Canadiens vs. Rangers: Game thread, rosters, lines, and how to watch

Montreal Canadiens vs. New York Rangers

How to watch

Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Now (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the US: NHL Network
In the Rangers region: MSG2
Streaming: NHL.tv/NHL Live

The Canadiens have been the better team in each of their last two games, but in both cases came away with a loss. Holding the puck more and getting more shots on target are always good things for a team, but at some point those shots need to start going in, and they haven’t been over the past week. That was the main concern for the club when it lost Paul Byron’s speed and Jonathan Drouin’s skill from the lineup on the same day, and questions are beginning to be asked about the team’s ability to maintain course without them.

There are players capable of contributing offence, and they need to decide that they’re not just going to settle for a high shot count this evening, but bash away at one of the league’s worst defensive teams until things start going their way. Without a win in three games now, another loss would be unacceptable for a team aiming to secure a division seed.

Montreal Canadiens projected lineup

Injured: Paul Byron, Jonathan Drouin
Scratched: Christian Folin, Mikey Reilly

New York Rangers projected lineup