The Montreal Canadiens are looking to make it three in a row as they are in Minnesota to take on the Wild at Xcel Energy Center.
When Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin stood at the podium and told media that it was confidence holding the team back, many fans rolled their eyes. Looking at the way things have been going for the team, you have to believe that they’re feeling pretty good about themselves.
The Habs have been involved in a handful of high-scoring games. It’s tough to think that they’ll be able to continue that against the Minnesota Wild, but stranger things have happened. The Wild have been in a pair of 2-1 hockey games where only one of them resulted in a win. Considering defence is their MO, they’ll probably try to keep this game to that same pedigree.
Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau already confirmed that Devan Dubnyk will be getting the start. He’s finished some games with a save percentage under .900, but if he puts up similar numbers as his game against Pittsburgh (.967), the Habs may have a frustrating night.
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The only change to the lineup will be Carey Price as the net-minder. The new lines and pairings have been working so far and the hope is that the success they found in the Ottawa game wasn’t a fluke.
Anyhow you look at it, this is going to be a battle of goaltending and coaching. Although the Habs have been able to find the back of the net a lot, the defensive nature of the Wild could neutralize that a bit.
This could be the game where Alex Galchenyuk on the fourth line is a stroke of genius. Jonathan Drouin and Max Pacioretty are going to be the Wild’s main focus and will be seeing the toughest assignments. That could leave Galchenyuk’s line to expose some players and generate scoring chances.
A win will have the Montreal Canadiens only two spots out of the final wild card spot. If the team takes care of both ends, they should be able to do it.
What are your predictions for the game? Will the Habs keep continue this offensive surge? Let us know in the comments.