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Eastern Conference Quarterfinals: Game 1
Montreal Canadiens @ Philadelphia Flyers
How to watch
Start time: 8:00 PM EDT / 5:00 PM PDT
In Canada: CBC, Sportsnet (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the US: NBC
Streaming: Sportsnet Now
Since the Canadiens sent the Pittsburgh Penguins packing, much of the entertainment for Habs fans has been derived from watching the Toronto Maple Leafs. First it was a three-goal comeback that had everyone in the national media wondering if that was the moment the Leafs overcame their demons to become a proper Stanley Cup contender, then two days later those same Leafs did the familiar thing of stumbling their way out of the post-season without winning a single playoff series.
Now that media switches its attention to a Habs team it completely wrote off ahead of the post-season beginning, and is finding out there is a surprising amount of quality on the Montreal roster despite its regular-season performance and a few sales at the trade deadline.
The Flyers aren’t going to be nearly as surprised as the Penguins were. Rather than relying on a few offensive stars, Philadelphia has a good complement of forwards and a forechecking system that works hard regardless of the quality of their opponent. It’s not a team that is going to get outworked very often, and that’s something Montreal will need to match to have a chance.
Where the Canadiens may have the advantage once more is on defence. Claude Julien trusted two pairings with major minutes in the opening round, while Alain Vigneault only has one he feels confident handing the defensive matchups to. If Montreal can get the play flowing more to the Flyers’ end with their own forechecking abilities, they will get a shot to surprise a few more pundits tonight.
Montreal Canadiens projected lineup
Forwards
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
| Artturi Lehkonen | Phillip Danault | Paul Byron |
| Tomas Tatar | Nick Suzuki | Brendan Gallagher |
| Jonathan Drouin | Jesperi Kotkaniemi | Joel Armia |
| Dale Weise | Max Domi | Alex Belzile |
Defencemen
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
| Ben Chiarot | Shea Weber |
| Brett Kulak | Jeff Petry |
| Xavier Ouellet | Victor Mete |
Goaltenders
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| Starter | Backup |
| Carey Price | Charlie Lindgren |
Scratches: Jake Evans, Cale Fleury, Christian Folin, Charles Hudon, Noah Juulsen, Michael McNiven, Gustav Olofsson, Ryan Poehling, Cayden Primeau
Philadelphia Flyers projected lineup
Forwards
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
| Claude Giroux | Sean Couturier | Joel Farabee |
| Scott Laughton | Kevin Hayes | Travis Konecny |
| Nicolas Aubé-Kubel | Derek Grant | Jakub Voracek |
| James van Riemsdyk | Nate Thompson | Tyler Pitlick |
Defencemen
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
| Ivan Provorov | Matt Niskanen |
| Philippe Myers | Travis Sanheim |
| Shayne Gostisbehere | Justin Braun |
Goaltenders
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| Starter | Backup |
| Carter Hart | Brian Elliott |