The Montreal Canadiens are on a mission to end their eight-game losing streak with the New York Islanders at the Bell Centre.
The Montreal Canadiens schedule is about to kick it up to a new level, and it starts tonight against the New York Islanders. On the one hand, it can be extremely concerning considering the Habs have lost their last eight games, but on the other hand, breaking out of it now could be a strong platform for better things.
The Islanders are among the top teams in the Eastern Conference sitting second in the Metropolitan Division with 38 points. Many believed they would take a dive this season considering how unsustainable their production looked, but Barry Trotz has made his mark on the organization.
Matthew Barzal is leading the team in overall scoring with 10 goals and 13 assists, but there’s a lot of collaboration going on. Captain Anders Lee, Josh Bailey, and Derick Brassard each have seven goals on the season, while Anthony Beauvillier and Brock Nelson have nine and eight goals respectively.
Goaltending has also worked in their favour despite Robin Lehner moving to Chicago. Thomas Greiss and Semyon Varlamov are splitting duties in net and have been getting positive results for the Islanders.
The Habs are grasping for any piece of success that they can hold on to. Keith Kinkaid is down in the minors now in favour of Cayden Primeau, while Matthew Peca is replacing Charles Hudon in the lineup.
Montreal has been playing better overall the last two games; they just aren’t getting results. The team had a 1-0 lead on the Boston Bruins heading into the third period but allowed three goals for the eventual loss.
With other teams in the conference picking up points, the Montreal Canadiens need to find a way to stop the bleeding somewhere. Perhaps that comes tonight.