It’s been a long time since the Montreal Canadiens took on the Detroit Red Wings, in fact it was at the end of last season when the two teams played back-to-back series. Although the Habs lost both meetings, fans loved those games as they were the first two of Lane Hutson’s career and gave us a glimpse of things to come.
Fast forward eight months later and the young blueliner has played 33 NHL games and picked up 24 points in the process, making him the sweet story of this campaign in Montreal, at least until Patrik Laine gets back on track.
Related: Canadiens Trade Barron To Nashville For Carrier
The Canadiens will try to build on the momentum they gained from their 6-1 win over the Buffalo Sabers on Tuesday night, but they will be fighting hard. The Red Wings have won their last two gamesno one has lost 10 in a row.
In their last 10 games, the Wings have a 4-4-2 record while the Canadiens are 5-5. Both outfits played the same number of games, but Detroit had 30 points, while Montreal only got 27. So Detroit is 13th in the conference while Montreal is 15th, needless to say, they are both out of the playoffs picture as things. stop.
The Canadiens have a record of 294-209-96-9 in 608 games played against the Michigan team, and have won only three of the last 10 duels. Keep an eye on Brendan Gallagher who is the team’s most productive forward against the wings with 17 goals and 11 assists in 33 games. He is followed by Suzuki with 12 points in 15 games and veteran running back David Savard who also has 12 points in 38 games.
As for the hosts, Patrick Kane is the best for the Canadiens with 21 points in 24 games, followed by Dylan Larkin with 19 points in 30 games and Alex DeBrincat rounding out the top three with 17 points in 15 games.
On the lines, Martin St-Louis has already confirmed that Samuel Montembeault will be starting eight games in a row and added that he has not yet made a decision about Saturday night’s game. He has played Detroit three times so far and has a 1-0-2 record with a 3.24 goals against average and a .888 save percentage.
There is no word yet on who he will face in Alex Lyon and Ville Husso. The former has faced the Canadiens five times and has a record of 4-0-1 with a 2.78 GAA and .895 while the latter has played six times and compiled a 4-0-2, 1.95 GAA and .929 SP . . They will probably get each game since this is a back-to-back series.
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In other program news, St-Louis confirmed that they want to use newly acquired Alexandre Carrier tomorrow night who has been cleared to play before the trade after missing some games with an upper body ailment.
Team captain Suzuki was asked how he felt about the trade after training yesterday and said:
It’s sad to see JB (Justin Barron) go he’s a really good guy in the room and a good young player, but getting Alex (Carrier) is exciting, I know a little bit about him. I played in that 3-on-3 league with him in the summer so, he’s a good guy and I think he’ll come in right away. I think he’s a solid defenseman, and playing against him, he plays hard, battles in front of the net, moves the puck well, skates well, so you know, I’m looking forward to putting him on the roster.
Meanwhile, Mike Matheson said he hopes his former teammate can get a fresh start in Nashville and build his confidence so he can show what kind of special player he can be. As for St-Louis, he explained that you can’t buy experience and was happy to get a veteran like Carrier. He praised his level of competition and style of play beyond what his frame might suggest. The coach is happy with the depth he has added to his bench and that he will be able to play penalties. He also added that he will not worry too much about the matchups, knowing what Carrier can do.
The game is scheduled for 7:00 PM and it will be interesting to see who the bench boss decides to go with his new defender.
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