Canadiens head into Olympic break on high note with 5-1 win over Jets

By Canadian Press on February 4, 2026.

WINNIPEG — Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson each had a goal and two assists to help the Montreal Canadiens extend their point streak to five games with a 5-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday.

Rookie Oliver Kapanen, Lane Hutson and Phillip Danault, with an empty-netter, also scored for the Canadiens (32-17-8), who are 4-0-1 during that stretch and 6-2-1 in their last nine games.

Samuel Montembeault stopped 36 shots for Montreal, picking up his first win since Jan. 17.

Kyle Connor scored for the Jets (22-26-8) and Connor Hellebuyck made 22 saves.

Connor scored his 25th goal of the season with a one-timer during the power play at 6:07 of the first period, extending his point streak to five games with two goals and four assists.

Kapanen, who’s heading to the Olympics for Finland, notched his 18th goal of the season 10 minutes later when a rebound went off Jet Cole Perfetti’s stick right to him. He then flipped the puck past a sprawled Hellebuyck.

Montreal went ahead 3-1 at 6:44 of the second period after goals 76 seconds apart by Anderson and Hutson.

Gallagher’s goal came with three seconds left in a power play at 10:57 of the third and Danault put the puck into an empty net with 14 seconds remaining.

Takeaways

Jets: Connor’s goal produced his ninth consecutive 25-goal season. It’s the second-longest active streak of 25-goal seasons in the NHL, trailing only Toronto’s Auston Matthews (10). Down 3-1 in the second, the Jets hit a post and also had Montembeault snag a close-in shot by Dylan DeMelo. They were also stymied on four shots on goal during a power play early in the third.

Canadiens: Montreal went into the game holding the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Kapanen’s 18th goal tied him for third on the team with Nick Suzuki. The Canadiens missed six attempts to hit an empty net until Danault struck for good.

Key moment

Anderson and Hutson scored 76 seconds apart early in the second period and the Jets couldn’t answer back.

Key stat

Montembeault, making his first start since Jan. 24, had given up three or more goals in five of his six previous starts.

Up next

Jets: Travel to Vancouver to face the Canucks on Feb. 25.

Canadiens: Host the New York Islanders on Feb. 26.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 4, 2026.

Judy Owen, The Canadian Press