Laine held pointless, records five shots in Canadiens pre-season debut

Newly acquired forward Patrik Laine was held off the scoresheet in his Montreal Canadiens pre-season debut, but did record five shots on goal in the 5-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday.

Laine was on the ice for 16:48 and registered two hits. He was playing on the top line with Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook.

Though Laine was scoreless, the Canadiens erupted for three goals in a 2:34 span in the third period to close out the Flyers.

Montreal was nursing a 1-0 lead when defenceman David Savard scored at 3:06 of the third period. Emil Heineman made it 3-0 at 3:56 and Josh Anderson scored at 5:39.

Luke Tuch opened the scoring in the second period and Alex Barré-Boiulet completed the scoring late in the third period.

Laine was slightly disappointed with his performance, but understands this is the first game of a long campaign.

"Can’t win the Rocket (Richard Trophy) in pre-season," Laine said after the game.

Montreal acquired Laine from the Columbus Blue Jackets on Aug. 19 in exchange for defenceman Jordan Harris and a second-round pick.

Laine was limited to 18 games last season due to a shoulder injury and spent time in the NHL/NHLPA's player assistance program. He was cleared by the program in July.

The 26-year-old from Tampere, Finland, was drafted second overall by the Winnipeg Jets in 2016. Laine scored a career-high 44 goals and 70 points during his sophomore season with the Jets in 2017-18. He was traded to the Blue Jackets in January 2021.

Laine has 388 points (204 goals and 184 assists) in 480 career games over eight seasons with Winnipeg and Columbus.

This was the first pre-season game for the Canadiens, who are back in action Tuesday against the New Jersey Devils.

-With files from the Canadian Press