Canadiens vs Canucks Game Notes

The Montreal Canadiens are in the midst of an historic 9-0-0 run and are looking to add to that total tonight against the Vancouver Canucks (3-2-3).

Carey Price was thrown into a shooting gallery against the Toronto Maple Leafs and still came out with a win after facing 52 shots. The focus for this game, as a result, seems to be to get that amount below 30 or around 30 shots and to regain the style of play that has the Habs without a loss through 9 games.

There are many things to cover before they drop the puck, so here we go!

BRANDON PRUST

Will he wind up fighting anyone tonight? That’s the first thought that comes to my mind when I realize they’re facing Prust tonight. Sure, he was well-liked in the locker room and there’s no doubt he has a lot of love to throw around, but hockey’s a strange sport in that it only takes a few shots, slashes, or cross-checks before tempers flare. If he does fight, I’d say it’ll likely be huge surprise to most fans.

P.K. SUBBAN

It’s refreshing to see the focus of the core players being so acutely centred on the winning the Stanley Cup. Subban had the following to say about tonight’s game:

“Our goal is not to break records, it’s to win a Stanley Cup. I think we’ll save the champagne or whatever anyone expects us to do for another day.”

I like it.

STATS COMPARISON: Canadiens vs Canucks

Here’s a comparison of what’s taken place for both teams so far in 2015-16 statistically speaking:

GF: Canadiens 35, Canucks 19
GA: Canadiens 12, Canucks 17
PP%: Canadiens 22.9%, Canuck 14.8%
PK%: Canadiens 90.9%, Canucks 87%
Shots/GP: Habs 32.6, Canucks 31.3
Shots Against/GP: Canadiens 31.7, Canucks 28.9
FOW%: Canadiens 49.3%, Canucks 54.3%

As you can see, the one worrisome area, aside from the shots the Habs allowed in their last game, is the face off win percentage. The Canucks will likely dominate in that area, so the Habs will have to be effective in regaining possession quickly. All-in-all, the Canadiens should have an edge in this game in most areas if they play to their abilities.

PLAYERS TO WATCH ON BOTH SIDES

Oct 22, 2015; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Radim Vrbata (17) scores against Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby (70) (not pictured) during the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports

For the Canucks, there are the obvious guys like Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin, who are now joined by Radim Vrbata. But there’s a youth movement in Vancouver that includes Bo Horvat, Jake Virtanen, and Jared McCann, a trio of youngsters that are getting a shot to prove themselves. Still, most of their scoring this season has come from role players like Alexandre Burrows and Brandon Sutter who both lead the team with 6 points.

I’ll say that again, their leading scorers have 6 points. The Habs have 7 players with more points than the two leading scorers of the Canucks. Now that’s a significant advantage.

On the Habs side of things, Michel Therrien continues to keep the lineup they’ve had since the beginning together, something that’s extremely encouraging to see. Alexander Semin will be one player to keep an eye on, as mistakes made vs the Leafs has all eyes focused on his play. Paul Byron continues to wait for a chance to prove himself and rumours are he may be the replacement in the lineup if Semin is taken out in an upcoming game. Aside from Semin, the focus should be on the second line as the team continues to look for scoring to help out the top line. Alex Galchenyuk and Lars Eller will be looking for results to come from their hard work.

PREDICTION

After taking so many shots against the Leafs, I think the Canadiens will come out swinging in this one. If they’re able to get an early lead, they’ll come out on top. If the Canucks survive the first period and are ahead, it’ll be an uphill battle for the Canadiens.

Score: Canadiens 4 – Canucks 1

Next: Montreal Canadiens' Five Guys

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