Game 66: Montreal Canadiens vs. Anaheim Ducks

Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Ducks region: KCOP-13, Victory+
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN+

The Montreal Canadiens may have played a better defensive game than they had in San Jose 11 days earlier, but the result was still the same on home ice last night: a regulation loss. The Habs were unfortunate to have an early goal disallowed by a quick whistle and then surrendering two goals on just three shots in the second period, but their normally strong offensive game also wasn’t connecting as it normally does. They had the usual great setups from playing the puck low in the zone, but there were too many hopeful pass attempts at the top of the zone trying to get the puck through defenders that turned the play the other way. Especially versus a team with Macklin Celebrini, that forced the Habs to chase the play following their own errors for much of the night.

At least you can say they saved that nonchalant effort for a Western Conference opponent; had they done that versus the Ottawa Senators, their playoff position would have been more precarious than it is today with one more team in the hunt. Last night’s loss still stands as a missed opportunity to take two points from an inferior team.

Today’s opponent fits that description as well. The Anaheim Ducks might be the second-best club in the Pacific Division, but that’s with a total of 75 points, and the second-worst defence in the NHL. The Ducks enter the game, their fourth and final of a road trip, having lost their last two matches. That has dropped their away record to 14-17-2 on the season, and that’s because no team in the league allows more goals outside their own building.

Tale of the Tape

Canadiens
Statistics
Ducks

36-19-10
Record
36-27-3

48.6% (23rd)
Expected-goal share
50.2% (16th)

3.51 (2nd)
Goals per game
3.20 (13th)

3.25 (24th)
Goals against per game
3.48 (31st)

24.7% (6th)
PP%
17.2% (24th)

76.8% (26th)
PK%
77.2% (25th)

0-0-1
Head-to-Head Record
1-0-0

Cole Caufield (38)
Most goals
Cutter Gauthier (33)

Lane Hutson (55)
Most assists
Jackson LaCombe (38)

Nick Suzuki (76)
Most points
Cutter Gauthier (58)

Anaheim did address its blue line at the trade deadline to bring a veteran to the team. John Carlson was added after a long career with the Washington Capitals. His game is more about offence than defence, seeing among the fewest defensive-zone faceoffs with the Capitals this season before he was traded, but that could still be the edge Anaheim needs to grab the top seed in the Pacific.

He’s in line to play his first game with Anaheim today after taking a few days to move past the shock of being dealt. Head coach Joel Quenneville will hope Carlson can help stabilize things after the team that had been winning on an almost nightly basis has now lost three of its past four games and fallen out of that top spot.

Eyes will also be on a veteran in the Canadiens lineup as we’re about to see how Brendan Gallagher responds to being a healthy scratch last night. The fourth line did look dangerous for maybe the first time coming out of the Olympics with Alexandre Texier working hard to create chances, and that’s the challenge Gallagher faces tonight. With Texier’s strong performance, it’s Zachary Bolduc who sits out this game in what could be a three-player rotation the rest of the season.

As they had in the first back-to-back set this week, the Habs will turn to Jacob Fowler to face the better of the two teams on the schedule, hoping his calm presence in net can make up for any fatigue the skaters are feeling. He faced his second-highest shot total of the season on Wednesday with 34 sent his way, and saved his best stops for the final minute of the game to preserve his team’s one-goal lead in a five-on-six situation where his tandem mates had been failing this season. Ideally, the Canadiens will have a large enough lead over as poor a defensive team as the Ducks by that point, but if the score is close, the players know Fowler will be tough to beat as the game reaches its conclusion.