|
|
 |
 |
|
| |
Wednesday, Oct. 27 7:30pm ET
Thibault shuts out former team | |||||
|
| ||||||
|
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
MONTREAL (AP) -- Since trading Jocelyn Thibault to the Chicago Blackhawks, the Montreal Canadiens have had a hard time beating him. Just scoring on him has been a problem. Thibault made 29 saves -- including one with his back when he was looking the wrong way on a shot by Eric Weinrich -- to shut out his former team for a second time in a 1-0 Chicago victory Wednesday night. "I guess I never should have played for the Canadiens and only played against them," said Thibault, who also shut out Montreal 3-0 in Chicago on Jan. 21 in his first game against the Canadiens after they traded him to the Blackhawks last November in the deal that brought goaltender Jeff Hackett to Montreal. "Both times, I wasn't expecting a shutout -- I just wanted the win, especially tonight because we were really struggling to get our first win of the season." The shutout was the 13th of Thibault's career. Tony Amonte's second-period goal stood up as the Blackhawks (1-4-4), avoided setting a team record by going winless in their first nine games of a season. They started 0-7-1 in 1953-54. The Canadiens (3-8-0) lost their fourth in a row and are off to their worst start ever at home. They are 1-5-0 at the Molson Centre this season. Thibault made two good saves off Saku Koivu early in the game, and another from the slot late in the second period. He then held off an 18-shot barrage in the third. "I got lucky tonight," the Montreal native said. "A lot of times earlier this season I wasn't playing badly, but the bounces went against me. Now, they're going my way." Montreal outshot Chicago 29-20. Koivu, who also whistled two shots just wide in the middle period, was shaking in anger and disappointment after the game. "We made Thibault look good tonight," said the Canadiens captain. "But a good goalie has good luck and that's what he had tonight. You have to give him credit, too. He played a good game." Thibault even managed to stop the red-hot Brian Savage, who had 10 goals in as many games going into the game. "As a team, we're just not putting it in," Savage said. "Saku hit a post, Weinrich hit him in the back.... We've got to find a way to put it in the net." A turnover after some pressure in the Chicago zone sent Amonte in on a two-on-one. He elected to shoot and beat Hackett -- who has lost both times against his former club -- with a blast low to the glove side 10:57 into the second period. The Blackhawks, the NHL's most penalized team, were only short-handed twice in a relatively mild-mannered game against the injury-wracked Canadiens, who have six veterans out of action. "The chances were 20-10 for us," said Montreal coach Alain Vigneault. "We got beat by a goaltender who we helped gain confidence by missing empty nets. "The players are down, discouraged and it's my job to get them up again for the next game (Saturday at home against the New York Rangers)." | ALSO SEE NHL Scoreboard Chicago Clubhouse Montreal Clubhouse Canadiens' Corson returns to practice after latest bout of colitis
RECAPS Buffalo 4 Tampa Bay 3
Chicago 1 AUDIO/VIDEO   Tony Amonte scores on the two-on-one.avi: 589 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1   | |||||