Canadiens vs Sharks: Game Thread, Lines, & TV Schedule

Winning less than they have been losing over the past ten games (4-4-2), the Canadiens sit atop the Eastern Conference, up 2 points on the New York Rangers who hold 3 games at hand. The Habs are toiling lately, grinding out wins against teams like the Florida Panthers, and barely coming away with the win. A 4-0 win against Carolina Thursday was a flash of dominance the Habs are capable of, though against a team that was 34 points below them in the standings.

This is the 3rd game of a 7 game road-trip for the Sharks who lost in Winnipeg on Tuesday and won on Thursday in Toronto. The Habs haven't scored against the Sharks since December 2, 2011 when this was Pierre Gauthier's team. Tonight's game is important for the win column, and playoff positioning, and very much for pride. With so many teams chasing the same goal at this time of year, team cohesion and individual confidence are the keys to the castle.

The Habs have a lot to be proud of this year, most notably, Carey Price enters the game tonight trying to capture his 40th win of a season for the first time in his career. With a record of 39-15-4, .937 sv %, 1.89 GAA and 8 shutouts, Carey Price is staging one of the best goaltending performances in NHL history. It goes without saying that too much of this team's success depends on Carey Price, but with numbers like these, it's hard not to start dreaming of what's possible when the snow melts. But first, the Habs have the Sharks in front of them, and if they can't score again, even the greatest heroics from Carey Price will be in vain.

The puck drops at 7:00 PM EST. Jeff Petry is in tonight in place of Nathan Beaulieu.

Scratched: Mike Weaver, Sergei Gonchar, Nathan Beaulieu
Injuries: Torrey Mitchell (upper body), Brian Flynn (upper body)

Scratched: Scott Hannan, John Scott
Injuries: Mike Brown (broken fibula), Raffi Torres (knee)

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