Game 30: Montreal Canadiens @ Winnipeg Jets
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In Canada: CityTV, Sportsnet East/West (English), TVA Sports (French)
Streaming: ESPN+ Sportsnet+
It was a winning homestand for the Montreal Canadiens at a 3-2 record, but as they’ve done over the past month, they managed to make the story another embarrassing loss to cap it off. They had played well enough through 40 minutes versus the Pittsburgh Penguins, then stopped playing entirely in the third period for their worst home lost of this millennium. Montreal wins small, but loses big, and those poor efforts steal the attention.
The lack of focus had begun to creep in versus the Anaheim Ducks, when Montreal was outshot 29-21 by a team that now has two wins in its past 10 games. The Canadiens managed to get two points that night, but a similar compete level wasn’t nearly enough to contend with an improved Penguins team three nights later.
If they play that way for a third consecutive game, the Winnipeg Jets might put up more than nine goals on the scoreboard at Canada Life Centre. It’s the league’s best team the Habs play in a brief one-game road trip today, so they need to up their level in a hurry to avoid another humiliating defeat.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Jets |
|---|---|---|
| 11-15-3 | Record | 21-9-1 |
| 47.3% (27th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 47.9% (25th) |
| 2.72 (24th) | Goals per game | 3.65 (3rd) |
| 3.72 (31st) | Goals against per game | 2.55 (1st) |
| 21.1% (16th) | PP% | 30.1% (2nd) |
| 81.0% (11th) | PK% | 80.5% (13th) |
| 2-0-0 | Head-to-Head Record (23-24) | 0-0-2 |
Winnipeg has the third-best offence in the league scoring 3.65 goals per match, or 11 every three games to put that in different terms. The production is aided by a power play operating above 30%, providing another reason for the Canadiens to tighten up on a penalty kill that has also been slipping recently. Any misstep to open up a lane to the net probably results in a goal against this evening.
The Jets have 10 regulars scoring at a half-point-per-game rate or higher, and they just added another by bringing up Nikita Chibrikov from the AHL’s Manitoba Moose as he has three points in two games so far. He has scored in every one of the three NHL games he’s played over the past two years. It’s rare for a young player to crack the stable roster of veterans Winnipeg always carries, but the 2021 second-round selection is making his case to stick around.
Their offence alone would win the Jets a lot of games, but the complement of good defensive numbers is helping to make them one of the top contenders in the league and helped them get out to the best start in history at 15-1. Reigning Vezina Trophy-winner Connor Hellebuyck is making his case for a repeat as the league’s best goalie, currently holding a .926 save percentage and aiming for a third consecutive season finishing above .920.
Montreal’s only hope for a win will be if the Jets are looking ahead to avoiding a week of double-digit frigid temperatures in the city of Winnipeg by escaping to California. It would be easy to overlook their 29th-ranked visitor, especially if they saw the Habs-Penguins scoreline from Thursday. Maybe that’s what happened a season ago when Montreal won both games of the season series in meetings that went beyond regulation. A point would be a positive outcome for the Canadiens considering how the rest of the week has played out.
