Game 3: Montreal Canadiens @ Chicago Blackhawks
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the Blackhawks region: CHSN
Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
After a game in which the Canadiens played well but lost in Toronto, they recovered from a poor start in Detroit on Thursday, pouncing on their opportunities in the opening period and cruising to a 5-1 win. The shots suggested they were outplayed in the most recent game, but the Habs were in full control of the action, and Jakub Dobeš was only called upon to make a couple of remarkable saves in the outing.
The hints are there so far that Montreal can not only be a team that holds the lion’s share of the possession (the game versus the Maple Leafs) but can also get scoring from every corner of the lineup (the win over the Red Wings). The team has played well enough to be 2-0, without having fully combined those two aspects in a game yet.
A match in Chicago is a chance to do both. The Blackhawks have played a couple of games so far and were quite handily outchanced by the Florida Panthers in the season-opener and the Boston Bruins a night later. Their young defence has seen 22 high-danger chances against in the two games to nine the club has created on its own.
Tale of the Tape
| Canadiens | Statistics | Blackhawks |
|---|---|---|
| 1-1-0 | Record | 0-1-1 |
| 46.0% (22nd) | Expected-goal share | 34.7% (31st) |
| 3.50 (T-10th) | Goals per game | 2.50 (T-20th) |
| 3.00 (T-14th) | Goals against per game | 3.50 (19th) |
| 20.0% (T-15th) | PP% | 0.0% (T-19th) |
| 83.3% (14th) | PK% | 71.4% (T-24th) |
| 0-1-1 | Head-to-Head Record (24-25) | 2-0-0 |
| Bolduc/Kapanen (2) | Most goals | Teuvo Teravainen, 4 others (1) |
| Brendan Gallagher (3) | Most assists | Bertuzzi/Nazar (2) |
| Brendan Gallagher (3) | Most points | Frank Nazar (3) |
With that disparity in opportunities to score, head coach Jeff Blashill has decided to make Artyom Levshunov, the team’s top pick from the 2024 NHL Draft at second overall, a healthy scratch in this contest. It might be an ill-advised move from the coach who is just looking at the amount of games played and removing the lowest number from the lineup trying to prevent another loss. In the game versus the Bruins, Levshunov led the team with an expected-goal share of 73.4% in 17 minutes of action, and was fifth even at 41.4% in the match versus the defending Stanley Cup Champions. The team is demonstrably easier to play against without the 19-year-old blue-liner in the lineup, so the Habs should thank Blashill for the decision to take him out.
It is true that while the Blackhawks have been outplayed to start the season, they’ve still managed to keep their games close, taking the Bruins to overtime to get one point on their ledger. They do have offensive talent that can outscore their metrics, and so far they’re being led by Frank Nazar in the scoring department. Selected with the pick Montreal traded to acquire Kirby Dach, the centreman has three points so far after posting 26 in his rookie season last year. He’ll be a key player for the team as it goes through this rebuild, taking some of the pressure off Connor Bedard to be the driving force of the offence.
The Blackhawks shouldn’t be a scary opponent for the Habs with the firepower they bring to the match, but that was also true a season ago when Chicago swept the season series. That includes a game during the post-Christmas road trip that really turned Montreal’s season around when they beat the Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche, as well as the penultimate game of the season that could have seen Montreal clinch a playoff spot and rest players for the season finale. Two Atlantic Division teams have already discovered that the Blackhawks aren’t a team you can take lightly, and Montreal’s experience in 2024-25 should already serve as that lesson.
