Tonight marks what could be Marc-Andre Fleury's last game ever played in Montreal. After opening the season with a 41-save shutout last week, Filip Gustavsson got the start in Toronto against the Maple Leafs two days later. Unfortunately for Gustavsson and the Wild, the Leafs scored seven goals in Minnesota's 7-4 loss. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/minnesota-wild/game-day/wild-fail-to-control-maple-leafs-stars-in-7-4-loss] It wasn't all on Gustavsson though as the Wild shot themselves in the foot a little bit with some poor defensive play. But they will look to rebound against the Montreal Canadiens tonight with Marc-Andre Fleury in net. For Fleury, a native of Sorel, Que., it could be his final visit to La Belle Province. "I'm looking forward to it," Fleury told the media after practice yesterday about possibly playing in his last game in Montreal. "It's always been a special place for me to play in. I've always been a big hockey fan, Canadiens fan, it's an honor playing in this building." Marc-Andre Fleury is set to play in what could be his last ever game in Montreal. [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAxNTQzNjQ5MTc4MTY2NjU3/usatsi_21523299.jpg] Marc-Andre Fleury is set to play in what could be his last ever game in Montreal. Fleury is currently chasing down Quebec native Patrick Roy for second in all-time wins. Fleury is seven wins away from tying Roy and is 44 games played away from tying Roy for third all-time. "I've been asked about it a few times in a few days," Fleury said on day one of training camp. "I don't want to jinx it, that would be cool though, he's such an icon to me and too many kids. He's such a great goalie, it would be an honor just to be mentioned in the same sentence with him. That would be something that's pretty cool." It would be pretty special for Fleury to record his 545th win in Montreal which is about an hour away from where he was born. It is expected that Fleury will have lots of friends and family in attendance which makes sense. The Wild won't play in Montreal after this game and with this being the final year of Fleury's contract, signs point to this game being his last game played in a town that is basically his home. Not only is it a cool moment for Fleury, but it's a move the Wild should make regardless of the records Fleury is chasing. After allowing seven to the Leafs, the Wild should make a goalie change. But Fleury hasn't played in a game since October 5th when he stopped 27 out of 29 in a shootout win against the Chicago Blackhawks in the Wild's second to last preseason game of the year. "His last game was fantastic," Wild head coach Dean Evason told the media in Montreal yesterday. "He's practiced very well and obviously we would've liked to get him in but when Gus has a shutout it's tough to go away from that. "We've talked to our goaltenders, they will dictate who will play and we have no reason to believe Fleury won't continue to play as well as he did last game." The Wild need to avoid another bad game and Fleury should give them a good chance at doing so. We saw the Wild start slow last year and know that they don't want to this year. Well, quite frankly, the Wild can't afford to start slow this year especially with the injuries to Jared Spurgeon and Matt Boldy, so look for Fleury to provide a much needed spark to this Wild team. REQUIRED READING
