Montreal Canadiens: 3 Things to Know Ahead of Tonight’s Ottawa Game

The preseason continues for the Montreal Canadiens as they take on the Ottawa Senators, but there is also news from practice worth talking about.

It’ll be preseason game number four for the Montreal Canadiens Saturday against the Ottawa Senators. This one seems to have a little bit more weight to it. Not because the team is still looking for their first win (which doesn’t really matter because it’s the preseason). Not even because they’re playing against a divisional rival.

This may be a couple of player’s last chance to prove themselves to the coaching staff. Even though the regular season doesn’t start for another two weeks, more training camp cuts may be coming sooner than later.

That being said, here are four things to know ahead of the game.

1. The Line-Up

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There will be only one line combination playing that we should expect to see being run full-time in October. That being Charles Hudon line along with Tomas Plekanec and Artturi Lehkonen. The trio have been together for the majority of training camp and have generated a lot of scoring chances when played.

The obvious standout from that line is Hudon. He’s been spectacular so far, and may help rejuvenate Plekanec’s offence.

One defence, Karl Alzner and Jordie Benn will lead the way on the top pair. This could just be a harmless match up. Alzner has spent a lot of time with Jeff Petry, so much that it looks like that will be his partner full-time. Additionally, Brett Lernout will be seeing more action as well playing alongside Matt Taormina.

2. Changing Things Up

There were some changes made at practice Saturday morning. Ales Hemsky and Brendan Gallagher swapped lines. This probably doesn’t have anything to do with what they’ve been doing specifically.

Chemistry with Alex Galchenyuk and Phillip Danault has been the issue. Gallagher himself has been great, but the line as a unit hasn’t been unable to generate much. It also might be better to play Hemsky lower in the line-up. He wasn’t necessarily bad in the game against the Washington Capitals, in fact he set up Max Pacioretty pretty well.

Related Story: Should Hemsky Stay on the 1st Line?

Whether he can be as effective going against other team’s shut down lines and top pairings is the question. We’ll probably see how these changes play out in Monday’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

3. Last Chance to Shine

This game might be the final straw for some of the players at camp. In particular Jacob de La Rose, Michael McCarron, and Joseph Morrow.  Their performances so far in the preseason can range from underwhelming to awful.

McCarron and de La Rose haven’t done much despite being part of the Montreal Canadiens for some time. It looks worse on de La Rose since he’s been around longer. Morrow has had flashes positivity, but it’s been overshadowed by the number of turnovers and other defensive mistakes he’s made.

If these three have another bad game in the eyes of Claude Julien, expect them to be reassigned to the Laval Rocket. It may be more interesting in the case of de La Rose and Morrow because they need to clear waivers first.

Next: Thoughts on the Preseason So Far

How will tonight’s game go? Will the Hemsky-Gallagher swap work? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.