His name appears on the scoresheet just once, but Scott Gomez had himself some kind of game Saturday night, and that was one of the major reasons the Canadiens headed home from Tampa with a 4-2 win and a four-game winning streak in their back pockets Saturday night.

Gomez was a completely different player than he was in all but a handful of his first 63 games of the season.

He made a difference on the penalty kill by swiping a puck from Marc-Andre Bergeron to ultimately negate a second period Lightning power play.

He had a hand to play in Max Pacioretty's power play goal that re-established Montreal's two-goal margin by making a heady pass through the box to P.K. Subban, creating movement among Tampa's penalty killers to help Tomas Plekanec get a shot through from the point.

And finally he made a difference at even strength by scooping up a puck in his own end, skating it up the boards with speed to create an odd man rush and feeding Pacioretty for a one-timer to ice the game in the third.

But aside from that, Gomez had little moments where he looked like he cared again. One such moment was in the third period when he chased after a dumped puck, appeared as though he would take the easy route and concede it to the Tampa defence, before bursting to the inside to beat his man to the puck and take control.

You don't want to read too much into one game, but if this is some sort of sign that Gomez has decided to start playing the way he can, it's excellent news for the Canadiens. The fact they sit where they do in the standings, solidly entrenched in sixth in the conference, is a minor miracle considering the season Gomez and his usual running mate Brian Gionta have had.

If the two of them can get it going, the residual effects on the rest of the team would be enormous.

Seeing as both Gomez and Gionta picked up a point in the game, it got me wondering as to what Montreal's record is when they do so. So here it is, along with the team's record when one of the Canadiens other top-five point-getters finds himself on the scoresheet.

Kostitsyn – 21-4-2, .815 points percentage

Gionta – 21-5-1, .796

Gomez – 18-5-3, .750

Plekanec – 25-9-5, .705

Cammalleri – 18-7-2, .704

Aside from the statistical oddity of Kostitsyn, Cammalleri and Gionta each getting points in exactly 27 of the team's games, I think the list shows just how badly the Canadiens require more than one dangerous line to be successful. Kostitsyn is now on a six-game point streak, and Montreal is 5-1-0 in those games.

Gomez is often times judged on the weight of his salary rather than his play on the ice, which is unfair because he will never produce at a level that will justify his contract. His level of play this season, however, has been worthy of the criticism.

But if his performance Saturday night was a sign of change, if it leads to similar ones down the road like the ones we saw consistently in the playoffs last season and even as he was racking up nearly a point a game over his final 44 games of the regular season (41 points), he can partially salvage what is well on its way to a career-worst season.

And if he can elevate his game to an even higher level in the playoffs, it might just make people forget the 63-game warm-up he required.