Canadiens vs. Maple Leafs: Exhibition game thread, rosters, lines, and how to watch

Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

How to watch

Start time: 8:00 PM EDT / 5:00 PM PDT
In Canada: Sportsnet One (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the US: NHL Network
Streaming: Sportsnet Now

Hockey was played for the first time since the middle of March this afternoon when the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins hit the ice in Toronto. Later tonight, that ice surface at Scotiabank Arena will be occupied by the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs as they prepare for the Stanley Cup Qualifiers.

The Leafs have much of their regular-season lineup intact, with the exception of Andreas Johnsson who is still recovering from knee injury. Montreal has everyone but Karl Alzner in the bubble who was on the roster at the time of the pause. After concern around the league that players would be unable or unwilling to participate in the post-season, things — so far — have gone quite smoothly.

The Leafs have given Johnsson’s vacant spot to Nick Robertson to get his first taste of NHL action, and since the teams are going with 20 skaters for tonight’s match, Montreal has done the same thing for one of their players. Alex Belzile gets his first shot with an NHL club after a strong year in Laval, and will be eager to make a large enough impression to possibly force his way onto the qualifying-round roster.

Montreal Canadiens projected lineup

Toronto Maple Leafs projected lineup