The Islanders were 6.3 seconds away from taking a scoreless draw into the first intermission before Joel Armia's power-play goal put Montreal up 1-0. Armia's goal, a one-timer from the slot that just squeaked through Thomas Greiss [18 saves], proved to be a momentum changer in favor of the Canadiens, the first of four goals in a 8:27 span.
Montreal came out fast in the second period, with a Shea Weber bullet making it 2-0 at the 1:03 mark of the middle frame, officially giving the Canadiens two goals in a 1:09.
Jordan Eberle had the Isles best chance to turn the tide, but his open look was robbed by Price, who just got his back skate on Eberle's try after sliding across his crease. Thirty seconds later, Jonathan Drouin capped off a three-on-two rush by sliding the puck around Greiss, extending the Canadiens' lead to 3-0. Jordan Weal deflected a Jordie Benn shot to make it 4-0 at 8:19, ending Greiss' night.
Robin Lehner came in relief of Greiss, stopping all 12 shots he faced.
The Isles were unable to break the shutout in the third period, coming as close as a Cal Clutterbuck shot off the crossbar. After Scott Mayfield took a high hit from Andrew Shaw, the Isles frustration boiled over as Hickey railroaded Brendan Gallagher before dropping the gloves with the Canadiens forward.
"I think we need to show more of that throughout 60 minutes and not just when we're down 4-0," Lee said. "We need to get back to what's made us successful in the past. Right now we're nowhere near where we need to be."