Game 33: Montreal Canadiens @ Chicago Blackhawks
Start time: **8:30 PM EST / 5:30 PM PST**
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Blackhawks region: NBC Sports Chicago
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN
Last season, the Montreal Canadiens had a record of 1-5-1 in their road trip that spans the NHL’s Christmas break. The year prior, the first after getting back to the usual schedule following a temporary realignment due to COVID, the Habs went 1-5-4 on a road trip that got extended by pandemic protocols in the province of Quebec. Through just two of the seven consecutive games they’ll play away from the Bell Centre between mid-December and early January, they’ve already gotten out to a 1-0-1 start, matching their win total from the last two seasons, and their point total from a season ago.
After knocking off two of the NHL’s three biggest teams by average height — the New York Islanders and Winnipeg Jets — a young Habs team strode into Xcel Energy Center last night to take on a resurgent Minnesota Wild team. Despite going down 2-0 in the first period, the Canadiens came back to tie the game on two occasions, and earned a point from an overtime defeat to run their point streak to four games in a stretch when they’ve achieved at least a point in nine of their last 13 games.
To cap off this opening leg on the road, they make the trip from St. Paul to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks. Chicago is coming off a win over the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday, but the rebuilding team has only strung consecutive wins together on one occasion in a season off to a 10-20-1 start.
“If we find a way to win the game tomorrow, we’re in a pretty good spot going into the break,” Brendan Gallagher said last night after the Wild game. The alternate captain sounds eager to end the opening part of the season on a high note, a feeling that should be shared by all of his linemates.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Blackhawks |
|---|---|---|
| 14-13-5 | Record | 10-20-1 |
| 46.3% (28th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 42.5% (31st) |
| 2.71 (27th) | Goals per game | 2.35 (31st) |
| 3.32 (22nd) | Goals against per game | 3.55 (29th) |
| 18.0% (21st) | PP% | 11.9% (29th) |
| 73.2% (28th) | PK% | 74.5 (26th) |
| 1-0-0 | Head-to-Head Record | 0-1-0 |
That would require the first win in the second half of a back-to-back this season, but the Habs have already broken from their trend in games started within a 24-hour period by coming up short in the first one. They may as well break the pattern the latter half as well.
They’ve fared well versus the Blackhawks in the last two seasons, which isn’t all that surprising or rare given the teardown of the organization. Montreal has won its last three meetings with Chicago, including in the second game of this season when they got a 3-2 win on home ice. For Chicago, even hitting that two-goal mark has been a tough ask recently. Without a competitive roster, they’ve managed no more than one goal six times in their last 10 games.
Even with the overall lack of scoring, Connor Bedard has 10 points in that span, up to 28 in 31 games and on pace for 74 in his rookie year. After Bedard, the next-closest point-producer is Phlipp Kurashev with 17 in 24 games, a total that would rank fifth on Montreal’s roster. Bedard and Kurashev are the only two players scoring at better than a half-point-per-game rate.
There are still a lot of pieces left to add to the puzzle in Chicago before the club is in a position to compete again. The Canadiens are significantly farther along that path, especially with their own first overall pick on his way to reaching his potential, and the win is theirs for the taking before a five-day winter vacation.
