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The Habs continue their pursuit of happiness tonight at 7PM vs the Philadelphia Flyers. Next Matchup Philadelphia Flyers @ Montreal Canadiens - Saturday, April 5th @ 7PM EST - Centre Bell Montreal Canadiens Lineup Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Heineman - Newhook - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Pezzetta - Evans - Armia Matheson - Carrier Guhle - Hutson Struble - Savard Montembeault Dobeš Philadelphia Flyers Lineup Foerster - Cates - Brink Michkov - Couturier - Konecny Pelletier - Poehling - Tippett Deslauriers - Dorwart - Hathaway Seeler - Sanheim York - Drysdale Zamula - Andrae Ersson Fedotov Storyline The Habs and Flyers are set to meet each other for the second time in 10 days. The first meeting coincided with the firing of Flyers head coach, John Tortorella. The Flyers have managed to gain a boost from this event and have turned their last 3 matchups into a 3 game winning streak. The Habs lost their last contest with the Flyers 6-4 but have also managed to turn their luck around at a crucial moment of their season. They are also in the midst of enjoying a 3 game winning streak. The Flyers (26.8) and the Habs (26.9) are both young teams, sitting 3rd and 4th (tied with Boston) youngest respectively. Many of the younger teams are not doing well in the standings, so this bodes well for the talent level of Montreal’s young players. Two of the youngest players on each team are currently in a battle for the rookie of the year honours, and the Calder Trophy. While Lane Hutson’s name has been circulating amongst the mouths of those discussing the topic, Michkov is also having quite a significant year, and things have only seemed to improve in this short sample size since Tortorella’s firing. While Hutson has been the better player statistically over the past week with 6 points, Michkov has recorded 11 points (4g, 7a) in the past 14 days, good enough for third in the NHL over that span. He is tied with Jack Eichel (6g, 5a) and Ovechkin (6g, 5a) during that period. Only Robert Thomas and Nikita Kucherov have more points (15) over that same timeframe. While Nick Suzuki has led the way during that timeframe with 10 points, Hutson has been no slouch having registered 9 assists for 9 points during the past 14 days. Clearly, the race for the Calder is on, and tonight’s matchup will be a big part of that. The Habs will enjoy a back to back series this weekend with two winnable matches against the Philadelphia Flyers and the Nashville Predators. The playoff race is still tight but the Habs hold their destiny in their own hands. With a solid effort and results going their way, this weekend could prove to be monumental in regards to the Canadiens’ playoff aspirations. May the team continue to play well and deliver the fans and organization what they so desperately crave, a playoff berth. Previous Meetings October 27, 2024: Montreal 4 - 3 Flyers March 27, 2025: Montreal 4 - 6 Flyers

Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, on Thursday night, a rivalry will be renewed. The Boston Bruins are coming to town to face their longtime rivals in the Montreal Canadiens. Next Matchup Boston Bruins @ Montreal Canadiens: Thursday, April 3rd @ 7PM EST - Centre Bell Montreal Canadiens Lineup Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Heineman - Newhook - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Pezzetta* - Evans - Armia Matheson - Carrier Guhle - Hutson Struble - Savard Montembeault Dobeš *Kapanen has been recalled and may play Boston Bruins Lineup Geekie - Zacha - Pastrnak Koepke - Lindholm - Lauko Khusnutdinov - Middlestadt - Lettieri Viel - Beecher - Brown Zadorov - Jokiharju Wotherspoon - Peeke Lohrei - Mitchell Swayman Korpisalo Storyline: With 8 games and 7 games left in their respective seasons, the Montreal Canadiens and Boston bruins are set to face each other under very different circumstances from one another. As they enter their 764th regular season meeting, and 940th overall, the Habs are clinging to the final playoff spot, in a battle with the Rangers and Blue Jackets, whereas the Bruins are fighting with the Buffalo Sabres for last place in the east and the best possible odds at a 1st overall draft pick. With a win in regulation, the Canadiens can eliminate the Bruins from playoff contention, putting them out of the misery that has been this season. Montreal will head into this matchup against the Bruins with many different faces in the lineup. Players like Brad Marchand, Brandon Carlo, and Charlie Coyle are no longer with the team as they have been shipped out. Instead the Bruins lineup is filled with many unrecognizable and difficult to spell names within their lineup. While David Pastrnak will always be dangerous, he cannot do everything on his own and his supporting cast isn’t the greatest at the moment. As a result, the Bruins find themselves having lost their last 6 matches in a row, and hold a 1-8-1 record over their last 10. The Canadiens on the other hand are coming off of 2 big wins over the former Stanley Cup champions, including a thrilling come from behind overtime victory less than 48 hours ago. They hold a 4-3-3 record over their last 10 contests. While the Canadiens cannot take any team lightly, this matchup is there for the taking, and it comes at a crucial point of the season where two points are almost necessary. While the Habs hold the current advantage over the Bruins, there are some statistical advantages the Bruins hold that one should be aware of. First of all, the Bruins have won our previous two meetings this year, 6-4 in October, and 6-3 in December. Both games were on the road, however, so this marks the first time the Canadiens will host the Bruins and we are already 75 games into the season. This means we will end the season with 2 away games and 1 home game against the Bruins. While the Habs held the advantage a few years ago with two home games and one away, this seems to be a little irregularity in the schedule which could use some adjusting. With parity in the league, this type of thing could lead to the difference between two teams making the playoffs in a given year. The Bruins have also won 9 out of their last 10 matchups with the Habs, so clearly they have held the advantage over us in the recent past. Another area which the Bruins have recently held the advantage is goaltending for this particular matchup between teams. Montembeault has a 2-6-1 record against the Bruins with a 4.16 goals against average, and a .876 save percentage. Swayman, on the other hand, has never lost to the Montreal Canadiens in regulation, holding a 9-0-1 record to go along with a 2.69 goals against average and a modest .900 save percentage. A lot of this has had to do with the level of their respective teams, but hopefully Montembeault and the Habs can turn things in their favor today and come through with a regulation victory. Korpisalo’s numbers are even better with an 8-2-0 record but a .916 save percentage and a 2.49 goals against average. It’s to be said that Korpisalo has done so while defending the crease of other teams as well, though. Dobeš has never played the Bruins. Something else to mention is the reality that Montreal has recalled Kapanen to the team and so while nothing is official, there is a chance that he will replace Pezzetta in the lineup. On one hand, one would think that it may be best to keep a winning lineup intact. On the other end of things, Pezzetta has only played between 5 and 6 minutes over the past couple of contests, so any positive impact he has had on the outcome would have been very minimal. Historical leaders vs the Bruins include Gallagher with 28 points in 42 games, Laine with 12 points in 15 games and finally Anderson with 12 points in 19 games. For the Bruins, Pastrnak leads the way with 49 points in 32 games (perhaps we should double team him), Lindholm has 24 points in 34 games against the Habs, and finally McAvoy has 16 points in 23 games. McAvoy is another familiar face that the Habs won’t have to contend with due to the long term injury he sustained at the 4 nations face off. On the other hand, the return of Kaiden Guhle has added a steady balance to the top 4 over the past 2 games. While things were starting to get out of hand over the past few weeks defensively, the Habs played a nice defensive game in their last contest. This style, and winning many closely contested 1 goal games has been their recipe for success this season. His defensive partner is no slouch either, with Hutson simply leading the way on the back end. Should they transition this style into tonight’s matchup, the Habs will likely be successful and come away with their 3rd consecutive victory. Previous Matchups 10/10/24: 4-6 Bruins @ Boston 12/1/24: 3-6 Bruins @ Boston

Tuesday evening, the Florida Panthers enter the Bell Center for their 4th and final contest with the Montreal Canadiens this season. Montreal has had their number so hopefully things continue for this matchup. Next Matchup Florida Panthers @ Montreal Canadiens - Tuesday, April 1st @ 7PM - Centre Bell Montreal Canadiens Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovsky Heineman - Newhook - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Pezzetta - Evans - Armia Matheson - Carrier Guhle - Hutson Struble - Savard Montembeault Dobes Florida Panthers Verhaeghe - Barkov - Reinhart Marchand - Bennett - Rodrigues Luostarinen - Lundell - Boqvist Greer - Sturm - Samoskevich Forsling - Jones Mikkola - Kulikov Schmidt - Balinskis Vanecek Bobrovsky Storyline In terms of positioning in the standings, the storylines are fairly similar to Sunday's matchup. Florida is fighting for first place in the division and Montreal is fighting for a playoff spot, period. The Habs enter the contest tied with the Rangers with 77 points but have one game in hand. This game is of utmost importance because the Rangers hold the tiebreak with the Habs so should they lose, the Rangers will take over the final playoff spot without even having to play a game. The lineups should be fairly similar with mild tweaks here and there. Florida has already moved Rodrigues to the second line in place of Samoskevich. Heineman fit in quite well with Newhook and Laine so I would keep that line intact. The real storyline surrounding this game revolves around the fact that it is a rematch of a contest held only two days ago as well an incident that transpired at the end of said meeting. The game is the final end of a home and home and the conclusion to the 4 game series these teams will face each other this season, outside of the 4 games the Habs will use to sweep Florida in the conference final later this season. The main element stemming from the game was an incident that happened right at the conclusion of the match when Mikkola decided to take a slap shot that nearly decapitated Savard at the other end of the ice. This led to players getting involved at the end of the match, led by Brendan Gallagher as they danced together for a period of time before both teams were escorted off the ice. The game is governed at times by unwritten rules and while it's not a big deal to me personally, one can understand the response, and it's hard to criticize passion during a moment that doesn't punish the team. The top players were the top players for the Habs last game against the Panthers. Will they step up to the plate once again? Will it be the depth players instead? A combination of both? Or will the team revert to the manner in which they played at the beginning of the year, or only a few games ago. The Habs seem to be somewhat of a streaky team at times who rely heavily on confidence as a primary driver for their success. Let's hope they turned the page on Sunday and continue strong through the end of this season. Previous Meetings Dec 28th, 2024: Habs 4 - 0 Panthers (Away) March 15th, 2025: 3-1 Habs (Home) March 30th, 2025: 4-2 Habs (Away)

With an early start tomorrow, here is the next GDT. CC, if we lose this, we may need one of your simpletons Next Matchup Montreal Canadiens @ Florida Panthers - Sunday, March 30th, 1PM EST - Amerant Bank Arena Montreal Canadiens Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Heineman - Laine - Newhook Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Pezzetta - Evans - Armia Matheson - Carrier Guhle - Hutson Struble - Savard Montembeault Dobeš Last game the Habs went with 11f and 7d, so lineups will be updated should we go back to 12 & 6. (lineup has been adjusted) Florida Panthers Verhaeghe - Barkov - Reinhart Marchand - Bennett - Samoskevich Luostarinen - Lundell - Boqvist Greer - Sturm - Rodrigues Forsling - Jones Mikkola - Schmidt Bjornfot - Balinskis Bobrovsky Venecek Storyline: With the Habs set to face Florida, one thing is for certain: The Panthers have acquired themselves a rat. Brad Marchand made his Panthers debut yesterday and will be in the Florida lineup for the second time in his career Sunday afternoon vs the Habs. The rat managed an assist in his debut, registering the assist on formal rival turned Team Canada and Panthers teammate, Sam Bennett’s goal. This is a personal thing but years ago I used to compare Brendan Gallagher and Brad Marchand and figured their careers could turn out to be fairly similar. There are two expanding points on that thought. 1) Marchand’s career has turned out better While Gallagher has been an important figure on the Canadiens squad and demonstrates the heart of a lion on a nightly basis, Marchand has the better point totals, also battles hard, and has been a prominent figure on championship teams, as well as captain for the same organization. 2) It’s interesting to note that Gallagher’s tenure on the Habs has extended beyond that of Marchand’s on the Bruins. With that being said, Gallagher’s career began in 2012-2013 making this his 13th season as a member of the Montreal Canadiens. Marchand’s career for the Bruins began in 2009-2010 meaning he played 16, (or 15.5) seasons for the Bruins. Will Gallagher still be with the Habs in 2-4 seasons? (Check out Montembeault’s helmet) Hopefully the Habs can come out strong, catch the Panthers having a cat nap and Brendan Gallagher and the Canadiens make Brad Marchand feel emotions he felt many times as a Bruin but has yet to experience as a Panther. The game itself: Both the Canadiens and Florida enter the contest feeling as though this is an important game. Florida has 91 points, good enough for 1st in the division but Toronto and Tampa are right behind them with 90 and 89 points respectively. The Habs have fallen out of a playoff spot at least for a day, but at the time of writing, they are still tied for that final spot. Needless to say, a good stretch is needed here to cap the regular season. It is to be sure that many people involved with the Habs in any way, whether it be fans, media, analysts, or the organization itself coupd be disappointed based on the Habs’ recent results. That said, being emotional won’t do anyone any favors unless used in a positive manner. Habs player Cole Caufield was quoted as saying that the team would have been happy to be in this position at this point in the season, had they been asked prior to the year. While this is a generic response, it remains true. The only thing the Habs can do is focus on what comes next. The Habs have also had Florida’s number this year having outscored them a combined 7-1 in two victories, so they have the mental edge to an extent and can use that to build a strong final push to close out the season. Final thoughts: 1) One thing I often think about when our team faces Sam Bennett is the thought that Heineman was involved in the trade for Bennett to Florida by Calgary. We then requested him in the Toffoli trade. Of course there were more players and pieces involved in both trades but it’s something to ponder when we see Heineman quietly playing on our 4th line. He is a player that holds value and although he has been once again quiet statistically since his unfortunate pedestrian vs car accident in Utah earlier this year, he’s a solid member of the team. 2) Similar to Marchand, Guhle made his return last game for the Habs. While his insertion into the lineup did not have an immediate impact, hopefully his addition can help stabilize the back end. As the Habs were playing well as a defensive unit for long stretches without Guhle, St. Louis went with an unorthodox 11 forwards and 7 defensemen model. Hopefully the team saw enough last game and will go back to 12 and 6. 3) Samuel Montembeault will face his former team. While many years have already passed, there’s always that extra little motivation for a player who faces their old team, especially when you are a goaltender. 4) Subtly mentioned his name before but Cole Caufield needs to break out of his slump. He did score recently vs Philadelphia but he has been quiet by his standard and hasn’t yet done enough to look like he is out of his changed mental state. A goal or two in this game will go a long way in helping both him regain his confidence as well as the team find a win. 5) May the Habs get back to their winning ways and come back home with vibes that remind them of who they were in the following photo: Previous meetings 12/28/2024 @ FLA - 4-0 WIN 315/2025 @ MTL - 3-1 WIN

Sums up my mood right now

After a tough loss to the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday, the Habs will look to rebound against a struggling Philadelphia team on Thursday. Next Matchup Montreal Canadiens @ Philadelphia Flyers - Thursday, March 27th @ 7:00PM EST @ Wells Fargo Center Montreal Canadiens Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Roy - Newhook - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Heineman - Evans - Armia Matheson - Carrier Struble - Hutson Xhekaj - Savard Dobeš Montembeault Philadelphia Flyers Foerster - Cates - Brink Michkov - Couturier - Konecny Tippett - Poehling - Pelletier Deslauriers - Abols - Lycksell York - Sanheim Seeler - Drysdale Zamula - Andrae Ersson Fedotov Storyline: For the first time in a while the Habs enter the game finding themselves in a very different situation than their opponent. While the Habs are clinging on to the last wildcard spot, depending on what happens in the Islanders game this evening, the Flyers are just about looking ahead to their future. While both the Flyers and the Habs have young top lines, the Philadelphia top line does not hold the same pedigree as the Montreal top line. Cates, Foerster and Brink have a combined age of 72 (23,23,26), the Habs’ top line has a combined age of 69 (24,25,20). With that being said, the Habs top line has combined for 178 points this season whereas the Philadelphia top line have combined for 94 points. While both the Flyers and Habs are coming off of 5 goal losses (Habs 1-6 vs St. Louis & Flyers 2-7 vs Leafs), the Habs clearly enter the game as favorites. With that being said, Caufield finds himself in a mini slump with only 1 point and no goals in his past 4 games. If the Habs are to begin winning games in regulation, or at all, they will need him to step up to the plate and start producing for them, as he is the 2nd leading scorer in the NHL on the road with over 20 goals. Slafkovský has also gone 3 games out of his last 4 without a point, however he did score 2 important goals versus Colorado. The Habs enter this matchup with a few question marks regarding their lineup. The first question surrounds Kaiden Guhle. He has been skating with the team in a regular practice jersey and with the Habs having lost their last game by a wide margin, this may be the perfect opportunity for him to enter the lineup. The question will remain, who will he replace? The answer will likely be between Struble, Savard and Xhekaj. While Savard is the most popular pick, he does tend to bring value in certain unique areas, including the reality that removing him would leave the Habs with 5 left handed defensemen in the lineup and only one right hander in Carrier. The other main question surrounds goaltending. With the Habs on the front end of a back to back, will Dobeš be the starter against Philadelphia? Once again, after the Habs struggled mightly in their last contest, and the Flyers being a relatively easy opponent (not to be taken for granted though) this may be the moment to get Dobeš into the net and give Montembeault the day off. If it were me, Dobeš would play this game, however time will tell as the goalies have yet to be confirmed. The time is now for the Habs to turn their recent results around and begin a solid stretch to finish off their regular season. The team is coming off of a very difficult loss but it is possible that they needed that wakeup call and it could be viewed in a positive light down the road should they use their loss vs St. Louis as a learning experience and use it as fuel for the remainder of their season. They had been getting away with things as of late, so hopefully the Habs can use the frustration from that matchup and translate it into productive play. The margins are slim but they have played well enough over the stretch to have their destiny in their own hands. As one can see, the storyline of this matchup revolves mainly around the Habs. The Flyers have some ex-Habs players in Poehling and Deslauriers but they are mostly depth players and shouldn’t factor much into the equation, unless Deslauriers would like to drop the mits with Xhekaj. The Habs should remain disciplined however and if they do so, they should come out of this match with a victory. Previous Matchup: October 27, 2024: Montreal 4 - 3 Flyers

In succession of Mr. CC’s valiant run as GDT host, I come to you with peace and victories in mind. The Habs have a tough opponent ahead and have yet to bring victories to the table while in a playoff spot late in this season. Tomorrow brings an opportunity where this could all change. Next Matchup Colorado Avalanche @ Montreal Canadiens - Saturday, March 22nd - 7:00PM EST (19h) - Centre Bell Montreal Canadiens Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Roy - Newhook - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Heineman - Evans - Armia Hutson - Struble Matheson - Carrier Xhekaj - Savard Montembeault Dobeš Colorado Avalanche Drouin - Mackinnon - Nichushkin Lehkonen - Nelson - Necas Kiviranta - Coyle - Colton Kelly - Drury - O’Connor Toews - Makar Lindgren - Malinski Middleton - Johnson Wedgewood Blackwood Storyline Saturday’s matchup brings some familiar faces back to the Bell Centre in Artturi Lehkonen and Jonathan Drouin. Both players have seemingly carved out a niche of their own in Colorado and have been contributors for the team. Outside of the newcomers to the team, in Necas and Nelson, as well as Rantanen, who was traded away, Lehkonen finds himself only behind Mackinnon and Makar in scoring. Drouin has had some injuries this season but is similarly only behind Mackinnon, Makar, Necas and Nichushkin in points per game on the team, with 32 points in 37 games (or .86 points per game). To put this into perspective, only Caufield and Suzuki have a better points per game on the Habs (.90 and 1.04 points per game respectively). With Drouin and Mackinnon having a long history together, this comes as no surprise. Ironically, both Drouin and Lehkonen have won championships with Mackinnon. Drouin with the Halifax Mooseheads in junior: Lehkonen with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022: On Montreal’s side of things, Alex Newhook will look to defeat his former championship winning team. Despite criticism of the second line, Newhook has been playing extremely well as of late, utilizing his speed to obtain high quality chances which have lacked a combination of luck as well as execution. Still, if he keeps up his play he will be rewarded soon. This matchup against his former team may just be the moment. The starting goalies are a little up in the air for both teams. On Montreal’s end, there is a valid argument for both goaltenders to start. Montembeault is the guy right now, but he has played 3 consecutive games, and Montreal has not gone with a goalie 4 games in a row in this calendar year, and likely even longer than that. Dobeš on the other hand rarely gets home starts and has only played one Saturday home game this year, a 4-3 overtime loss to the New Jersey Devils in late January. With that being said, Dobeš’ second career win was this year against Colorado, a 2-1 shootout victory where Dobeš stopped 22 out of 23 shots and left the game with a .957 save percentage. Mackenzie Blackwood is the starter in Colorado but Wedgewood has taken over the reigns as of late and performed well. Colorado’s starting goalie for Saturday is a bit up in the air as well. Both teams enter the game as two of the hottest teams in the league since the 4 Nations Cup. The Habs are 6-1-3 in their last 10 and haven’t lost in regulation in 2 weeks since their 1-0 loss to Calgary on Saturday, March 8th. Colorado is 8-1-1 in their last 10. They are playing their final game of a 3 game eastern Canada swing where they lost 2-1 to the Leafs but smashed the Senators 5-1 on Thursday. Let’s hope they got their goals out of the way last game. Finally, the Habs play their first game against a Rantanen-less Colorado Avalanche. Instead, we face them with Necas, who has been playing very well for them with 19 points in 21 games. Previous Meeting: January 4th, 2025: Montreal 2 - 1 Colorado (SO)

Montembault confirmed to start Guhle travelling with the team and practiced in a regular contact jersey today. Start of a tough but important road trip. We need these points

Another half-baked GDT. What the heck, these seem to be working. Isles are 5-4-1. Smokin' hot Habs are 7-1-2 and currently in a playoff position. 🔥 Hopefully we get a lot of looks like this from Coach Roy

Red-hot Habitants versus Pack of Pus-bags from Ottawa, coming right up

For my sins, here is a placeholder GDT. Habs have a record of 24 Cups vs the Panthers' 1.

In honour of @The Chicoutimi Cucumber starting us off with a victory last night, I present you with today’s game day thread. Today’s matchup: Montreal Canadiens @ Seattle Kraken - Wednesday, March 11th, 2025 @ 10:30PM EST - Climate Pledge Arena Montreal Canadiens Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Roy - Newhook - Gallagher Laine - Dvorak - Anderson Pezzetta - Evans - Heineman Hutson - Struble Matheson - Carrier Xhekaj - Savard Dobeš Montembeault Seattle Kraken Schwartz - Beniers - Kakko McCann - Wright - Nyman Tolvanen - Stephenson - Eberle Eyssimont - Hayden - Burakovsky Dunn - Larsson Oleksiak - Montour Evans - Mahura Daccord Grubauer Storyline: Tonight’s matchup brings us a battle between two former 1st round draft picks in Shane Wright and Juraj Slafkovský. Shane Wright, having been touted as potentially being the number 1 overall draft pick in the 2022 NHL draft, the Montreal Canadiens chose to select Slovakian Juraj Slafkovský instead. Similar to Filip Zadina a few years earlier, this left Montreal with a target on its back involving another young high draft pick. While Shane Wright never explicitly said anything similar to promising to “fill their nets with pucks”, it took not so much as the look on Wright’s face to know how he felt towards the organization While @The Chicoutimi Cucumber himself as well as some others have often pointed to Logan Cooley potentially having been the best pick of the draft, the pick has turned out to be an alright selection when all things considered. The Habs may have not drafted a Connor McDavid with the 1st overall pick, but they did draft the player who currently has the most points out of anyone selected that year and a player who still has room to grow. When all is said and done, he is currently a 1st line player. Shane Wright has not had the same start to his career, but has been playing well as of late. In the 2025 calendar year, Wright has an impressive 22 points in 27 games. In terms of the game itself, the Habs are coming off a 4-2 victory over the Canucks and tonight’s game against Seattle represents the final game of the Canadiens’ western road trip where they hold a 1-1-1 record. Each game on the trip has held equal significance as the Habs find themselves on the precipice of a playoff position. The Canadiens will look to end their road trip with a winning record this evening. While the Habs are entering this evening on the second end of a back to back, Seattle, on the other hand has had a few days off since their last match, a 4 - 2 loss against the Washington Capitals. While the Kraken didn’t play poorly and outplayed Washington for long stretches of the game, Seattle has lost 3 out of their last 4 and 5 out of their last 7 matches. The Kraken are the first team the Canadiens have faced on this road trip without playoff aspirations and so the Habs should play as though they are the more desperate team. Previous Meetings: October 29th, 2024: Kraken 8 - 2 Habs This reality should be another storyline. Time to get some revenge for that 8-2 shellacking near the beginning of the season in late 2024.

Quick GDT here and I seem to be the guy to do it, living as I do in Canucksland. Canucks fandom is jittery after a do-nothing deadline and few signs of hope from Petterson. They have a back-to-back plus travel tomorrow (Calgary) so from their perspective, they had better win. GO HABS GO!!

Montreal continues their Western Canada road trip today in Calgary after what in my personal opinion will have been their toughest opponent on the road trip in Edmonton. Today’s Matchup Montreal Canadiens @ Calgary Flames - Saturday, March 8th @ 7:00 PM - Scotiabank Saddledome Montreal Canadiens Lineup Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Newhook - Beck - Anderson Pezzetta - Dvorak - Gallagher Heineman - Evans - Armia Matheson - Carrier Struble - Hutson Xhekaj - Savard Dobeš Montembeault Calgary Flames Huberdeau - Kadri - Coronato Coleman - Backlund - Farabee Sharangovich - Frost - Pospisil Lomberg - Rooney - Zary Hanley - Weegar Bahl - Andersson Bean - Pachal Wolf Vladar Storyline: Both teams enter the contest 1 point out of a playoff spot. There couldn’t be a more meaningful game for both teams than this one at this juncture of the season. Calgary’s situation: Montreal’s situation: Less than 10 days ago, Calgary was mired in an extreme goal scoring drought where they were shutout in consecutive games 3-0, 3-0 against Tampa Bay and Florida respectively. The following game, Nazem Kadri ended their goal scoring droubt but Calgary still found themselves on the losing end of a 2-1 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Since then, the flames scored 6 goals in a 6-3 win over the Flyers and 2 goals in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Dallas stars. While the Flames have gained points in their last 3 games, they thankfully got their law of averages game out of the way against Philadelphia. Should the Habs play relatively stingy D, scoring may be difficult for Calgary which could be the type of solid road game a team needs to be able to play in order to get wins and earn points away from home On Calgary, look for their first line to be their biggest threat. Montreal on the other hand has been playing themselves into a playoff spot rather than out. They are coming off of a 5 game win streak since the 4 Nations Cup break ended and have accumulated important points in each of their 6 games in that timeframe. Nick Suzuki has been on a heater with 13 points (4g, 9a) in those 6 games since the break. Having been shutout last game, he is due to rebound today. Tonight looks to be an exciting contest. Both teams are in similar positions and remained fairly quiet during the trade deadline despite their standing. Management has put faith into their teams, and now it is up to the players to deliver. On a Saturday night, none the less. Previous meeting: Nov 5, 2024: Calgary 3 - 2 Montreal (OT) Our last 10 games against Calgary has been a rather streaky affair. Calgary has won the last 3 games, the Habs won 5 in a row prior to that, and then Calgary the next two. Let’s hope to start the streak in our favour today.

I will update when starting goalie gets announced along with any roster moves. Best part of the hockey week so far is the signing of Jake Evans. Go Habs Go - We need a win tonight to stay in the playoff hunt and a win on Saturday to keep Calgary out of the playoffs.

I’m hoping for a more structured game but I’m kind of expecting some violence. Buffalo had a couple of dirty bastards on Saturday - challenging Dobes ?? Really? Xhekaj desperately wanted to pound that guy all game. Are Hutson, Struble going to continue league leading play? Has Montreal stumbled upon a league leading defensive pair? Too early to tell but they are on the way. Expecting Montembault

These three guys are going to generate many points together

No info yet about starting goalies or injury updates. Go Habs Go

Slafkovsky continues to tell reporters in interviews that he intends to play like Brady Tkachuk every game. How wonderful would that be! Dach is out with LBI that is rumoured to be his other knee but considered day to day. I think we need to evaluate Dach’s play next season but I’m not exactly brimming with confidence that he isn’t a bust. Montembault in net tonight Owen Beck has been recalled

I wonder if Evans will be here on Feb. 22 when the season resumes? Is the rest going to reinvigorate the team or are we gonna keep losing? Do we have a hope in hell of making the playoffs? What is Marty going to do with the lines? Is Slafkovsky going to be playing with Gallagher and Dvorak again? A young Bob Gainey looks like Zuckerberg

Posting since there’s no thread by 1st intermission. Today’s Matchup: Tampa Bay Lightning @ Montreal Canadiens - Sunday, February 9th @ 1PM - Centre Bell Tampa Bay Lineup Guentzel - Point - Goncalves Hagel - Cirelli - Chaffee Girgensons - Paul - Eyssimont Atkinson - Glendening - Duke Hedman - Raddysh McDonagh - Cernak Lilleberg - Perbix Vasilevskiy Halverson Montreal Canadiens Lineup Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Newhook - Dach - Anderson Laine - Evans - Armia Beck - Dvorak - Gallagher Hutson - Matheson Struble - Carrier Xhekaj - Savard Dobeš Montembeault Storyline: Welcome to Super Bowl Sunday Habs fans where the Habs hold a 16-14-1 (tie against Philadelphia in 2002) record since they began playing their Super Bowl Sunday matinees every Sunday in 1990. There were a few exceptions where they didn’t play due to things like lockouts, etc. They hold a 21-14-1-2 overall on Super Bowl Sundays including games they played prior to it becoming a yearly thing. The Habs enter the contest amidst a rough patch within their schedule and hope to gain a crucial win for the team prior to a 2 week layoff for the 4 Nations Cup. A few weeks ago, the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning to gain a 2-0 season series lead against their modern day rivals. After the match, Tampa coach John Cooper referred to the division as being much closer than it has been in the recent past and that the days of having easy matches within the division are long gone. The Habs have been shutout for 2 consecutive games at home so they will need to find some offense from some of their top 6 if they look to stand a chance. The Lightning are entering the game after en extremely solid week, having defeated Ottawa twice and Detroit once both of which are teams that they desperately needed to beat as they are in direct competition for the final few playoff spots. In fact, while Ottawa entered the week with the 3rd playoff spot from our division, Tampa Bay now holds the spot after a very successful week. Finally, Kucherov is a late scratch today due to an upper body injury. Hopefully the Habs can take advantage.

It’s almost game time and no GDT?

Looks like the Habs need to get on another winning streak so let’s get this thing going… Tonight’s matchup: Montreal Canadiens @ San Jose Sharks - Tuesday, February 4th @ 10:30PM EST - Shark Tank (SAP Center) San Jose Sharks Lineup Eklund - Celebrini - Toffoli* Zetterlund - Poturalski - Smith Graff - Kunin - Goodrow Grundstrom - White - Duehr Walman - Thrun Ferraro - Thompson Mukhamadullin - Liljegren Georgiev Vanecek Montreal Canadiens Lineup Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Newhook - Dach - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Pezzetta - Evans - Armia Matheson - Hutson Xhekaj - Carrier Struble - Savard Montembeault Dobeš Storyline Had the date been late October, 2021, one of the main storylines for the Habs heading into the Shark Tank would have been the mere fact that they had yet to find a victory in the building in the 21st century, having not done so since 1999. Since October 28th, 2021, however, the Habs have managed to come out victorious in 3 of their last 5 appearances in the building. Heading into today’s matchup, the Habs enter the game as the favorites to win. San Jose is suffering from many key injuries, including one of the Habs’ former players Tyler Toffoli who enters the contest as a game time decision. Will he enter the game in order to face his former team? The sharks have also recently traded their leading scorer in Granlund. Finally, their back end leaves much to be desired and Georgiev has not exactly been having a stellar season. The opportunity is there for the taking and the Habs should be desperate for a win. The Habs enter the contest with a couple of key injuries themselves but must learn to play with the lineup they have. After Dach and Laine were benched for much of the 3rd period last game, they need to come out and play their best today. Confidence is crucial with this bunch so let’s hope things begin to click again starting tonight. Another thing to note is that Montembeault gets the start tonight. More often than not, Dobeš has started the first of the two games in back to backs. Although I expect Dobeš to start tomorrow, this does theoretically give the Habs the opportunity to have their starting goalie both legs of the back to back. If Dobeš does play, however, he faces the tougher team and will play in front of a potentially tired group in their second leg of a back to back.

With a little less than 12 hours until game time, the Habs have another late game tonight (based on their regular timezone) when they face the LA Kings at the Crypto.com Arena at 10:30PM EST this evening. Tonight’s matchup: Montreal Canadiens @ Los Angeles Kings - Wednesday, February 5th @ 10:30PM - Crypto.com Arena LA Kings Lineup Turcotte - Kopitar - Kempe Fiala - Byfield - Laferriere Foegele - Danault - Moore Jeannot - Lewis - Thomas Gavrikov - Doughty Edmundson - Clarke Moverare - Spence Kuemper Rittich Montreal Canadiens Lineup Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Newhook - Dach - Anderson Laine - Evans - Armia Beck - Dvorak - Gallagher Matheson - Hutson Struble - Carrier Xhekaj - Savard Dobeš Montembeault Storyline Until something changes in the “Great White North”, fans will always be reminded about the last time the Montreal Canadiens (or any Canadian team) won a Stanley Cup when these two teams square off. Heading into Wednesday’s game, both teams have something to play for. While many fans, critics and analysts have written the Habs off after their loss on Sunday to the Anaheim Ducks, should the Habs come out of this road trip with 4 out of a possible 6 points, things will no longer be necessarily looking so bleak. Currently, the Kings are only holding on to their playoff spot by 1 point, so tonight’s matchup could prove to be crucial for the morale of the team. The Canadiens on the other hand are sitting out of a playoff spot by 5 points but can move to within 3 points with a victory this evening. A few things to note prior to tonight’s game outside of the importance of the matchup in and of itself is that Drew Doughty has recently returned to the Kings’ lineup. After a long layoff due to an injury in the preseason, Doughty has played 3 games for the Kings and registered his first point in his last game. He will be a welcome addition to the team as Los Angeles has managed to score more than 2 goals in only 3 of their 14 games during this calendar year of 2025. Yes, this means that they have scored 2 goals or less in 11 games out of 14. While their defense is stingy, the Habs game plan needs to be to keep that number to 2 or less once again. With that being said, the Kings are coming off of a 4-2 win against Carolina and have had 3 days off since that win on Saturday. The Habs having had to travel from Southern California to Northern California and now back to Southern California are likely to be the more tired of the two teams, especially having played last night. From the Habs end, outside of their top players, it will be interesting to watch how Evans and Armia fare tonight, both of which have had an extremely effective California roadtrip. Here’s to hoping they can continue their succcess and perhaps even get Laine going. Finally, while the goaltending has not been confirmed as of yet, it is likely that Dobeš will get the nod tonight. Let’s hope he regains the form he had in his first few games with the big club and helps the team come out with an important victory this evening. On the Kings’ end, Kuemper has had a solid season for them. Time will tell if Dobeš can outduel the Kings’ goalie. Personally, I believe in Dobeš. Previous Meeting October 17, 2024: Kings 4 - 1 Habs

Kind of feels like an inflection point type of game. Habs are riding a 4 game losing streak and a win may propel us back to better play and more wins. Another loss, especially if the Habs lose big, could send us spinning. I want a win and to do that Montreal must overcome the loss of Guhle and Montembault needs a strong game. I don’t want the losing streak to continue…