Can Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky continue their torrid pace against one of the league's best teams, the New York Rangers?
GAME DAY PREVIEW | Montreal Canadiens (22-23-8) vs New York Rangers (34-16-3)
GAME DAY: Montreal Canadiens vs New York Rangers.Game Preview
Roster News
Brendan Gallagher returns to the lineup after serving a five-game suspension.
Sam Montembeault (12-8-4 / 3.06 GAA / .908 SV%) is the confirmed starter for Montreal.
Last Game
The Canadiens played a complete game dominating the Ducks and giving their fans a rare complete victory.
Last game: MTL 5 vs ANA 0 | F
Players to Watch
- Brendan Gallagher - Gallagher has not played since January 25th when he elbowed Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech.
Matchup for Game 54, Away Game 26
Madison Square Garden, New York City, NY. | February 15, 7:00 PM ET | TV: TSN2, RDS, MSG, ESPN
Pre-Game
Brendan Gallagher
- "I’ve played this game for a long time; I’ve never been suspended. I don’t think it’s something that’s going to recur. I'm really looking forward to [returning]; it was a long time off. It's been about three weeks away from the game. I'm eager to be around the guys, get back to playing. You miss it."
Projected Canadiens Lineup (subject to change)
Forwards
22 Cole Caufield - 14 Nick Suzuki - 20 Juraj Slafkovsky
70 Tanner Pearson - 71 Jake Evans - 17 Josh Anderson
89 Joshua Roy - 15 Alex Newhook - 40 Joel Armia
55 Michael Pezzetta - 74 Brandon Gignac - 11 Brendan Gallagher
Defensemen
8 Mike Matheson - 21 Kaiden Guhle
47 Jayden Struble - 58 David Savard
72 Arber Xhekaj - 26 Johnathan Kovacevic
Goaltenders
Starter: 35 Sam Montembeault (12-8-4 / 3.06 GAA / .908 SV%)
Alternate: 34 Jake Allen
Out of the lineup
Scratches: Cayden Primeau, Jesse Ylonen
Injuries: Carey Price (knee), Chris Wideman (back), Kirby Dach (knee), Christian Dvorak (upper body), Rafael Harvey-Pinard (lower body), Jordan Harris (upper body)
Visiting Bench
This is the second meeting this season between the Rangers and Canadiens. Montreal beat New York 4-3 in a shootout on January 6th at the Bell Centre with Cole Caufield scoring the game-deciding goal.
Rangers have won five straight games and have earned points in seven of their last eight games (6-1-1.)
Vincent Trocheck has the highest faceoff percentage in the NHL at 61.9 percent.
Alex Belzile has played 43 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL this season. Belzile has not played a game for the Rangers.
Jonathan Quick (12-4-2 / 2.27 GAA / .919 SV%) is the confirmed starter for the Rangers. Quick has won three consecutive starts.
Game Expectations
The Canadiens will be in tough against the Rangers, who hold the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.
Be sure to bookmark THN.com/Montreal for year-round coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, Laval Rocket, and Habs prospects playing in leagues around the world.
Gretzky Signature Series.