Canadiens – Flyers: Muller Guides Habs | GAME 2 PREVIEW

Sam Gerber

4 years ago

GAME DAY | Montreal Canadiens vs Philadelphia Flyers: Preview, TV, Start Time, Statistical Match-up, Projected Lines, Starting Goalies, Keys to Victory, Habs Tickets

Game Preview by Sam Gerber

Last game : MTL 1 PHI 2 F It was a tight checking game, with both teams scoring a goal on the power-play. After tying the game, the Canadiens lacked focus and gave up a goal seconds later. While the Flyers did an excellent job shutting the Habs down, Montreal should have been more desperate not allowing the opposition to outwork them for two periods. The highlight of the night was from Carey Price who made an amazing save with the paddle of his stick.

For a complete game recap: Habs Come Up Short | GAME 1 RECAP

Players to watch

Brett Kulak
Kulak has stepped up his play at times since the return of hockey. Even though the good might outweigh the bad, when a player makes a mistake and it ends in the back of the net, it’s hard to forget.
Artturi Lehkonen
Lehkonen was a beast last game and has been one of the Habs best forwards since the return to play. Unfortunately he caught an edge ruining an scoring chance, but if he sticks with it he will be rewarded for his efforts.
Joel Armia
Armia is one of the largest, strongest forwards for the Habs. Armia had some penalty trouble against the Penguins and didn’t register a single hit in game one. The playoffs are about players rising to the occasion and it’s time for him to do just that.

Keys to Victory

Maintain focus
A lapse of focus was enough for the Flyers to retain the lead in game one. The Habs know better and should be much more prepared and focused in game two.
Activate the defence
The Habs defense did a great job keeping the Flyers in check but weren’t able to jump up as much as they liked to. They will need to be much more active in the rush for the Habs offense to be successful.
Finish chances
The Habs chances are going to be limited with Flyers, they are a great all around team. With that said that makes the Habs execution that much more important and they can’t afford to pass-up chances.

Statistical Matchup by All Habs
Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON \| August 14, 3:00 PM ET \| TV: CBC, SN, TVAS, NBCSN
	2019-20 statistics
FLYERS	2019-20 statistics	CANADIENS
89 (6th)	Points (rank)	71 (24th)
41-21-7	Record	31-31-9
25-6-4	Home	14-17-6
9-1-0	Last 10	4-5-1
3.29	GF/G	2.93
2.77	GA/G	3.10
20.8	PP%	17.7
81.8	PK%	78.7
51.24	CF%	51.02

Pre-game quotes
Interim head coach Kirk Muller “I look at our guys and i see that in the room. they’re only focused on hockey here, and we have a great opportunity.”
Projected forward lines, defense pairings and goaltenders by All Habs
Forwards
Giroux – Couturier – Farabee Laughton – Hayes – Konecny Voracek – Grant – Aube-Kubel van Riemsdyk – Thompson – Pitlick	Tatar – Suzuki – Gallagher Drouin – Kotkaniemi – Armia Lehkonen – Danault – Byron Weise – Domi – Belzile
Defensemen
Provorov – Niskanen Sanheim – Myers Gostisbehere – Braun	Chiarot – Weber Kulak – Petry Ouellet – Mete
Out of the lineup
Scratched: Andreoff, Frost, Lindblom, Friedman, Hagg, Welinski, Zamula, Lyon, Ustimenko, Bunnaman Injured/Unfit to Play: Raffl	Scratched: Fleury, Poehling, Hudon, Folin, Juulsen, Olofsson, Primeau, McNiven, Weal Romanov (ineligible) Injured/Unfit to Play: Evans
Goalies
Carter Hart	Carey Price

Record: 24-13-3 GAA: – 2.42 Sv%: – .914 SO: 1 Alternate: Brian Elliot	Record: 27-25-6 GAA: – 2.79 Sv%: – .909 SO: 4 Alternate: Charlie Lindgren

What to Expect by Sam Gerber

It was scary news to hear on Thursday when Marc Bergevin announced that head coach Claude Julien will be unavailable for the rest of the series. Kirk Muller is well-liked by the players and is an experienced coach so will not have a problem taking over head coaching duties for the time being. While it is very surprising news, the players can use this as motivation and rally behind their coach. Look for an early jump from the team and a statement game from the Habs veterans.