Game 46: Montreal Canadiens vs. New York Rangers
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Rangers region: MSG
In the United States: NHL Network
Streaming: RDS, TSN+
An excellent first period from the Montreal Canadiens last night had all of the good things they’ve worked on over the past 20-odd games on display, from their high effort level to the quality of their four-line depth able to keep a team hemmed in its zone, to even some physicality when the Toronto Maple Leafs tried to change the game after getting outplayed and finding the Habs were up to that challenge as well. After a gruelling 10-game sequence to begin the season, it was looking like they could have a relatively easy time of things in the first game of their homestand, and that may have played a role in their downfall as the Leafs scored seven unanswered goals in the final two periods.
Despite the French media finally getting the chance to write their negative headlines about the team after the long stretch of great games, such as having their bubble burst, or crashing back to Earth, the result signalled none of those things, just a bit or turbulence in their ascent.. Montreal actually had more scoring chances in each of the second and third periods than they had in the first, and ended the night with 17 of the high-danger variety. If not for a large number of great saves from Joseph Woll and just as many lucky ones, the Habs may have still been able to win the game in regulation despite the seven goals against.
There’s little to be concerned about after the loss, as long as it doesn’t begin a sequence of losses that erases much of the good work that the team did through the second quarter of the season. They get an immediate chance to prove that it was just a one-off performance as they’re back in action tonight, and a hot New York Rangers team might be just the challenge they need to get back in the win column.
Canadiens | Statistics | Rangers |
---|---|---|
22-19-4 | Record | 22-20-3 |
48.5% (26th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 48.5% (25th) |
3.00 (15th) | Goals per game | 2.87 (20th) |
3.31 (26th) | Goals against per game | 3.04 (18th) |
20.9% (18th) | PP% | 18.6% (23rd) |
81.7% (10th) | PK% | 83.0% (5th) |
0-2-0 | Head-to-Head Record | 2-0-0 |
There’s a little extra motivation because the Canadiens have dropped the first two games in the season series with the Rangers, and New York received a major helping hand from the officials in the most recent one, a 4-3 loss on November 30 in which the Rangers scored three power-play goals.
That game came during the lowest point of the season for the New York franchise, snapping a five-game losing streak but standing as one of just four wins they had from November 21 to the end of 2024. Stalled out as most of the teams in the wild-card race took off over that period, they fell right to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. The flip to 2025 has seen a major turnaround in their play, with just one regulation loss as they’ve gotten out to a 6-1-2 mark, coming into Montreal on a seven-game point streak.
Igor Shesterkin’s form has played a significant role in the recovery. His .934 save percentage in his last five starts is more representative of his true quality than the .908 mark he held at the end of 2024. Artemiy Panarin has remained the leader on offence as he has been throughout his Rangers tenure, but Sam Carrick seems to have made a resolution to be part of the team’s solution offensively, recording six points in the last nine games after having seven through the first three months of the campaign. The Rangers still aren’t scoring as many goals as you’d expect them to be capable of — three of their six wins have come in games they’ve scored just one or two goals — but they are averaging more than before this streak, which is proving to be just enough when paired with their improved proficiency in net.
There are only three games on the NHL’s Sunday schedule, but they are all big ones in the Eastern Conference wild-card race, with all of the Canadiens, Rangers, Ottawa Senators, and Detroit Red Wings in action. The Rangers are trying to pull themselves back past the group that overtook them during their struggles, and could get back ahead of Montreal with a win today. Despite the disappointing loss last night, the same opportunity to pull into a tie with the Boston Bruins and Senators (should they fall to the New Jersey Devils this afternoon) is available to the Canadiens today.