The Canadiens heard Claude Julien‘s rant about them embellishing loud and clear, and the first-place Habs are happy to have gotten inside the Bruins’ heads.

“Jealousy,” Max Pacioretty told reporters Monday when discussing Julien’s comments. “We’re at the top right now and reading comments like that is awesome. If we’re in last place, they wouldn’t be saying anything about us, but we’re in first place and it’s the best feeling in the world.”

Julien said after Montreal’s 4-3 win over the B’s Sunday that the Canadiens were “embarrassing” the NHL with their embellishing, something Habs coach Michel Therrien disagreed with.

“I’ve known Claude for a long time and I’ve been coaching teams against him for a long time, too. To me, those comments that he made were ridiculous and I think he was very frustrated to have lost that game,” Therrien said. “Claude can concentrate on his team and I’ll concentrate on my own.

“Our goal is to play a style of game that we feel will best bring us success. That’s what’s really important for me,” continued the Habs’ bench boss. “We need to be able to show up for every game and for us that means playing an aggressive style of hockey and controlling the match. The players have been paying a lot of attention to the details and they deserve a lot of credit.”