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MONTREAL, QC – Bleu, Blanked et Rouge.

The Edmonton Oilers failed to find the scoresheet in La Belle Province, getting blanked 3-0 by the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night at the Bell Centre after goaltender Sam Montembault made all 30 saves to earn the shutout.

Forward Brendan Gallagher scored on a redirection over Calvin Pickard’s left shoulder with 31 seconds left in the second period, and defenceman Kaiden Guhle doubled Montreal’s lead at 2-0 with 5:52 gone in the final frame. Jake Evans added an empty-netter after the Oilers pulled their goalie with five minutes left in regulation.

The defeat was Edmonton’s second shutout loss of the season, while Montembault’s clean sheet was the second of his career.

The Oilers will conclude back-to-back games on Tuesday night against the Ottawa Senators.

FIRST PERIOD

Having picked up a point in 18 of their last 21 trips to Montreal (13-3-5), scoring wouldn’t come as easy on Monday as it did in their previous visits to the Bell Centre, if the first period would be any indication.

Early in the contest, Connor McDavid created a golden chance for Zach Hyman to shoot at an open net with a dangle at the top of Montreal’s zone, but the pass cruelly jumped over the winger’s stick at the last moment in the left circle – much to the dismay of the Oilers captain, who’d hit his stick against the boards in frustration.

McDavid would earn the Oilers the first power play midway through the period when he went hard to the post and was held by forward Josh Anderson. On the delayed penalty, Sam Montembault made the first of a few key saves on Monday night, stopping Nugent-Hopkins, McDavid and Hyman in close as part of a 14-save first period.

The Oilers didn’t capitalize on the ensuing man advantage or during their 47 seconds of power-play time late in the period.

SECOND PERIOD

With nothing up the middle of the ice in the middle frame for both the Oilers and Canadiens, it was trending towards another scoreless affair until the action arrived in favour of the hosts during the period’s final minutes.

Montembault continued to play strongly for the Canadiens and denied Hyman twice in the period – once on a quick face-off chance inside six minutes of the period and again later in the frame on a drop-chance from Leon Draisaitl off the rush.

The shot-stopper had 21 saves through 40 minutes of north-south hockey on Monday in Montreal – a game style that contributed to the Canadiens taking the lead on a low-percentage chance late in the period. Forward Brendan Gallagher redirected a waist-high shot from Mike Matheson over the left shoulder of Pickard with 31 seconds left in the frame to give Montreal the 1-0 advantage.

Gallagher almost doubled the Canadiens’ lead after play restarted at centre ice, but Pickard made a terrific left-pad stop on the Montreal forward in the period’s closing moments.

THIRD PERIOD

The Canadiens played strong team defence in the final frame en route to handing the Oilers their second shutout of the season and second straight defeat.

Kaiden Guhle made an important block for Montreal in the first period, but the former Edmonton Oil Kings defenceman shook it off and scored to double his team’s advantage at 2-0 on a shot from the left circle that beat Pickard blocker side with 5:52 gone in the final frame.

Needing two goals in the final five minutes, the Oilers pulled Pickard for the extra attacker, but defenceman Jake Evan’s full-ice clearance found the back of the net to make it 3-0 with 3:08 left in regulation.