Montreal Canadiens' Douglas Murray, left, and Boston Bruins' Shawn Thornton exchange blows following the final face-off of the third period in Game 3 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series, Tuesday, May 6, 2014, in Montreal. The Canadiens defeated the Bruins 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in the series.

MONTREAL — P.K. Subban has picked the right time to go on an offensive tear.

The 2013 Norris Trophy winner had his third straight two-point game with a goal and an assist, and the Montreal Canadiens held off the Boston Bruins for a 4-2 victory Tuesday to take the lead in their NHL Eastern Conference playoff series.

The Canadiens are up 2-1 with Game 4 set for Thursday in Montreal.

Subban has 11 points in seven playoff games.

“I’m just the beneficiary of the guys playing well around me, supporting me,” the defenseman said. “It starts in goal. Well, it actually starts with our coaching staff and making sure everybody is feeling confident. We’re doing it together. ... When we had adversity, we’re sticking together doing the right things.

“It’s fun to play on teams where you know guys are going to support you.”

Lars Eller and fourth-line winger Dale Weise also had a goal and an assist, and Tomas Plekanec scored Montreal’s other goal.

Patrice Bergeron and Andrej Meszaros scored for the Bruins.