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Game Preview: Montreal Canadiens vs Ottawa Senators

Four days ago the Ottawa Senators ended the Montreal Canadiens‘ four game winning streak with a 5-1 blowout victory at Scotiabank Place. Today, the Habs get a chance for revenge.

A win this afternoon would put the Canadiens ahead of the Sens in the Northeast Division, and create a really nice battle for first in the division right before an impending faceoff with the Boston Bruins on Wednesday.

The Canadiens were trounced on the scoreboard and in possession while the game was close against the Senators, but it’s a different story at the Bell Center this year. The Habs are the top team in the league by possession on home ice.

The big difference maker for Ottawa on Wednesday was Erik Karlsson, no surprise there, but we can’t write of Craig Anderson.

Anderson’s league leading .968 save percentage isn’t sustainable in the least, and today would be a great day for some regression to the mean!

Since we just faced Ottawa a couple days ago, there isn’t really much to cover between the two teams that we haven’t already gone through. The Senators are going to be without Jason Spezza for a long time as he needs back surgery.

The biggest differences between this game and the one on Wednesday though, are the additions of P.K. Subban and Max Pacioretty to the lineup. Pacioretty isn’t a sure thing yet, but Michel Therrien said he was probable last night. The addition of the Canadiens’ two best possession players along with home ice advantage should swing things solidly in the Habs’ direction.

Read up on the last game against the Senators in the Game 6 Story Stream, and check out our Sens fan buddies at Silver Seven Sens for coverage from their perspective.

If you’re in Montreal for the game, there are Montreal Canadiens tickets available for as low as $39.

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