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

Game Preview by Sam Gerber

Last game : MTL 4 CGY 3 F/OT Brendan Gallagher got the Habs going after they had fallen behind by two goals in the first period. Joel Armia got a goal with a quick release in the slot. Suzuki tied the game with a perfect deflection that took the game to overtime. Carey Price continued his hot start to December making a number of key saves including one point blank chance in the overtime which sprung Max Domi who blasted his first goal since November 23rd.

For a complete game recap: Habs Young Players Shine in OT Win

Players to watch

Max Domi
Domi was buzzing last game and it was only a matter of time until he scored. Hopefully his goal sparks more and he starts filling the net more often.
Jeff Petry
Petry hasn’t looked 100 percent over the last month and didn’t have the best game against Calgary. His confidence looks a little shaken.
Carey Price
Price has been playing great all of December and the Habs will need him to be at his best playing against two of the best scorers in the entire league.

Keys to Victory

Control gaps
The Habs defense have to be very smart about their gap control, Connor McDavid can explode any second and if the Habs aren’t ready he’ll make them pay.
Contain the top six
The Oilers lack a lot of depth scoring but have a lot of fire power on their top lines. If the Habs can shut down Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid the Habs should be able to pull out a win.
Score first
The Habs have fallen behind early lately yet they’ve been winning games. It’s not perfect and it’s not going to last the Habs need to play with the lead.

Statistical Matchup by All Habs
Rogers Place, Edmonton, AB \| December 21, 7:00 PM ET \| TV: CITY, SNE, SNW, SNP, TVAS
	2019-20 statistics
OILERS	2019-20 statistics	CANADIENS
42 (13th)	Points (rank)	36 (19th)
19-15-4	Record	17-12-6
8-7-3	Home/Away	9-4-3
3-6-1	Last 10	6-3-1
2.87	GF/G	3.14
3.05	GA/G	3.14
29.8	PP%	21.2
84.3	PK%	75.2
47.62	CF%	53.74

Pre-game quotes
Max Domi “It feels like it’s at home in Montreal at the Bell Centre every night here in Western Canada, we all love coming out here. Even before playing for the Habs, I loved coming out to Western Canada. There are some passionate hockey fans out here and great hockey teams now too. I think Canada has a lot of good hockey to cheer for, which its great and they have a lot of talent too, so it’s fun to play against these teams. I’m looking forward to playing against Edmonton.”
Projected forward lines, defense pairings and goaltenders by All Habs
Forwards
Nugent-Hopkins – McDavid – Kassian Neal – Draisaitl – Gagner Nygard – Haas – Chiasson Khaira – Sheahan – Archibald	Tatar – Danault – Gallagher Lehkonen – Domi – Armia Cousins – Suzuki – Weal Poehling – Thompson – Barber
Defensemen
Klefbom – Larsson Nurse – Bear Russell – Jones	Chiarot – Weber Kulak – Petry Reilly – Fleury
Out of the lineup
Scratched: Manning, Russell, Granlund Injured: Benning	Scratched: Vejdemo, Folin Injured: Drouin, Byron, Mete, Peca, Kotkaniemi
Goalies
Mikko Koskinen	Carey Price

Record: 12-6-2 GAA: – 2.62 Sv%: – .919 SO: 1 Alternate: Mike Smith	Record: 15-10-3 GAA: – 2.84 Sv%: – .907 SO: 1 Alternate: Charlie Lindgren

What to Expect by Sam Gerber

The Habs are perfect on the road trip so far winning their last two. The Oilers have lost their last two and have only won thee games in their last 10. The Habs have to be careful knowing when Connor McDavid is on the ice and make sure they get the right defense pair out. If the Habs are ready from the start it should be a good game that’s back and forth.

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

2019-20 statistics