All Habs GameDay: Thursday April 5, 2012
On this day in hockey history… 1995 – Montreal Canadiens obtained Pierre Turgeon and Vladimir Malakhov from the New York Islanders, in exchange for Kirk Muller, Mathieu Schneider and Craig Darby.
GAMEDAY: Habs hockey tonight!
MONTREAL CANADIENS (30-35-15) vs. CAROLINA HURRICANES (32-32-16)
Last 10: Carolina 6-3-1 ; Montreal 3-3-4
PNC Center, 7:00 p.m. EST
TV: RDS, TSN, FS-CR
Projected line combinations (updated following morning skate)
MONTREAL CANADIENS
Forwards
Max Pacioretty – David Desharnais – Erik Cole
Rene Bourque – Tomas Plekanec – Louis Leblanc
Mike Blunden – Lars Eller – Blake Geoffrion
Brad Staubitz – Gabriel Dumont – Aaron Palushaj
Defenseman
Josh Gorges – P.K. Subban
Andrei Markov – Tomas Kaberle
Frederic St. Denis – Chris Campoli
Goaltenders
Peter Budaj (confirmed) – Robert Mayer
Scratches
Petteri Nokelainen – Alexei Emelin
Injuries
Brian Gionta (biceps) – Travis Moen (upper body) – Mathieu Darche (dizziness/upper body) – Raphael Diaz (lower body) – Scott Gomez (concussion) – Yannick Weber (lower body) – Ryan White (flu) – Carey Price (concussion)
Power-play
Pacioretty – Desharnais – Cole – Markov – Subban
Bourque – Plekanec – Leblanc – St. Denis – Campoli
CAROLINA HURRICANES
Forwards
Jiri Tlusty – Eric Staal – Chad LaRose
Jussi Jokinen – Jeff Skinner – Tuomo Ruutu
– Brandon Sutter – Pat Dwyer
Derek Joslin – Tim Brent – Anthony Stewart
Defensemen
Tim Gleason – Bryan Allen
Jay Harrison – Justin Faulk
Joni Pitkanen – Jamie McBain
Goaltenders
Cam Ward (confirmed) – Justin Peters
Scratches
Injuries
Andreas Nodl (concussion) – Jaroslav Spacek (lower body)
GAMEDAY: All Habs Headlines
► Pacioretty to lead Team USA? Remember those pre-trade deadline rumours that had P.K. Subban on the move to Anaheim as part of a package for Duck’s winger Bobby Ryan? Well, Habs fans may have a chance to see Ryan and Pacioretty playing together at the world hockey championships. Both are certain to get a call from Team USA once the NHL season is over.
Read more: USA could have stronger offense at world championships
► Looking ahead to the draft: One silver lining of a dreadful hockey season is that the Canadiens will have a top five pick for the NHL Entry Draft in June. Where they will choose is still to be determined as the Canadiens, Oilers, Islanders, Ducks and Leafs jockey for positions. Here’s a list of draft rankings compiled by ISS. For insight into any of the players on the list, please visit the All Habs prospects section.
International Scouting Services’ list of the top draft-eligible prospects for the NHL’s 2012 Entry Draft.
ISS TOP 20 FOR 2012 NHL DRAFT
| Rank | Player | Pos | Ht. | Wt. | S/C | DoB | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | NAIL YAKUPOV | LW | 5’10 | 189 | L | Oct. 6/93 | Sarnia | OHL |
| 2. | MIKHAIL GRIGORENKO | RW | 6’3 | 200 | L | May 16/94 | Quebec | QMJHL |
| 3. | FILIP FORSBERG | RW | 6’1 | 176 | R | Aug. 13/94 | Leksands | SweAI |
| 4. | JACOB TROUBA | D | 6’2 | 196 | R | Feb. 26/94 | USA U-18 | USNTDP |
| 5. | RYAN MURRAY | D | 6’0 | 201 | L | Sep. 27/93 | Everett | WHL |
| 6. | MATT DUMBA | D | 5’11 | 183 | R | Jul. 25/94 | Red Deer | WHL |
| 7. | BRENDAN GAUNCE | C | 6’2 | 215 | L | Mar. 25/94 | Belleville | OHL |
| 8. | MORGAN RIELLY | D | 5’11 | 190 | L | Mar. 9/94 | Moose Jaw | WHL |
| 9. | CODY CECI | D | 6’2 | 207 | R | Dec. 21/93 | Ottawa | OHL |
| 10. | GRIFFIN REINHART | D | 6’3 | 207 | L | Jan. 24/94 | Edmonton | WHL |
| 11. | SEBASTIAN COLLBERG | RW | 5’11 | 174 | R | Feb. 23/94 | Vastra | SweJE |
| 12. | OLLI MAATTA | D | 6’1 | 202 | L | Aug. 22/94 | London | OHL |
| 13. | MATT FINN | D | 6’0 | 195 | L | Feb. 24/94 | Guelph | OHL |
| 14. | BRADY SKJEI | D | 6’3 | 203 | L | Mar. 26/94 | USA U-18 | USNTDP |
| 15. | PONTUS ABERG | LW | 5’11 | 187 | R | Sep. 23/93 | Djurgarden | SweE |
| 16. | ALEXANDER GALCHENYUK | RW | 6’0 | 198 | L | Feb. 12/94 | Sarnia | OHL |
| 17. | SLATER KOEKKOEK | D | 6’2 | 184 | L | Feb. 18/94 | Peterborough | OHL |
| 18. | DERRICK POULIOT | D | 5’11 | 186 | L | Jan. 16/94 | Portland | WHL |
| 19. | RADEK FAKSA | LW | 6’3 | 202 | L | Jan. 9/94 | Kitchener | OHL |
| 20. | ZEMGUS GIRGENSONS | C | 6’1 | 201 | L | Jan. 5/94 | Dubuque | USHL |
► New at All Habs Hockey Magazine:
Habs Fans: Welcome to Smashville
Habs GM: Top 10 Bilingual Candidates
10 meilleurs candidats bilingues au poste de DG des Canadiens
Catching the Torch: Playoff March, Round 1
Prendre le Flambeau: Séries Éliminatoires, 1e ronde
Christmas in June: Filip Forsberg
► Puck’s take: Need to know who will win tonight? Puck the Bunny’s prediction will be posted soon. His record is an impressive 22-12-6.
(Feature photo by AP/The Canadian Press, Ryan Remiorz)