, which has won seven of its last 10.
Montreal also passed Pittsburgh and the New York Rangers for seventh place in the Eastern Conference. The Penguins and Rangers trail the Canadiens by one point. Montreal has 10 games left, Pittsburgh 11 and the Rangers nine.
But the Canadiens, who came into the game with 485 man-games lost because of injuries, lost two more players in the win.
Brunet, who scored only 23 seconds after Gary Roberts gave Carolina a 1-0 lead early in the first period, left the game with back spasms. Defenseman Karl Dykhuis also left with a pulled groin.
"It's tough when you lose two guys like we did tonight," Belanger said. "We took a look at the bench and there was a lot of room, which was strange. Everybody has to step up and put in more effort."
The Canadiens are already missing key players such as Saku Koivu, Trevor Linden and Shayne Corson.
"It was a gutsy effort by all of our guys," Canadiens coach Alain Vigneault said. "We lost two players and finished the game with five defenseman. But it's going to be a battle for the rest of the season."
Sean Hill also scored for Carolina, which lost its second straight, and dropped to 10th in the conference. Rod Brind'Amour had two assists.
Roberts scored for Carolina 7:10 into the game when he banged in a loose puck from the crease to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead. But Brunet tied it just 23 seconds later.
Belanger made it 2-1 at 12:27, just one second after a Carolina penalty. Savage made it 3-1 on a wrist shot at 9:41 of the third.
Hill got the Hurricanes within a goal by scoring with 36 seconds remaining.
Both teams had goals disallowed.
Sheldon Souray beat goalie Arturs Irbe off a rebound midway through the second, but referee Paul Stewart had whistled the play dead.
Then, with Montreal leading 2-1 in the third, Hackett snared a wrist shot by Hill while sprawled on the ice and was credited with a save although replays showed his glove was behind the goal line.
"I saw it, everybody in the building saw it," Hill said. "How the guy in the replay booth can't see it, I don't know. It's ludicrous. It was obviously in.
"I don't know if they owed them a call or not. Two wrongs don't make a right. Whoever's in the replay booth should watch the game and quit eating hot dogs."
Hackett showed a sense of humor when asked about the play.
"I just saw the puck and tried to catch it," said Hackett, who was sprawled on the ice when he caught the puck. "If you catch a puck like that, then they shouldn't allow it."
Corson, struck in the left eye by a clearing attempt in Thursday's game against Philadelphia, could rejoin the Canadiens on their upcoming road trip, team opthamologist Dr. John Little said.
"He was lucky. Two millimeters lower, and it would have hit him in the same place that (Bryan Berard) got hit," said Little, referring to the Toronto defenseman who suffered a serious injury after being hit in the right eye by a stick.
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NHL Scoreboard
Carolina Clubhouse
Montreal Clubhouse
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Boston 3
Pittsburgh 2
Dallas 2
Chicago 2
Detroit 4
Colorado 3
NY Rangers 3
Philadelphia 2
Montreal 3
Carolina 2
Florida 4
NY Islanders 2
Atlanta 4
Toronto 1
Buffalo 5
Calgary 1
Vancouver 6
Ottawa 1
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