The Canadiens (19-21-9) wasted little time blitzing the previously red-hot Red Wings (33-16-1) with four goals in the first period and another two unanswered tallies in the second to open a 6-0 advantage.

Detroit's Jiri Hudler scored a pair of goals in the third to help his team avoid a shutout but Erik Cole added Montreal's final score with less than two minutes left to punctuate an unlikely scoreline heading into Sunday's All-Star Game.

While the Canadiens are currently well adrift in the Eastern Conference playoff race, they took advantage of a Red Wings team that has been dominant at home but average on the road, posting a 13-14-0 record.

Goaltender Jimmy Howard was withdrawn after being ambushed in the first period and Ty Conklin came on to allow the rest of the scores.

The Red Wings received some bad news before the first puck was dropped when 41-year-old defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom was ruled out with a heavy cold, ending a run of 213 consecutive games.

(Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles; Editing by John O'Brien)