The Montreal Canadiens find themselves in another hole as they are set to take a high-flying Winnipeg Jets team Saturday night.
It’s another back-to-back weekend for the Montreal Canadiens. Unfortunately, the team is still in a funk that they can’t seem to get themselves out of. Thursday’s 6-3 loss to the Minnesota Wild was further proof that the issues around the Habs are still there.
Claude Julien went back to the whiteboard making some alterations to the lineup. Alex Galchenyuk‘s time on the fourth line is over (for now). Whether it’s because of his improved play or the fact that the Habs need to get goals wherever they can, Galchenyuk was bumped up to the first line with Jonathan Drouin and Artturi Lehkonen. It’ll be interesting to see 1) how long this lasts and 2) what they can do together.
With Galchenyuk’s promotion, Paul Byron will be on the third with Tomas Plekanec and Brendan Gallagher leaving Charles Hudon on the fourth. Speaking of Gallagher, he’s had a great start to his season leading the team in goals with six and points with 10. When things have gone south for the Habs, Gallagher has been one of the few positives.
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Al Montoya will be getting his third start of the year in place of Carey Price who is out with a lower-body injury. Despite what his stats say, he’s played well for the Montreal Canadiens. Price is listed as day-to-day, so Montoya could get more starts for the upcoming games. If not him, then recent call up Charlie Lindgren will see some time.
As ironic as it is, defence is going to be what saves the team in this game. Winnipeg has won their last three games including a 7-1 beat down against the Pittsburgh Penguins. This is a dangerous team offensively, and if the Habs make it easy, their net will be filled.
Additionally, goaltending doesn’t seem to be a problem anymore for the Jets. Connor Hellebuyck will be getting the start with a 7-0-1 record and a .938 save percentage.
There’s no room for the Montreal Canadiens to slip up in this game. Winnipeg has the offence to make you pay for it, and as important as it is for them to score, focusing on keeping the goals against low has to be a priority.
What are your predictions for the game? Can the Habs generate their own offence against the Jets? Let us know in the comments.