Game 29: Montreal Canadiens vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Penguins region: Sportsnet Pittsburgh
Streaming: ESPN+ RDS, TSN+
The Penguins were dealt one of their worst losses of the season on November 23, falling 6-1 to Utah. It was the sixth time in 23 games to start the season that they’d lost by four or more goals as their record fell to 7-12-4. Pittsburgh had three days off to think about that loss to the newest franchise. Their response upon returning was a four-game winning streak, and they’ve now won five of the past seven games to get back to a slightly more competitive 12-14-4 mark.
Over that stretch, superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have a combined 11 points. The only two players really contributing in the opening six weeks haven’t been the ones leading this turnaround. Instead, some of the other forwards have stepped up to provide the offence. Bryan Rust, Blake Lizotte, and Rickard Rakell all have four goals in this stretch, and Michael Bunting has three goals and three assists, entering tonight with goals in consecutive games. The two big-name defencemen round out the top six scorers, with Erik Karlsson looking more like the player the organization expected him to be this season.
Even when the Penguins were stumbling out of the gate in the opening quarter, they managed to beat the Canadiens twice, outscoring them by a 9-4 margin. Now that Pittsburgh is finally showing evidence of some scoring depth, it’s going to be an even greater challenge to salvage one win from this three-game season series.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Penguins |
|---|---|---|
| 11-14-3 | Record | 12-14-4 |
| 47.8% (25th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 49.0% (19th) |
| 2.75 (23rd) | Goals per game | 2.83 (22nd) |
| 3.54 (30th) | Goals against per game | 3.80 (32nd) |
| 22.1% (13th) | PP% | 21.6% (14th) |
| 82.5% (8th) | PK% | 80.5% (13th) |
| 0-2-0 | Head-to-Head Record | 2-0-0 |
However, over this same period, Montreal is also a more competitive club. The team has already won the current homestand with a 3-1 record ahead of tonight’s finale. The bad losses in recent weeks seem to be what stick in the mind of fans when thinking about the team’s play, but since the six-game losing streak that ended on November 9 they are 7-5-1; a .577 points percentage that would tie them with the Tampa Bay Lightning for seventh in the conference if that were Montreal’s season mark.
We’ve also just about reached the point that the Canadiens offence began to come alive a year ago. On December 13, 2023, versus the Penguins, Juraj Slafkovský played over 20 minutes for the first time on Montreal’s top line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. The next game, the Slovak recorded an assist and never looked back the rest of the way, registering 43 points over the final 53 games Now, he’s starting to develop some chemistry with Patrik Laine on Montreal’s second line as they combine their skill sets to create offensive looks, Slafkovský working the puck off the boards, Laine gliding into perfect position to support. Even playing with a mightily struggling Kirby Dach, you can see the potential of those two working together, and it might start a similar run to what the 2022 first-overall draft pick enjoyed last year.
That’s the depth of scoring the Canadiens are hoping to find over the final two-thirds of the season. They’re getting goals from the top line with Alex Newhook on the right side, Brendan Gallagher, and Emil Heineman, so the second line joining the party should allow Montreal to maintain competitive results, especially with the defence and Samuel Montembeault’s goaltending becoming more reliable. Before the Canadiens begin a stretch of the season with 11 of 15 games played on the road, they have a chance to avoid a sweep at the wings of the Penguins, see a few more players gain confidence on offence, and take some vital momentum into Winnipeg for the next game on Saturday.
