The Montreal Canadiens are looking to get back in the win column after the wheels have come off on their road trip, having lost games versus the Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, and Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Habs are playing a Florida Panthers team in a similar position in the standings. The Panthers have struggled to find consistency all season and are hoping that they can turn it around at some point.
Starting goalie Roberto Luongo is out with an injury and James Reimer has taken over those duties. Reimer is backed up by Harry Sateri.
Alex Galchenyuk continues to be a bright spot for the Habs during this tough season as he is now finding ways to score goals. Carey Price has also returned to form after injury, which is the turnaround that the Habs needed.
How to watch
Puck drop: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In Canada: CBC, City (English), TVA Sports (French)
In the Panthers region: FS-Florida
Elsewhere: NHL GameCenter Live (Free game), NHL.tv
Tale of the Tape
| Canadiens | Statistic | Sharks |
|---|---|---|
| 16-19-4 | Record | 20-12-4 |
| 0-1-0 | H2H Record | 1-0-0 |
| 51.1% | Corsi-for pct. | 52.9% |
| 99 | Goals for | 98 |
| 122 | Goals against | 92 |
| 19.0% | PP% | 21.9% |
| 77.7% | PK% | 85.5% |
The Habs will still not have Shea Weber, but David Schlemko has joined the team after being hit by the flu and should be in the lineup tonight. The status of Jeff Petry, however, remains unclear after he missed yesterday’s practice.
The Panthers are near the bottom of the league in the standings, just like the Habs. They are the 24th-ranked team on the power play, where they struggle to gain an advantage against their opponent. However, they are the second-best team on the penalty kill and are also one of the least penalized teams in the league.
The last time the Habs played the Panthers, on October 24, they won 5-1. Montreal received a two-goal performance from Weber in that game, as well as goals from Galchenyuk, Brendan Gallagher, and Max Pacioretty.
Pacioretty only has six goals in the two months since, and the Habs will hope he can get back on his game. A match versus a team among the worst in terms of goals against, playing their backup to boot, may be just what the captain needs to rediscover his scoring touch.
