Game 50: Montreal Canadiens @ Washington Capitals
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Capitals region: Monumental Sports
Streaming: ESPN+, TSN+, RDS
The Montreal Canadiens organization emerges from its bye week one first-round pick richer but one veteran centreman poorer as Sean Monahan was traded to the Winnipeg Jets on February 2. The player who led the team in scoring in the month of January and was our player of the month is no longer around to bring his experience to a young team and pick up the bumper role on the power play he had been playing so well.
The 10 days off wasn’t quite enough time for Alex Newhook to be ready to play, and Brendan Gallagher still has four more games to serve of his suspension, so the team needed some forward reinforcements. Back up comes Lucas Condotta after being on the roster for the last game, and Brandon Gignac has been rewarded for his work in Laval with an NHL deal and seems poised to make his debut with the Canadiens tonight.
Even though Montreal just came back from an extended pause, there are three off days following this road game in Washington, so Martin St-Louis can lean heavily on his top six if he chooses to ease Gignac into the action.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Capitals |
|---|---|---|
| 20-21-8 | Record | 22-18-7 |
| 44.4% (30th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 47.1% (24th) |
| 2.69 (28th) | Goals per game | 2.38 (30th) |
| 3.49 (27th) | Goals against per game | 3.02 (13th) |
| 19.9% (19th) | PP% | 14.5% (27th) |
| 73.5% (29th) | PK% | 79.7% (17th) |
| 1-0-0 | Head-to-Head Record | 0-0-1 |
Like the Pittsburgh Penguins the Canadiens faced in the last game before the All-Star break, the Washington Capitals are struggling to maintain their contender status in the final years of their all-time superstar’s career. But while Sidney Crosby is still leading his squad’s play on the ice, Alexander Ovechkin has fallen off in a major way. He may be tied for the team scoring lead, but that total is only 31 points. He has just nine goals through 44 games, ranking fourth on his own team, at the same time he’s a club-worst -17.
The only reason why the Capitals can still be mentioned among playoff hopefuls has been the play of former Habs goaltender Charlie Lindgren. He’s posted a .916 save percentage on a team that gets outplayed on most nights, stealing more than his share of points through 20 starts with a 9-6-4 record.
Unfortunately for the Capitals, even the play of their netminder has slipped following his injury in late December. Lindgren has allowed 11 goals in his last two games, two of the three times he’s allowed five goals or more all season. Without superhuman performances in goal, Washington has won only five of 17 games since the holiday break. The team is trending in the wrong direction, and they’re showing few signs of turning that around.
