All Habs GameDay: Saturday March 10, 2012
On this day in hockey history… 1955 – Toronto played at Montreal, but the star of the game was the Zamboni. The ice resurfacing machine made it’s NHL debut on this night.
GAMEDAY: Habs hockey tonight!
MONTREAL CANADIENS (26-32-10) vs. VANCOUVER CANUCKS (42-18-8)
Last 10: Vancouver 5-3-2 ; Montreal 3-7-0
Rogers Arena, 10:00 p.m. EST
TV: RDS, CBC
Projected line combinations (updated following morning skate)
MONTREAL CANADIENS
Forwards
Max Pacioretty – Tomas Plekanec – Erik Cole
Rene Bourque – Lars Eller – Ryan White
Blake Geoffrion – Scott Gomez – Aaron Palushaj
Brad Staubitz – Petteri Nokelainen – Louis Leblanc
Defenseman
Josh Gorges – P.K. Subban
Yannick Weber – Alexei Emelin
Tomas Kaberle – Chris Campoli
Andrei Markov
Goaltenders
Carey Price (confirmed) – Peter Budaj
Scratches
Injuries
Mike Blunden (knee) – Brian Gionta (biceps) – Travis Moen (upper body) – Mathieu Darche (dizziness/upper body) – Raphael Diaz (lower body) – David Desharnais (lower body)
**UPDATE** Andrei Markov reactivated from injured reserve on Saturday afternoon. From @MAGodin : “Cunneyworth on Markov: “If he’s feeling the same way tonight as he is today, then we’ll certainly use him.””
Power-play
Pacioretty – Plekanec – Cole – Kaberle – Subban
Bourque – Eller – Geoffrion – Weber – Campoli
VANCOUVER CANUCKS
Forwards
Daniel Sedin – Henrik Sedin – Alexandre Burrows
Chris Higgins – Ryan Kesler – David Booth
Mason Raymond – Samuel Pahlsson – Jannik Hansen
Manny Malhotra – Maxim Lapierre – Zack Kassian
Defensemen
Dan Hamhuis – Kevin Bieksa
Alexander Edler – Sami Salo
Marc-Andre Gragnani – Chris Tanev
Goaltenders
Roberto Luongo (confirmed) – Cory Schneider
Scratches
Injuries
Keith Ballard (concussion) – Andrew Ebbett (collarbone)
GAMEDAY: All Habs Headlines
► Mortensen shows true colors: Actor Viggo Mortensenhas never been shy about showing his love for the Montreal Canadiens. He wore a Habs jersey under his armor during the filming of the three Lord of
the Rings movies. Last fall, at the Toronto International Film Festival, he presented co-star Kiera Knightly with a Guy Lafleur jersey during the premiere of “A Dangerous Method.”
On Thursday night in Toronto, Mortensen wrapped himself in a Canadiens flag after accepting a Genie Award for best-supporting actor for the same film.
“I guess it’s easy to hang on as a fan since Montreal has had so much success. But there’s still this die-hard quality that the fans have where you know that no matter what, that spirit isn’t going anywhere.” — Viggo Mortenson
Read more: Viggo Mortensen dons Canadiens flag at Genie Awards
► Higgins faces former team: The player who was shipped out of Montreal for making paper airplanes in the press box has no time for games in Vancouver. Chris Higgins has been praised for his work ethic by Canucks coach Alain Vigneault. Higgins has settled in on the Canucks second line with fellow Americans Ryan Kessler and David Booth.
“His battle level, to get to loose pucks, to win battles when he has it and get the puck out of our own end, to keep it in the offensive zone, without a doubt he’s been one of our hardest working players since Day One this year.” — Vancouver head coach Alain Vigneault.
Read more: Canucks’ Higgins ready for Habs reunion
► Tinordi is a man amongst boys: Jarred Tinordi‘s profile is impressive on paper, but even moreso in person. His size, strength, positioning and skating ability make it difficult for opposition forwards to get net presence — this was easily observed during the Canadiens development camp and pre-season games. Tinordi has adjusted to the speed of the game and looks to be ready to make the jump to the pro ranks next season.
“By this time last year, he needed to grow a lot if he wanted to jump in the NHL. But he has accelerated his development this year and demonstrates that he will become a solid player in the NHL.” — Misha Donskov, Assistant General Manager, London Knights
Read more: Jarred Tinordi: un homme parmi les enfants (French)
► New at All Habs Hockey Magazine:
Christmas in July: Radek Faksa
Habs Love from Across the Pond
Y a-t-il quelqu’un dans la place?
Pour un jeu plus ouvert… et autres réflexions éparpillées
Headlines: Pacioretty, Archambault, Clear Day Rosters
Can Habs Afford to Let Markov Play at 2012 WC?
Catching the Torch: Beaulieu Conquers
► Puck’s take: Need to know who will win tonight? You can find Puck the Bunny’s prediction here (check back later.) His record is an impressive 20-10-5.
(REUTERS/Christinne Muschi )