Suzuki appeared to catch Connor Hellebuyck by surprise with his pass from behind the net to Juraj Slafkovsky, who beat the netminder to give Montreal a 1-0 lead. Suzuki has four points in the last two games and leads the Canadiens with 36 assists through 50 outings.

Three-point effort not enough

During his media availability, Suzuki took a moment to defend #8. #Habs Nick Suzuki came to bat for Mike Matheson: “he plays the hardest minutes on our team against the toughest players.

Suzuki scored a goal on six shots in Sunday's 5-4 overtime win over the Rangers.

Devils captain Nico Hischier, who suffered an uppoer-body injury after a high cross check vs. Montreal, will be re-evalutated next week, coach Sheldon Keefe said.