PAT HICKEY, The GazettePublished: Monday, January 02, 2006

It's not difficult to figure out the Canadiens' New Year's resolution.

"We had the effort out there, but it's not enough; we need some points," captain Saku Koivu said after the Canadiens dropped a 5-3 decision to the Carolina Hurricanes on New Year's Eve.

And points have been difficult to earn. The loss here left the Canadiens with only two points out of a possible 10 in a series of five road games that began Dec. 23 in Washington.

The Canadiens have lost more games than they've won this season and collected only 10 of a possible 24 points in December.

As they await Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins' first visit to the Bell Centre tomorrow night (7:30 p.m., TSN, RDS, CJAD Radio-800), they are clinging to a playoff spot only because a) they enjoyed a hot start, and b) some of the teams chasing them have troubles of their own.

One of the Canadiens' trademarks early in the season was the ability to come back, and that was in evidence Saturday as they rallied from 2-0 and 3-2 deficits to tie the game.

The momentum appeared to swing in Montreal's favour later in the third period, when Oleg Tverdovsky hooked Michael Ryder on a breakaway. Ryder was awarded a penalty shot, which was stopped by Martin Gerber, but Andrei Markov scored off the ensuing faceoff.

"That goal gave us the momentum, but then we made a stupid mistake and we gave it back to them," coach Claude Julien said. "You can't let a point get away from you in the last two minutes like that."

A defensive breakdown allowed Rod Brind'Amour to take a pass from Eric Cole for the winning goal with 1:52 left in regulation time. It was Brind'Amour's second goal of the game.

Cole, Cory Stillman and Aaron Ward scored the other goals for Carolina, with Ward putting the puck in an empty net.

Ryder and Jan Bulis scored the other goals for Montreal.

Koivu picked up a couple of assists to mark his return to the lineup after missing the previous five games and 10 of the previous 11 with a groin injury.

The good news is that he came out of the game feeling fine, a marked contrast from the last time he returned from the groin injury, Dec. 17 in Minnesota. He might have rushed his recovery for that game because he was playing against his brother Miikko and his parents had come from Finland to watch their sons play against each other for the first time.

"I knew after that game that it wasn't right," Koivu said. "I didn't play much in the third period, but tonight, I felt good.

"I was a little fatigued at the end and I'm looking forward to have a couple of days off, but the groin felt good."

Koivu's return is a welcome one, but the Canadiens are still battling injuries. The latest is a neck and shoulder injury that kept gritty forward Steve Begin on the sidelines last night.

"It feels a little better, but it's still stiff," said Begin, who was injured in a collision with Tampa Bay's Steve Montador Friday night.

Begin was to be re-evaluated by doctors in Montreal. The tendency is to tread lightly when there is a neck injury, and a further concern is Begin's history of shoulder problems.

There's no indication when Radek Bonk will return from his groin injury. He accompanied the team on this trip and there were hopes that he would play, but he's still not 100 per cent.

Bonk has been described as a disappointment, but it should be noted that the Canadiens have earned 21 of a possible 38 points when he's in the lineup - and the Canadiens need points.