Canadiens 2, Panthers 1 (SO): PA Parenteau scored in the third round of the shootout and Dustin Tokarski made the goal stand as the winner in his first start in a month as visiting Montreal moved into a first-place tie with Tampa Bay in the Atlantic Division.

Florida's Jimmy Hayes had a chance to end the game in overtime but missed a wide-open net from a sharp angle at 4:50. After the first four shooters were denied in the bonus format, Parenteau skated in and wristed a shot over the glove of Roberto Luongo before Tokarski (36 saves) stopped Jonathan Huberdeau to seal the win.

Brendan Gallagher scored his third goal in four contests late in the second period for the Canadiens, who have won four straight and seven of their last eight. Lars Eller notched an assist to extend his point streak to three games and defenseman Nathan Beaulieu also was credited with setting up Gallagher's 11th goal of the season.

Nick Bjugstad tallied with 1:49 remaining in the third period to forge a 1-1 tie, but the Panthers saw their four-game home winning streak come to a halt and fell to 5-1-2 in their last eight contests overall. Luongo turned aside 33 shots in dropping to 1-6-1 in his last eight starts versus his hometown team.

Eller skated up the right wing before pushing the puck ahead of Gallagher, who used Florida defenseman Dmitry Kulikov as a screen and wristed a shot from the right faceoff dot that trickled behind Luongo with 1:06 remaining in the second period to open the scoring. The slim advantage held up until Panthers rookie blue-liner Aaron Ekblad drew two players to him along the right-wing boards before feeding Bjugstad, who beat Tokarski from the slot.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Tokarski recorded his first win since Nov. 16, when he made 28 saves in a 4-1 triumph over Detroit. ... Florida C Aleksander Barkov nearly opened the scoring after jamming both the puck - and Tokarski - into the net early in the second period, but the officials quickly disallowed the goal. Barkov hit the post later in the session. ... Montreal D Andrei Markov retreated to the locker room after taking a puck in the ear following teammate P.K. Subban's clearing attempt in the second period. He returned shortly thereafter. ... Huberdeau's 14-year-old sister, Josiane, sang the Canadian national anthem prior to the contest. ... Bjugstad reportedly signed a six-year contract extension worth $4.1 million per season after the game, according to the Miami Herald.