Game 57: Montreal Canadiens @ Pittsburgh Penguins
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Penguins region: Sportsnet Pittsburgh
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN
With both Kirby Dach and Christian Dvorak out long term, the Montreal Canadiens have been trying to fill the hole in the middle of a fourth line with some of the players from the Laval Rocket. Lucas Condotta and Brandon Gignac have been tried in that role in recent weeks, but it was clear that the team needed an NHL player to occupy the spot. Today, they found that on the waiver wire in the form of Colin White, who just happened to be picked up by the team that would play his previous club the same night.
You can expect a bump from the player who spent the night wondering if he’d be on his way to the AHL and instead finds out he has a chance to make an immediate response to the team that didn’t thing he was good enough to play on its roster. White only played 11 games for the Penguins and had no points, but he does have 113 points in 303 career games, so the potential is there for him to have a say in the contest.
Juraj Slafkovský is going to be the main player to watch on Montreal’s side. He’s now had two frustrating games in a row, and wants to quickly right the ship and get back to the dominant form he’s enjoyed for a month now. He had a goal on five shots the last time the two teams met.
Cayden Primeau gets the start as the rotation continues in Montreal’s crease. He is coming off his first ever shutout nine days ago versus Anaheim, though you have to expect he’ll face more that 13 shots versus Pittsburgh tonight.
Montreal Canadiens projected lineup
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| #22 Cole Caufield | #14 Nick Suzuki | #20 Juraj Slafkovský |
| #89 Joshua Roy | #35 Alex Newhook | #17 Josh Anderson |
| #40 Joel Armia | #71 Jake Evans | #11 Brendan Gallagher |
| #70 Tanner Pearson | #36 Colin White | #56 Jesse Ylönen |
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| #8 Mike Matheson | #21 Kaiden Guhle |
| #72 Arber Xhekaj | #58 David Savard |
| #47 Jayden Struble | $54 Jordan Harris |
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| #30 Cayden Primeau | #34 Jake Allen |
Injured: Kirby Dach, Christian Dvorak, Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, Chris Wideman
Scratched: Johnny Kovacevic, Samuel Montembeault, Michael Pezzetta
Pittsburgh Penguins projected lineup
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Rickard Rakell | Sidney Crosby | Bryan Rust |
| Drew O’Connor | Evgeni Malkin | Matthew Phillips |
| Reilly Smith | Lars Eller | Valtteri Puustinen |
| Jansen Harkins | Jeff Carter | Jesse Puljujarvi |
| Left Defence | Right Defence |
|---|---|
| Pierre-Olivier Joseph | Kris Letang |
| Marcus Pettersson | Erik Karlsson |
| Ryan Graves | Chad Ruhwedel |
| Starter | Backup |
|---|---|
| Tristan Jarry | Alex Nedeljkovic |
