Montreal Canadiens: Battle of the bottom five

The Montreal Canadiens hope they can take the positives from their win over the Tampa Bay Lightning and use it on the Canucks ahead of the bye week.

Thursday’s game was a hard fought match between two teams on opposite ends of the standings. The Montreal Canadiens had a good game, but Carey Price was forced to make some incredible saves to keep things going and win it in the shootout.

Tonight’s matchup with the Vancouver Canucks may not be as challenging considering the difference in skill between them and the Lightning. Additionally, the Habs have the advantage of being more rested considering the Canucks played last night losing to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a shootout. The back-to-back factor may not matter though as the Canucks are 3-0 in the second half of them.

Vancouver will be looking to have a strong start, and perfect road game whereas Montreal will hope to keep things in their control. It was a bit of a gong show the last time the two teams face off against each other. The final score was 7-5 for the Habs which included a pair of goals from Nicolas Deslauriers and a hat-trick from Thomas Vanek.

The Habs have made it their goal to try (emphasis on try) to play a more conservative style of hockey this season. However, that game had the team adopt more of a run and gun style which resulted in a lot of goals going in either net. It might’ve been fun for the fans to watch, but Claude Julien didn’t like what he was seeing and made adjustments accordingly.

The lineup has looked a little more lethal with some of the changes made including Charles Hudon on the Max Pacioretty–Phillip Danault line. Unfortunately, Daniel Carr has been taken out for Jacob de La Rose and seeing as he had not too bad of a game, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Julien leave the lines and pairings as is.

More from Habs News

• Montreal Canadiens: Biggest Questions Going Into 2023-24
• Montreal Canadiens: Quentin Miller’s Poise And Confidence Fuel His Game
• Montreal Canadiens: Laval Rocket Top Defence Pair Could Be Set
• Montreal Canadiens: Worst Move Of The Pierre Gauthier Era
• Montreal Canadiens: Could Casey DeSmith End Up In Colorado?

There’s a chance that Carey Price may miss this one as he was absent from practice on Saturday. The 30-year-old is battling with the same flu bug that has been flying around the team this season, and although he was able to play through it against Tampa, the Habs may choose to have him sit out. If so, Antti Niemi will get his first start since his 34 save effort in Edmonton.

As for the Canucks, they are having a bad season as well. The team sits a single spot above the Habs in the standings (25th overall) and are 2-6-2 in their last ten games. They also have a lot of players missing with injury in Derek Dorsett, Bo Horvat, Brandon Sutter, Sven Baertschi – who may return for tonight – and just recently Chris Tanev.

The 28-year-old took a puck to the face in their game last night and didn’t return to action. However, Tanev traveled with the team to Montreal so it’s still unclear whether he draws in.

Despite all the negatives that have come the Canucks’ way this season, rookie Brock Boeser is making it all worth it. The 2015 1st overall pick is currently leading the team in points with 22 goals and 17 assists in 38 games. The Habs felt the sting of what Boeser can do with time and space already, so keeping tabs on him all night will be key.

Next: Adding Dominique Ducharme to the Fold

What are your predictions for the game? Can the Habs get another win ahead of their bye-week? Let us know what you think down in the comments.