Game 7 - Canadiens vs Red Wings

#MTLHockey Preview

Match Up

The Canadiens (5-1-0) host the Red Wings (3-1-1) at the Bell Centre Tuesday night for an Original Six match up. The game is set to start at 7:30 and is being shown on RDS, City - Montreal, and Fox Sports - Detroit.

This is the first of four meetings between the Habs and Wings this season. Last year the Canadiens went 2-1-1, winning the last two games. Jarred Tinordi played over 15 minutes in the Canadiens 5-3 win in their final game last year, picking up two assists in the process.

What to Watch

When he gets going the way he did Saturday night against the Avalanche, PK Subban can be hard to miss. PK lit the lamp twice Saturday bringing him up to three goals and four points on the season. He also picked up his seventh minor penalty of the season, putting him in a familiar position ahead of the league in that department, tied with Boston's Brad Marchand.

Red Wings fans needed to sit through 64 minutes and 50 seconds of goalless hockey Saturday night when the Wings hosted the Maple Leafs, but were treated to a Henrik Zetterberg one-timed game-winner off a beautiful feed from Niklas Kronwall for their troubles. It was Zetterberg's first goal of the season but he now has a team-best six points. Gustav Nyquist is also off to an impressive start to his season. After posting 28 goals and 48 points in 57 games last season, he already has four goals and five points in five games this year.

What's at Stake

The Canadiens are at the top of the standings and a win against the Red Wings will help them keep it that way. Detroit is off to a strong 3-1-1 start to the season so the Habs will also be doing themselves a favor by beating their division rivals.

Who's Out

The Canadiens are healthy heading in to Tuesday's game. Jarred Tinordi has played the last four games, the last two of which have come at the expense of Nathan Beaulieu. Dale Weise has also been a healthy scratch the last two games.

Johan Franzen (leg), Pavel Datsyuk (shoulder) and Jimmy Howard (groin) all missed Saturday's game against the Leafs, Datsyuk hasn't played yet this season, but all three could be in action on Tuesday. Howard is expected to start in Montreal, the two skaters are a bit more questionable to see action.

What Else

While the Canadiens have been slow out of the gates in their first six games, they've been pretty solid in the final two periods with seven second period and eight third period goals. And although they've allowed five and six goals against in the final two frames, if you discount Montreal's 7-1 loss to the Lightning, they've outscored their opponents 7-3 in the second and 8-3 in the third period.

The Question Mark

How would you like to see Michel Therrien use Jarred Tinordi and Nathan Beaulieu this season?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:30 Tuesday to preview the Canadiens and Red Wings. Monica McAlister joins us in the second segment to fill us in on the Wings perspective.

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Pregame Preview: Canadiens vs Red Wings (Game #79)

 
Match Up:

The Canadiens (44-27-7) return to the Bell Centre Saturday night to host the Red Wings (37-26-14) after finishing up a 4-game road trip Friday in Ottawa. The game starts at 7:00 and airs on RDS and CBC.

This is the fourth and final game between the Habs and Wings this season. The Canadiens earned their first win and their third point against Detroit the last time these teams met in a wild 5-4 victory. Tomas Tatar and Tomas Plekanec each had a pair of goals in the game while Thomas Vanek picked up the game winning goal and added 2 assists.

What to Watch:

Max Pacioretty popped in 3 goals and a pair of assists against the Senators Friday, bringing him up to 38 goals and 59 points on the season despite missing 9 games with injury. Pacioretty is 4th in the league in goals behind Alex Ovechkin (49), Corey Perry (41) and Joe Pavelski (39). Thomas Vanek had himself a 3-point night in Ottawa, giving him 9 points in his last 5 games and 14 points in the 14 games he's been with the Habs.

PK Subban was -3 with no points against the Senators, playing a season low 13:39. His previous season low came the game before when the Habs played the Lightning on Tuesday.

Gustav Nyquist's scoring streak came to an end at 10 games last night when the Wings beat the Sabres 3-2. Over that 10-game span Nyquist had 12 goals and 2 assists, but was held to just 1 assist when the Wings and Habs last met. Daniel Alfredsson had a goal and an assist last night bringing him up to 4 points in his last 3 games.

What's at Stake:

The Canadiens moved two points ahead of the Lightning with their win in Ottawa, but the Bolts hold the game in hand. The race for second in the Atlantic and home-ice advantage could go right to the wire so every point counts with four games remaining. The Red Wings have 5 games to play and are comfortably holding down the first of two Eastern Wild Card spots. While they're currently the 7th seed, the Wings are actually 6th in points in the East, so they would need to be passed by the Flyers, Blue Jackets and either the Leafs, Devils or Capitals to fall out of a playoff spot.

Who's Out:

Douglas Murray serves the second game of his 3-game suspension Saturday night, he'll be available for duty when the Habs face the Islanders next Thursday. Josh Gorges (hand) is getting close to a return but won't be in the lineup Saturday. Dale Weise (wrist), Travis Moen (concussion) and Brandon Prust (upper body) are also out.

For the Wings, Henrik Zetterberg (back) is out for the regular season but is aiming to return during the first round of the playoffs. Stephen Weiss (hernia) is out along with Jonathan Ericsson (hand) and Dan Clearly (knee).

What Else:

At 95 points, the Habs have 4 games remaining to break 100 points for just the second time since they won the Cup in 1993. The only other time since then that the Habs broke 100 was during the 2007-08 season when they finished atop the Eastern Conference with 104 points. Max Pacioretty meanwhile has a chance to become the Canadiens first 40-goal scorer since Vincent Damphousse netted 40 in the 1993-94 season.

The Question Mark:

What can PK Subban do to earn more ice-time and responsibility from Michel Therrrien?

Let us know what you think, leave us a comment or send us a tweet with the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

Be sure to tune into the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show an hour before the puck drop and the Post Game Show 5 minutes after the final siren. Join the live conversation by using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

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Pregame Preview: Canadiens at Red Wings (Game #75)

Match Up:

The Canadiens (41-26-7) look to extend their win streak Thursday night when they face the Red Wings (33-25-14) at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. The game is set to start at 7:00 and airs on RDS and TSN.

This is the third of four meetings between the Habs and Wings, the Canadiens will host Detroit at the Bell Centre next Saturday to complete the series. The Habs are still looking for their first win against the Wings, they've lost 4-1 and 2-1 in OT. Gustav Nyquist has a pair of goals, including the OT winner last time these teams met, and an assist so far against the Canadiens.

What to Watch:

Max Pacioretty picked up his 100th career goal on Tuesday, and his ninth game winner on the season in Montreal's 2-0 victory over Buffalo. Carey Price earned victory number 30 on the season and shutout number 5. It's only the second time in his career Price has reached the 30-win mark, although he did pick up 21 wins in 39 games during the lockout shortened campaign last season.

With 7 points in 11 games, trade deadline acquisition, David Legwand, has been a boost to the Red Wings line up. Gustav Nyquist is certainly the player to watch on Detroit, he's in the midst of a 6-game point streak with 9 goals and an assist over that span.

What's at Stake:

The Canadiens have a two-point lead over the Lightning for second place in the Atlantic division, but they've also played two more games than Tampa. Meanwhile Detroit, at 80 points on the season, is stuck in a 4-way tie for the two Wild Card playoff spots in the East with Columbus, Washington and Toronto.

Who's Out:

The Canadiens will be without Brandon Prust (upper body), Josh Gorges (hand) and Dale Weise (wrist) for much of the rest of the season and possibly beyond. Travis Moen is suffering from concussion-like symptoms and did not travel with the team either.

The Red Wings are among the most beat up teams in the league missing 6 roster players for tonight's game. Henrik Zetterberg (back) will miss the remainder of the season, Stephen Weiss (hernia) hasn't played since December and is not close to a return. Justin Abdelkader (leg), Jonathan Ericsson (finger), Daniel Cleary (knee) and Mikael Samuelsson (shoulder) are all out, as is last year's point leader for the Wings, Pavel Datsyuk (knee). One bright spot for Detroit is the expected return of Tomas Jurco to face the Habs tonight.

What Else:

This is the start of a 4-game road trip for the Habs, they play 5 of their last 8 on the road. The Canadiens have a fairly balanced record both home and away, going 21-12-5 at the Bell Centre and 20-14-2 away from it. In two more home games the Habs have scored just 6 more goals at home then on the road, and have exactly 24 goals for both home and away. The glaring difference for the Canadiens away from home is that they've given up 97 goals compared to just 84 in Montreal.

The Question Mark:

Today's question is a tough one: If a win tonight meant home ice in the first round but a loss meant the Leafs would miss the playoffs, which do you want more?

Let us know what you think, leave us a comment or send us a tweet with the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

Be sure to tune into the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show an hour before the puck drop and the Post Game Show 5 minutes after the final siren. Join the live conversation by using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

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Pregame Preview: Canadiens vs Red Wings (Game #60)

 
Match Up:

The Canadiens (32-21-6) kick off the post-Olympic race to the playoffs when they host the Red Wings (26-20-12) Wednesday night at the Bell Centre. The puck drops at 7:30 and the game airs on RDS and TSN.

This is just the second of four meetings between these Original Six rivals. The Red Wings earned a convincing 4-1 win over the Canadiens last month when these teams met in Detroit. Gustav Nyquist, Niklas Kronwall and Henrik Zetterberg each picked up a goal and an assist in the victory.

What to Watch:

Carey Price and PK Subban returned home from Sochi with a pair of Gold Medals to their credit. Price was named the tournament's best goaltender, posting shutouts in his last 2 games to help Canada achieve victory. Price has earned himself the night off against the Wings, so fellow Olympian Pater Budaj will get the start on Wednesday.

After coaching Team Canada to Olympic Gold, Mike Babcock returns to the Red Wings bench to try to maintain his team's playoff positioning. The Wings have the second and final wild card spot right now, but Washington, Ottawa and Columbus are each just one point back. To make his task that much more difficult, the Wings are suffering through some major injuries. After suffering a back injury during the Olympics, Henrik Zetterberg could miss the rest of the season, he underwent surgery on Friday.

What's at Stake:

The Canadiens return to action in the midst of a heated race for second place in the Atlantic division and home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. At 70 points, they're tied with the Maple Leafs for third spot, one point behind the Lightning. The Habs still have a game in hand on the Leafs, but they've played one more match than Tampa Bay.

Who's Out:

Alex Galchenyuk is expected to return to action Wednesday after recovering from a broken hand suffered in early January. Jarred Tinordi has been called up from Hamilton and could see action this week. Michael Bournival (concussion), Travis Moen (lower body) and Davis Drewiske (shoulder) are all out for the Habs.

The Wings are missing Henrik Zetterberg (back), Stephen Weiss (hernia), Jakub Kindl (knee) and Cody Emmerton (finger). Johan Franzen (concussion) and Pavel Datsyuk (knee) will both be game time decisions.

What Else:

After an extended break for many Canadiens the team has a grueling road ahead of them. The Habs will play 7 games over the next 11 nights and will play their final 23 games of the season in just 46 days. The Canadiens are not alone of course, as of Wednesday there are only 47 days left in the regular season. Just 7 teams have reached the 60 game mark so far. The Boston Bruins and St Louis Blues have the most games to make up between now and the end of the year, they each have 25 matches remaining.

The Question Mark:

We want to hear from you, how many points are you expecting the Habs to collect in their last 23 games?

Let us know what you think, leave a comment or send us a tweet by using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

Be sure to tune into the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show an hour before the puck drop and the Post Game Show 5 minutes after the final siren. Join the live conversation by using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

Read More