Las Vegas, Nevada – The Montreal Canadiens brushed off their first defeat in these playoffs and came roaring back in the Stanley Cup semifinals against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night.

Veteran goaltender Carey Price (33) was tough enough in the net, fighting off a lot of pressure as the Canadiens won 3-1 over the Golden Knights to even their series at 1-1. Price stopped 29 of 31 shots, allowing the Habs to get back into this round against one of the last remaining cup favorites in the Knights. The series now shifts north of the border for Game 3 on Friday.

Montreal got down to business early in the first period with a couple of goals to take control of the game from the streaking Knights, who were coming as winners of five straight during this postseason.

After Monday's loss, the Habs shored up their defense this time around, skating with the Knights stride for stride. They also kicked their physicality up a notch, throwing their bodies around for 53 total hits and getting gritty with lots of shot-blocking by position players to help their goalie’s cause.

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The Canadiens spread around their offense with goals by Joel Armia, Tyler Toffoli, and Paul Byron. They played like a team on a mission, building a three-goal lead before the Knights finally got on the scoreboard in the second period.

By contrast, Alex Pietrangelo was a one-man assault for Vegas, scoring both of their goals. Ultimately, it wasn’t enough to take the game, despite Vegas throwing a lot of offensive pressure in Price’s direction.

The Canadiens have been trying to match up with the Knights with lots of bodywork by way of hits in the open ice and along the boards. It’s a strategy that finally seemed to take its toll in game two. So far in this round, Montreal has piled up a total of 105 hits to Vegas’ 89.

If the Canadiens stick to this game plan, the Knights will have to toughen up before they find themselves in a possible series deficit.

Game 3 is on Friday night, north of the border in Montreal.