Game 9: Montreal Canadiens @ Philadelphia Flyers
Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Flyers region: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Streaming: ESPN+, Sportsnet+
The Canadiens needed to put together a great performance after four consecutive losses, and that’s about what they received on Saturday night after three days of working on their defensive play. They weren’t perfect in their 5-2 win over the St. Louis Blues, but they don’t need to be with the talent they possess. The goal is to limit the breakdowns on defence so their offence can take over, and that’s what happened in their first game back.
Martin St-Louis challenged the team to be better, and it was. He qualified Arber Xhekaj’s game as “excellent” in the defenceman’s return to the lineup, and was also so impressed with Lane Hutson’s play he gave the rookie shifts on the penalty kill in the third period. Seeing his youngest blue-liner finding success in the system has to be both an encouraging sign that the coach’s plan can work, and also a point to focus on when speaking to the other members of the team: if the player with 10 games of experience can figure things out, no one else has an excuse.
The Canadiens have flown their star rookie to Philadelphia to go head-to-head with the Flyers’ phenom, forward Matvei Michkov, who has begun to find his rhythm in the NHL. The Russian winger is tied for the team lead with four goals and five assists through eight games, and five of those points have come in the past three contests. The Canadiens may be able to gloat about drafting Cole Caufield after the Flyers passed on him to take Cam York back in 2019, but the first round of the Michkov-David Reinbacher debate is being scored in Philadelphia’s favour with this hot start for the player selected seventh in 2023.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Flyers |
|---|---|---|
| 3-4-1 | Record | 2-5-1 |
| 44.2% (29th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 47.0% (24th) |
| 2.88 (T-21st) | Goals per game | 2.88 (T-21st) |
| 3.63 (T-27th) | Goals against per game | 4.50 (32nd) |
| 24.1% (11th) | PP% | 25.8% (9th) |
| 89.3% (3rd) | PK% | 87.9% (6th) |
| 2-0-1 | Head-to-Head Record (23-24) | 1-2-0 |
Budding superstars aren’t the only similarity between the two teams. They both went into the season with high expectations as years of asset acquisition move them to the tail end of their rebuilds. Neither has gotten off to the start they hoped for as they sit at the bottom of their respective divisions. Montreal has a brighter light ahead, sitting just two points out of a seeded playoff spot in the Atlantic versus the Flyers’ five to a Metro spot, but it’s early enough that ground can be quickly made up in the post-season chase.
Despite their spots at the bottom of their sections, both clubs are excellent on special teams, scoring on about one of every four power plays and being even better at killing off the opposition’s, hovering just below a 90% success rate on the penalty kill. That success in odd-man situations is helping to cover up some less-than-spectacular play at even strength that both teams are trying to address on the fly.
It’s the latter half of a back-to-back for both teams after they beat a Central Division club yesterday. Philadelphia got a 7-5 win over the Minnesota Wild in the afternoon thanks to a five-point performance from Sean Couturier that included a hat trick. The two sides know that one win here and there isn’t going to vault them back into the playoff race they hope to be in all season long, so there’s motivation to turn one win into a successful weekend sweep. Perhaps that will start a run for teams that have been meticulously constructed over the past half decade.
