MONTREAL -- There was so much more to the Canadiens 6-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night than Patrick Roys return to Montreal. Willson Contreras Jersey . A game that had the 21,273 in the Bell Centre seats rocking even before the puck was dropped saw NHL trade deadline addition Thomas Vanek score his first three goals as a Canadien. It saw plugger Travis Moen score a spin-around goal worthy of a first-line star. And it had a spectacular performance from Colorado rookie Nathan MacKinnon, who dazzled the crowd and the Canadiens defence for an entire shift before scoring his 23rd goal of the season in the first period. On the downside, Colorado defenceman John Mitchell was taken to hospital for tests after crashing back-first into the end boards at 8:02 of the second period. Roy had no update on his condition after the game other than that it was back injury. The game started with the spotlight on Roy, but players from both teams made sure it was game to remember as well. "I thought both teams played really well and tonight the puck bounced their way," said Roy, the former Canadiens goaltending great who was on his first trip to Montreal as an NHL coach. There was no pre-game ceremony for the player once known as Saint Patrick, but he didnt need one. The fans gave him a long, rousing ovation when he was shown on the scoreboard during the national anthems. Some wondered how the Bell Centre crowd would react to Roy, who won Stanley Cups for the Canadiens in 1986 and 1993 but later demanded a trade and was on the outs with the organization until 2008 when they retired his No. 33 jersey. "I thought they showed lot of class," said Roy. "It was nice. They didnt make a big thing and thats the way I wanted it." Brandon Prust, who left the game late in the first period with an apparent shoulder injury, returned to score a goal and set up Moens tally for Montreal (38-25-7), which won its third game in a row. Trailing by two goals, Roy pulled goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere with 2:20 left to play, but Dale Weise scored into the empty net. Max Talbot and Jamie McGinn also had goals for the Avalanche (44-20-5), which lost for only the third time in 10 games. The Avs end a three-game road trip Wednesday night in Winnipeg. Vanek had a ton of chances since he was acquired from the New York Islanders, who had got him early in the season from the Buffalo Sabres. He finally broke through against Colorado. "It was frustrating," he said. "I think Im pretty emotional out there and sometimes I show my frustration too much. "But its been a tough year moving around, trying to get your first goal with Buffalo and then a new team and then here. But I thought we were generating chances and it just didnt go in. Getting that first goal was nice. I was really pressing the last few games." The Avalanche players clearly wanted to win for Roy, who has taken them from last to fourth in the Western Conference in one season and who is likely to be named the NHLs coach of the year. Roys team responded with a strong opening period. No. 1 overall draft pick MacKinnon put on a show as he ragged the puck in the Montreal zone for most of an entire shift. Then he got the puck alone in front of the net off a strange deflection and deked Carey Price at 18:03. He got 20:55 of ice time and, other than Vanek, was perhaps the best player in the game. Even Montreal coach Michel Therrien was impressed. "For an 18-year-old kid... I had the luxury of coaching great ones at 18 and 19 years old (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin) and hes right there," said Therrien. "Hes a special player." Roy knew his players wanted to get him the victory, even though he told them to concentrate on getting the two points. "(Ryan) OReilly was hurt and I knew he wanted to play," said Roy. "(Paul) Stastny came back (from a back injury) tonight. "I knew what they were doing. I have a lot of respect for my players and I appreciate it, but I didnt want them to feel the pressure of winning a game for their coach. I wanted them to win for the team. I dont want to put myself ahead of the team. I didnt need a special night." The Canadiens bounced back in the second, as Vanek tapped one into an open goal after Desharnais lured Giguere out of his net on a rush at 7:44. Talbot was parked at the doorstep to knock in a Matt Duchene feed at 9:33, but Moen tied the score at 10:21 with his second of the year and his first since Nov. 22. Prust dove to chip the puck into the middle, where Moen caught it, then did a spin-around move to beat Giguere with a backhand. Giguere took a holding the stick penalty and Vanek made him pay as he converted a Max Pacioretty feed on a power play for the game-winner at 14:45. Montreal was on the power play again when Vanek reached behind his back to deflect an Alexei Emelin shot in at 17:40 for the hat-trick. Only two hats were thrown on the ice. Montreal fans have never been big on the hat-throwing thing. Weise added an empty-netter at 19:00, giving each member of the checking line a goal. "We were energized tonight," said Prust. "We knew it was going to be a big game. We knew they would come hard to get Patty the win, so were glad we spoiled it." Notes: It was Roys first game against Montreal since he was a player on Nov. 6, 2001. Roy opted to put Montreal native Giguere as No. 1 Semyon Varlamov sat out. Roy said Reto Berra will start in goal in Winnipeg. . . Stastny returned from after missing four games with a back injury. . . The Avs went into the game with the NHLs fourth best power play and Montreal with the fourth best penalty kill. Carlos Zambrano Jersey . Halak, 28, split his eighth NHL seasons between the St. Louis Blues, Buffalo Sabres and Washington Capitals, compiling a 29-13-7 record in 52 games. Ryne Sandberg Jersey . Minutes before the final whistle of Sporting Kansas Citys 3-0 victory over a shorthanded Montreal Impact squad on Saturday afternoon, Saputo tweeted: "Our fans deserve better. http://www.thecubsteamshop.com/Cubs-Billy-Williams-Kids-Jersey/ .Corey Brewer had 19 points eight rebounds, five assists and five steals for the Timberwolves, who snapped a six-game losing streak and won for just the third time since Ricky Rubio went out with an injured ankle on Nov. DENVER -- Chris Owings has been in a little bit of an offensive funk. Leave it to hitting friendly Coors Field to snap him right out of it. Leave it to this park to get the entire Arizona lineup revved up. Owings, Paul Goldschmidt and Miguel Montero homered as the Diamondbacks reached double-digits against the Colorado Rockies again, completing a sweep with a 12-7 win Thursday night. Arizona took all three games at Coors Field for the first time since April 2008. This series was quite an offensive display by the Diamondbacks, too, as they scored 32 runs and collected 48 hits over the three games. "(This) happens every other week here, doesnt it?" Bronson Arroyo said. "Doesnt usually happen to those guys, though. We just happened to put all the runs on the board this time." Even Arroyo (5-4) pitched differently in this park. He went with fastballs 60 per cent of the time -- something the 37-year-old usually doesnt do. But hey, this quirky park sometimes calls for an unorthodox approach. "I threw an offbeat game," said Arroyo, who allowed four runs and six hits in 6 1-3 innings. The Rockies were once again off their game as they lost their seventh straight. Its their longest skid since losing nine in a row late in the 2012 season. "We come to play every single day," said Troy Tulowitzki, who had a homer and a double. "Its just not happening right now. A night after the Diamondbacks put up 16 runs, they pounded Rockies starter Juan Nicasio (5-4). The right-hander struggled with his command, allowing a season-high seven runs in 5 1-3 innings. Manager Walt Weiss called a team meeting before the game, just so he could check in with his team during this horrendous stretch. He said there are "no magic words in this game or magic words for success." Is this rock bottom? "I dont know," Weiss said. "We have a game tomorrow. Well try to win a game tomorrow." The top five hitters in the Diamondbacks lineup -- Gerardo Parra, Owings, Goldschmidt, Montero and Martin Prado -- feasted on Rockies pitching, going a combined 13 for 24 with nine RBIs. "I know weve got a good hitting ball club. I knnow that," Montero said. David Ross Jersey. "We showed it the last couple of games." Did they ever. According to the Diamondbacks, its just the second time the team has had back-to-back games with 18 or more hits. Its only the fifth time theyve scored 12 or more runs in two straight. "You hear stuff about Coors Field coming up through the minors leagues," said Owings, who finished 3 for 5 with four RBIs. "You watch a lot of games here, see a lot of runs scored. But I wouldnt say that plays into anything you do differently here. You hit the ball hard. "The ball might do some different things here." Owings had a two-run homer in the eighth that gave Arizona a 9-6 lead. The cushion was valuable at the time as Rockies pinch hitter Brandon Barnes hit an inside-the-park homer in the bottom of the inning, when the ball sailed over the head of centre fielder Ender Inciarte, hit off the base of the wall and caromed away. It was the 14th inside-the-park homer in Rockies history and first since Eric Young Jr. had one on Aug. 8, 2012, in Los Angeles. Arizona added to its lead in the ninth with three more runs. Inciarte ended the game by making a leaping catch at the wall on Wilin Rosarios deep drive. Arroyo had a 7-3 lead heading into the seventh inning, when he ran into trouble. A usually reliable bullpen struggled, too. The Rockies scored three times on RBI singles from Drew Stubbs, Michael Cuddyer and Corey Dickerson. With the bases loaded and two outs, Oliver Perez was brought in to face pinch hitter Justin Morneau, who grounded out to third to end the rally. "That was huge," Arroyo said. "He came in and gave us that one out we needed and really broke the game open for us." NOTES: The Diamondbacks open a three-game home series against Atlanta on Friday, with RHP Brandon McCarthy taking the mound. ... Colorado held a moment of silence for Don Zimmer, who died Wednesday at 83. Zimmer spent three seasons as a coach with the Rockies. ... Colorado RHP Eddie Butler makes his debut against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday. ... OF Charlie Blackmon hit his third leadoff homer of the season. ' ' '