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Habs at MSG | PREVIEW: MTL @ NYR

Sam Gerber

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

Game Preview 

A Look Back

It was a tight checking game as expected versus the Islanders who are known for their strong defensive play. The Habs found themselves down early once again and Islanders shut the doors for the rest of the game. The positives for the Habs is Nick Suzuki ended his goal scoring drought and the Habs played a determined and hard fought game.

Last game: MTL 1  NYI 2  F

For a complete game recap: Slow Starts | RECAP: MTL @ NYI

Players to Watch

  • Jesse Ylonen
    Ylonen has had two strong performances since his recall from Laval playing a complete NHL game. He is a strong, smooth skater, has a good shot and is excellent in his own zone. Against the Islanders, he was promoted up in the lineup after the injury to Jake Evans and did not look out of place.
  • Cole Caufield
    Caufield could be on his way to the All-Star game with the fan vote and is very deserving after scoring his 25th goal of the season. He is on pace to reach the 40 goal mark, something that hasn’t happened for a member of the Habs in over 10 years.
  • Christian Dvorak
    The Habs would love for Dvorak to find his scoring touch once again and it would make a big difference however Dvorak is very popular in the locker room and does a lot for the Habs that doesn’t show up on the score sheet.

Keys to Victory

  • Score first
    The Habs really need to score first as the Rangers are very strong offensive and will run away with the game if the Habs can’t find a way to score early.
  • Play with passion
    The Habs played with a lot of passion vs the Preds and got sucked into a trap game by the Islanders but need to find the passion once again tonight against the Rangers.
  • Win special teams
    The Habs will desperately want to stay out of the box as the Rangers power-play is lethal and will dominate the Habs.
Statistical Matchup for Game 44
Madison Square Garden, New York City, NY | January 15, 5:00 PM ET | TV: TSN2, RDS,  ESPN+, MSG

2022-23  statistics
RANGERS CANADIENS
55 (11th) Points (rank) 37 (27th)
24-12-7 Record 17-23-3
W2 Streak L1
6-2-2 Last 10 2-8-0
3.21 (14th) GF/G (rank) 2.56 (30th)
2.67 (8th) GA/G (rank) 3.74 (29th)
22.5 (15th) PP% (rank) 15.8 (30th)
80.3 (13th) PK% (rank) 74.8 (23rd)
48.8  Faceoff % 49.8
Pre-game Quotes
Nick Suzuki on the injury of Jake Evans
  • “It was tough watching Jake get hurt. Let’s hope it doesn’t last very long. I spoke to him afterwards, his morale was good. We had to make short appearances, with 10 forwards. We made a good push with the guys we had.”
Projected Forwards, Defense and Goaltenders (subject to change)
Forwards
Lafreniere – Zibanejad – Kakko
Panarin – Trocheck – Kravtsov
Vesey – Chytil – Goodrow
Blais – Leschyshyn – Brodzinski		 Caufield – Suzuki – Ylonen
Slafkovsky – Dvorak – Anderson
Dadonov – Dach – Armia
Pezzetta – Drouin- Hoffman
Defensemen
Lindgren – Fox
Miller – Trouba
Harpur – Schneider		 Edmundson – Savard
Harris – Kovacevic
Xhekaj – Barron
Out of the lineup
Scratched: Hajek
Injured: Kreider, Gauthier		 Scratched: Wideman
Injured: Byron (hip), Price (knee), Monahan (lower-body), Matheson (lower-body), Guhle (lower-body), Gallagher (lower-body), Allen (upper-body), Evans (lower-body)
Goalies
Igor Shesterkin Sam Montembeault
Record: 20-6-6
GAA: 2.44
Sv%: 9.17
SO: 1
Alternate: Jaroslav Halak		 Record: 7-7-2
GAA: 3.31
Sv%: .905
SO: 0
Alternate: Cayden Primeau
 Game Expectations
This should be a high-scoring affair after a low-scoring game last night, the Habs will be in tough on a second night of a back-to-back. The Habs have to do their best to keep it close and not get blown out by the Rangers. The Rangers are a strong team that are well on their way to making the playoffs. They are a team the Habs are looking to copy in their rebuild process.

Bottom Line

The Habs tank is on full scale and just playing competitive hockey is what the fans want to see.
 Video Highlights

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