Canadiens vs. Devils: Game thread, rosters, lines, and how to watch

Montreal Canadiens vs. New Jersey Devils

How to watch

Start time: 7:00 PM EDT / 4:00 PM PDT
In the Canadiens region: TSN2, TSN Direct (English), RDS, RDS Direct (French)
Elsewhere: NHL.tv / NHL Live

It’s been a while, but tonight we finally get to see some competitive hockey between two NHL teams.

That may be a bit of a generous decription of the split squad the New Jersey Devils have sent to Montreal. Outside of the top line and defence pairing, that lineup is mostly made up of prospects looking to make impressions. With Montreal heading on the road on Wednesday, their alignment features plenty of NHL players, including Max Domi, Shea Weber, and Carey Price.

Those three are in no danger of losing spots, so the main focus will be on tonight’s second line, a persistent formation of Charles Hudon and Jordan Weal being centred by Nick Suzuki. The line looked very good in the intrasquad game on Sunday, and it could be hard to go with another combination once the regular season arrives if they can keep it up.

Josh Brook has also had a steady partnership with Brett Kulak. With Jeff Petry and Ben Chiarot getting the night off, there’s room for both Brook and Cale Fleury (who will play opposite Xavier Ouellet) to show what they can do in a more professional environment.

From the middle of the second on, we’ll also see Cayden Primeau between the pipes in his first competitive work in the professional ranks. It will be interesting to see if he can replicate the same level of performance we saw in his NCAA career.

Montreal Canadiens projected lineup

Forwards

Defencemen

Goaltenders

New Jersey Devils projected lineup

Forwards

Defencemen

Goaltenders