Maple Leafs 4, Canadiens 3
MONTREAL -- Dion Phaneuf and Tyler Bozak scored second-period goals to lead the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night in the regular season opener for both teams.
Phaneuf scored 8:36 into the second to draw Toronto even at two and Bozak scored on a short-handed breakaway at 17:19 to give the Maple Leafs their second lead of the game.
Mason Raymond scored 5:10 into the third in his Toronto debut to increase the lead to 4-2.
James van Riemsdyk scored on a 5-on-3 in the first for the Maple Leafs and James Reimer made 34 saves.
Lars Eller scored his second goal of the game 17:38 into the third to draw Montreal to within one.
Brendan Gallagher also scored for the Canadiens. Carey Price stopped 34 shots.
The game was delayed 3:34 into the third after new Canadiens enforcer George Parros was injured when he fell face first onto the ice at the end of his second fight of the game with Colton Orr.
Orr, who got a game misconduct along with Parros, immediately motioned for help for his counterpart, who lay motionless on ice. Canadiens physician Dr. Vincent Lacroix attended to Parros, who had his head and neck immobilized before he was taken off the ice on a stretcher, bleeding from the chin.
Reimer got the start over newcomer Jonathan Bernier, who was acquired in a June 23 trade with Los Angeles that sent goalie Ben Scrivens and forward Matt Frattin to the Kings along with a second-round pick in either 2014 or 2015.
Van Riemsdyk opened the scoring on a two-man advantage 8:01 into the game. Phil Kessel assisted on the goal after signing an eight-year, $64-million contract extension earlier Tuesday.
Montreal tied it 2:07 later just five seconds after Maple Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf was sent off for boarding when he shoved Brandon Prust into the boards.
With the teams skating 4-on-4 on the ensuing faceoff, Eller won the draw and was left alone in the goalmouth to put home a sharp pass by Raphael Diaz to draw the Canadiens even at 10:08.
Gallagher put Montreal ahead 2-1 at 13:54 moments after Price got the tip of his glove on a shot by Dave Bolland to rob the Toronto newcomer.
NOTES: Chants of "Guy! Guy! Guy!" greeted Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur as he made his way out from the Montreal dressing room with a lit torch to kick off pre-game introductions. Lafleur, who had six straight 50-goal seasons with the Canadiens in the 1970s, handed the torch to Montreal newcomer Daniel Briere, who made his debut with the club after signing a two-year, $8 million free-agent contract July 4. ... Maple Leafs right wing David Clarkson served the first game of his 10-game suspension. Clarkson, who left New Jersey to sign a seven-year, $36.75 million contract with Toronto, got an automatic suspension for coming off the bench during a preseason brawl against Buffalo. ... Canadiens newcomer George Parros fought Colton Orr 4:25 into the second in his Montreal debut. Parros, who was acquired in a trade with Florida on July 5, did not play in the preseason while rehabbing from shoulder surgery. ... Referee Steve Kozari left the game briefly after he was cut in the face when struck by Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Fraser's stick just before Parros and Orr fought. Kozari's partner, Kelly Sutherland, called the game on his own until Kozari returned later in the second.
