MONTREAL — Martin St. Louis often dubs Josh Anderson as a "culture-setter" for the Montreal Canadiens.
On Tuesday night, Montreal's winger set the standard and spurred the Canadiens to a comeback in their most important game of the season so far.
Anderson scored the tying goal and sealed the victory with an empty-netter as the Canadiens beat the Ottawa Senators 6-3 in a high-intensity rivalry matchup.
“He deserves to be rewarded,” said St. Louis, Montreal's head coach. “From the beginning of the season, he’s had the pedal to the floor, bringing emotion to every game.
“I’m not surprised he’s giving us this kind of hockey while fighting through some tough physical issues. It’s contagious, the attitude that he’s bringing.”
The surging Canadiens, the NHL’s hottest team since the 4 Nations Face-Off break, jumped into the Eastern Conference’s second wild-card spot with 73 points, one more than the New York Rangers with two fewer games played.
Amid Montreal's playoff push, Anderson has been playing through an undisclosed injury since awkwardly colliding with Arthur Kaliyev against the New York Rangers on Jan. 19.
The 30-year-old from Burlington, Ont., rarely practises with the team, typically ruled out for a therapy day, but he hasn’t missed a game this season.
His teammates are certainly taking notice.
"He's been playing through a lot, he's coming in every game, battling, he's been there in the fight with all of us,” captain Nick Suzuki said.
"Drags everybody into the fight,” added Christian Dvorak. “He's not 100 per cent so the guys rally behind that. It's big for us, and we just gotta follow his lead."
Anderson, who also had five hits and a plus-three rating, buried a rebound past Linus Ullmark at 10:22 of the third to tie the game at 3 before Suzuki put Montreal ahead later in the period.
With Ottawa’s goalie pulled, Anderson made it 5-3 and jumped into the Canadiens’ bench in celebration with his teammates.
The Bell Centre crowd later serenaded Anderson — who grew up a Canadiens fan — at centre ice with “Olé, Olé, Olé” chants.
“It gives you goosebumps,” Anderson said. “It makes you want to play in the playoffs so bad when you see that atmosphere, because it's been a tough three years that they've patiently waited.
"They deserve a lot, and we're going to do everything we can as a team to make a push.”
Anderson arrived in Montreal via trade from Columbus in 2020, a couple years removed from scoring a career-high 27 goals with the Blue Jackets.
Through five seasons with the Canadiens, his production hasn’t quite lived up to his US$5.5-million salary.
“I sucked this year,” he said after last season’s nine-goal campaign.
His stats this season are only slightly better, with 12 goals and 10 assists in 67 games, but the six-foot-three, 226-pound forward is having a bigger impact in a new role.
St. Louis said he approached Anderson before the season about moving off the team’s power play in favour of helping out on the penalty kill.
“He was like, ‘No problem,’” St. Louis said. “He bought in and he was fine with that change. To be successful as a team, you need guys to accept certain roles.”
SECONDARY SCORING
Montreal’s top line of Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky has led the charge offensively during the Canadiens’ hot streak. But on Tuesday the third line of Anderson, Dvorak and Brendan Gallagher combined for four goals.
“I don’t care who scores the goals,” St. Louis said. “But I’m very happy the secondary scoring is coming, you need that to help you win games.”
STREAK OVER
The Senators’ loss ended a run of six consecutive wins for the red-hot club. Their cushion over Montreal in the standings decreased to four points.
"I don't think we were as desperate as they were,” winger Drake Batherson said. “These are all big games against our division, and we knew that coming in, and unfortunately we didn't get it done.”
‘NEW AGE’ RIVALRY
The Canadiens have long, historic rivalries with the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs.
In recent years, however, tensions between Montreal and Ottawa have flared up, with both sides in similar phases as rebuilding teams looking to make a jump.
“Big time. It’s probably our least favourite team,” defenceman Arber Xhekaj said Saturday morning. “Boston has the history, but I think the new age is us and the Sens for sure.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 18, 2025.
Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press
