Canadiens' Picard tallies key assist

in win over Rangers

BY PAT HICKEY, THE GAZETTE FEBRUARY 5, 2011

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Canadiens' Carey Price eyes airborne puck amid rush from New York Rangers' Sean Avery during game at Bell Centre in Montreal on Feb. 5, 2011.

Photograph by: Allen McInnis, The Gazette

MONTREAL - When you’ve been sitting on the bench for almost a month, you have to take advantage of your chances to play.

That’s what defenceman Alexandre Picard did Saturday in the Canadiens’ 2-0 win over the New York Rangers.

Picard, who was in the lineup because James Wisniewski was home with the flu, picked up the first assist on Scott Gomez’s game-winning goal. His slapshot hit the end boards, caromed behind the New York net and came out to Gomez in the slot on the other side of the net.

“I’m sure of you ask Pic, he’ll tell you he planned it that way,” Gomez said.

Indeed, he will.

“The (Rangers) do a pretty good job of blocking shots,” Picard said. “I saw a guy coming out at me in the shooting lane and I decided my best chance was to get a shot off the boards. It came out to Gomer and he did a good job of getting the shot off.”

See also: Carey Price unbeatable as Habs blank Rangers

With back-to-back games on the schedule - the Canadiens play the New Jersey Devils Sunday (3 p.m., CBC, RDS, CJAD Radio-800) - it might have seemed like a good opportunity to give Alex Auld a start with his 4-0-2 record and 0.98 goals-against average against the Rangers.

But it would have been difficult to play better than Price, who will also start against the Devils.

Gallery: Montreal Canadiens vs. New York Rangers