Anderson brilliant as Senators stay alive, force Game 6

The Ottawa Senators have a knack of making things rather interesting. 

Craig Anderson made 45 saves and Bobby Ryan scored his first goal in more than a month as the Senators warded off elimination yet again, triumphing 5-1 over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 5. 

The Senators saturated shooting lanes in front of Carey Price and silenced the crowd by building a three-goal advantage through 40 minutes, a lead that would withstand a late-game surge from the home side and ensure a Game 6 in Ottawa.

Star Performer: Anderson was the star Friday night, and has been since he reclaimed the crease from Andrew Hammond. He's stopped 120 of his 123 shots faced in the series. 

Turning Point: It's always important to score first, but for the Senators, the second goal was paramount. Montreal failed to erase a first-period goal for the first time in the series when Patrick Wiercioch found a hole through a traffic jam and roofed it on Price for a two-goal cushion. Montreal wouldn't come closer than that.

Goalie Comparison: Anderson was spectacular and outplayed his Vezina trophy-nominated counterpart by a wide margin. His only blemish came on a deft tip from Ryan (who found the back of the net for a second time) a few feet in front of his own goal. 

Top Highlight: Anderson's best save of the game came on a questionable decision to knock down a long clearance from P.K. Subban, but boy did it illustrate the serenity to his game at the moment. 

(Courtesy: NHL.com)

Stat of the Night: Price has now allowed five or more goals just twice since Nov. 4. Both those games were against the Senators. 

Series at a Glance:

Game 1: Canadiens 4, Senators 3
Game 2: Canadiens 3, Senators 2 (OT)
Game 3: Canadiens 2, Senators 1 (OT)
Game 4: Senators 1, Canadiens 0
Game 5: Senators 5, Canadiens 1
Game 6: Sunday, April 26, 6:00 p.m. ET
Game 7*: Tuesday, April 28, TBD

*If necessary