MONTREAL (AP) The Martin St. Louis effect didn't give the Montreal Canadiens their first win in more than three weeks, but Montreal's new interim head coach liked the fight his new team gave him.

Despite a 5-2 loss to the Washington Capitals on Thursday night, the Hockey Hall of Famer enjoyed his first night behind the bench. The Canadiens are still struggling - they're now winless in eight games - but the players fought and tried to carve out a comeback as they outshot the Capitals 44-23.

''It was amazing. I just love how we fought, I feel like we just kept getting better as the game went and that was fun to see,'' St. Louis said.

The Canadiens pulled their goalie for the fifth time in six games, but unlike other outings the team picked up steam instead of falling flat.

Down 4-2 in the third period after Cole Caufield broke a 17-game goalless drought, the rookie scored again with just over five minutes left in regulation,. But a Washington coach's challenge reversed Caufield's second goal, ending Montreal's chances.

''The third goal, you just hope that it's inconclusive and the goal stands and now you go on the power play,'' St. Louis said. ''We stayed the course, we didn't cheat. I really feel that the only thing we didn't do tonight is win.''

St. Louis replaced Dominique Ducharme, who was fired on Wednesday, and looked to leave his mark on his new team. Thursday morning, he addressed the players and shared what he wanted from them.

''He came in full of energy, it looked like he wanted to lace 'em up,'' said Josh Anderson. ''It was pretty exciting for all of us, and you could see a couple of jaws drop. Everybody was ready to go tonight. We needed to react from what happened yesterday.''

It also was a special moment for Caufield, who draws a lot of comparison to St. Louis with his size and speed.

''I'm really excited, I grew up wearing number 26 because of him and it's crazy that he's our coach,'' Caulfield said. ''Every time he speaks, I just want to listen and soak it all in. I'm really excited to see what we can do.''

Joe Snively had his first two-goal game in the NHL to lead the Capitals. Connor McMicheal and Carl Hagelin added goals and Tom Wilson had an empty-netter to help the Washington (26-14-9) snap a two-game losing streak. Ilya Samsonov made 42 saves.

Rem Pitlick scored his ninth goal of the season for Montreal, which has lost six in a row in regulation (0-6-2) and has the NHL's worst record at 8-31-7. Samuel Montembeault replaced Primeau in goal at 5:18 of the second period and blocked all eight shots he faced.

The Capitals stunned Montreal with two quick goals early in the first period. Snively picked up his first by scoring on a rebound off Primeau at 5:04. Twenty seconds later, McMicheal's shot from the high slot through a screen beat Primeau between the pads.

The Capitals went ahead 3-0 at 3:40 of the second period when Hagelin took the puck from his own end, drove the length of the ice and scored with a wrist shot from a tight angle.

Montreal responded 23 seconds later when Pitlick slammed in a loose puck in the crease, but Snively added his second goal just over a minute later, forcing St. Louis to pull Primeau.

Caufield broke his long drought on a power play at 15:58, taking Nick Suzuki's pass and scoring from a tight angle to make it 4-2 heading to the third.

Caufield's second goal was disallowed when the challenge showed that Montreal's Tyler Toffoli tried to keep the puck in the offensive zone from an offside position.

Wilson iced the game with the empty-netter at 18:45.

NO OVECHKIN

Alex Ovechkin did not play because of Canada's COVID-19 protocols, which bar anyone who tests positive from entering the country for 10 days. He tested positive last week and missed the All Star game.

Notes: The Capitals won their third straight road game and are 14-5-4 away from home. They beat Montreal 6-3 in October. ... Capitals coach Peter Laviolette is one victory shy of becoming the 10th NHL head coach with 700 wins.

UP NEXT

Capitals: Return home to play host to Ottawa in Super Bowl Sunday matinee.

Canadiens: Host Columbus on Saturday.

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