Matthew Tkachuk had two goals and an assist, and Carter Verhaeghe had a goal and an assist for the Panthers (16-16-4), who had lost three in a row. Sergei Bobrovsky made 25 saves.
Arber Xhekaj had a goal and an assist, and Josh Anderson scored for the Canadiens (15-18-3), who have lost four straight and are 1-6-1 in their past eight games. Sam Montembeault made 34 saves.
"I like the fight we had tonight, especially in the first [period]," Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. "It wasn't perfect, but we were fighting."
Florida was 3-for-6 on the power play; Montreal was 2-for-4. The Canadiens have allowed six goals on their past 12 penalty kills.
"Our PK is struggling right now," St. Louis said. "For a good part of the early season, we were going really well. Now, we're facing some really good power plays and we're just off a little bit. You've got to give them credit, and for us, as much as it's growing pains a little bit, you can't buy those reps."