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

To put things lightly, Saturday night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs was an abject disaster. Montreal looked like a Pee-Wee team against a Toronto side missing several of its star players, and that was reflected on the shot counter and the scoreboard.

The season rolls on however, as the Canadiens start their last handful of games, beginning with another match against the Florida Panthers. With 13 games left to play, the Panthers sit five points out of the final wild-card spot in the Easteren Conference, and a loss to the Canadiens would deal a huge blow to their post-season chances.

As for the Habs, the team will hopefully come out of the game like a rocket given their performance against the Leafs. Antti Niemi will see a start between the pipes, with Carey Price serving as his backup for tonight’s game, as he tries to continue his revenge tour against his former teams. He got the win against Dallas last week, but couldn’t stop a late goal in a 5-3 loss to the Penguins.

Regardless of that, the Habs should  put forth a better effort; if not the remaining nine games after this one could drag on even slower than the second half already is.

If you’re still looking for a reason to tune in, Brendan Gallagher is closing in on a new career high in points and chasing the 30-goal mark. Jonathan Drouin has started showing much more of what he’s capable of in recent games, including killing penalties for Claude Julien. And of course there’s always the continuing redemption story of Niemi.

How to Watch

Puck drop is at 7:30PM EDT / 4:30 PM PDT

In Canada: TSN2, TSNGO (English), RDS (French)
In the Panthers region: Fox Sports-Florida
Elsewhere: NHL.tv/NHL GameCentre Live, NHL Center Ice

Montreal Canadiens projected lineup

Forwards

Defence

Goaltenders

Florida Panthers projected lineup

Forwards

Defence

Goaltenders