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The Canadiens can’t afford to lose many more games and this one really hurt.

They came out flying to start Monday night’s game against the Arizona Coyotes at the Bell Centre, taking a 2-0 lead only 1:52 into the first period on goals by Jake Evans (his first in the NHL) and Brendan Gallagher. But that was all the offence the Canadiens could muster and they ended up losing 3-2 when Jakob Chychrun scored a power-play goal with one minute left in the third period.

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Ouch!

What made the loss even more painful is that No. 1 centre Phillip Danault was hit in the face by a shot from linemate Tomas Tatar early in the second period and didn’t return after leaving the ice with a bloody mouth. Coach Claude Julien said after the game that Danault would need some dental work and that he wouldn’t know more about his status until Tuesday morning.

The loss ended a three-game win streak for the Canadiens, who were trying to win four straight for the first time this season. It dropped their record to 27-24-7, including a brutal 13-15-4 at home.